California Almond Growers Exchange Processing Facility

Somebody had to crack them. Almonds came out of the orchard in the shell and were opened by hand, which capped what any grower could sell, and the co-operative put up this shelling plant in 1915 with the first mechanical cracker in the world inside it. The California Almond Growers Exchange had formed five years before that, the first grower-owned marketing co-operative for the crop that actually worked. The machine is why almonds became an industry instead of a sideline.

What the plaque says

California Almond Growers Exchange Almond Processing Facility The California Almond Growers Exchange, founded in 1910, was the first successful grower-owned cooperative for marketing California almonds. It pioneered in many fields, including almond production, mechanization and marketing. The first structure on this property was built in 1915 and was designed to mechanize almond processing. This shelling plant was one of the earliest structures of its type, and contained the world's first mechanical cracker. California Registered Historical Landmark No. 967 Plaque placed by the State Department of Parks and Recreation in cooperation with the California Almond Growers Exchange, November 15, 1985

Where it stands

Worth the stop nearby

• Sacramento — 1.5 mi
  The Gold Rush river port that became the state capital, and jacked itself ten feet into the air to stop drowning.

More markers nearby

• Governor's Mansion — 0.5 mi
• Sutter's Landing — 0.7 mi
• State Indian Museum — 0.9 mi
• Site of First African Methodist Episcopal Church on the Pacific Coast — 0.9 mi