In 1917, the Willamette Valley was lined with a sea of plum orchards -- and canned prunes were shipped by the caseload out of the Pacific Northwest. A good portion of the hardy fruit was processed at what is now the Truitt Bros, Inc., cannery on 1105 Front Street in Salem. Originally operating as a dehydrating plant and a cannery, the plant provided staple food ­ green beans, berries and plums -- for World War I armed forces. Over the course of the next 55 years, the cannery would churn out canned peaches, plums, strawberries, green beans, cherries and pears. Various entities ­ Reid Murdock, Monarch Foods and Consolidated Foods Corporation -- each owned and ran the cannery for a period of time, preserving its function and reputation as a low-cost packer.

The cannery was used as a production outpost, with little oversight or engagement from its remote corporate owners.

As the farming landscape of the Willamette Valley shifted, from plum orchards, to berries to row crops, canning remained the food preservation method of choice. The 1950s witnessed the height of the Willamette Valley’s period of productiveness, and Salem was home to 10 food processing plants necessary to process and ship all of the region’s fruits and vegetables.

The cannery began freezing berries in the 1960s as demand for cherries, strawberries and blueberries increased. In the 1980s, the valley’s berry production waned as California began to dominate the strawberry industry.

With a longer growing season and no need to replant every few years, the warmer climes were more conducive. Over time, the valley’s orchards have given way to more row crops and widening urban growth boundaries that have encroached on agricultural production up and down the Willamette Valley.