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Arndt Prune Dryer

1898 establishments in Washington (state)Agricultural buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic PlacesAgricultural buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Washington (state)Buildings and structures completed in 1898Buildings and structures in Clark County, Washington
National Register of Historic Places in Clark County, Washington
Arndt Prune Dryer Ridgefield Washington
Arndt Prune Dryer Ridgefield Washington

The Arndt Prune Dryer is a specialized agricultural building in Ridgefield, Washington. Built about 1898, it is one of the last traditional farm-built prune dryer buildings in Washington, using a wood fire and natural draft to dry locally grown fruit. Prunes were a major crop in the Vancouver region, as the dried fruit could be shipped economically to markets without refrigeration or spoilage.The prune dryer is a one-story wood-frame building, originally about 14 feet (4.3 m) by 15 feet (4.6 m), built for William Arndt by a carpenter. It was expanded to its present size of 230 feet (70 m) by 40 feet (12 m) in 1920 by Fred Arndt. The structure is gabled on its narrow ends, with a shed roofed extension to the rear and a similar extension on the front with a partial porch. The walls are clad with vertical wood siding. A small shed extension is attached to the rear gable. The shake roof is crowned by a tall, narrow wood ventilator with a gabled cap that runs perpendicular to the main roof ridgeline. The whole structure rests on squared stone piers, raising it above the slope of the hillside to allow access to the furnace for stoking. The original site-built furnace was replaced in 1954 by a cast iron "Hercules" furnace taken from another prune dryer. Another stove is located outside to heat water for prune processing. The Arndt Prune Dryer was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 4, 1979. The surrounding lands still have mature prune trees, some planted in the 1890s.

Excerpt from the Wikipedia article Arndt Prune Dryer (License: CC BY-SA 3.0, Authors, Images).

Arndt Prune Dryer
Northwest 219th Street,

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N 45.77867 ° E -122.6936 °
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Arndt Prune Dryer

Northwest 219th Street 2109
98642 , Fairgrounds
Washington, United States
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Arndt Prune Dryer Ridgefield Washington
Arndt Prune Dryer Ridgefield Washington
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Gee Creek (Washington)

Gee Creek is a 4th order tributary to the Columbia River, a.k.a. small creek, within Clark County, Washington named for William Gee, an early pioneer upon whose land the stream arose from. The Upper Gee Creek watershed, with an 8.7-square-mile (23 km2) drainage basin, is completely located within the Ridgefield quadrangle. The mainstem extends approximately 11.5 miles (18.5 km), of which 4.9 miles (7.9 km) are located within the Upper Gee Creek basin. Originating in the hills along Interstate 5, through Ridgefield, Washington and empties into a series of lakes on the Columbia River Floodplain. Abrams Park in Ridgefield is a local access point for Gee Creek and since 2003, has had a stream flow gauge installed to collect hydrological data. The lowest segment of Gee Creek meanders for 3 miles (4.8 km) through the Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge. In the spring of 2006, the United States Fish and Wildlife Service and WSU Clark County Extension initiated the Gee Creek Watershed Restoration project, a joint effort to provide new funding to support and expand watershed enhancement efforts in partnership with the Gee Creek Enhancement Committee, Friends of Ridgefield National Wildlife Refuge, the Lower Columbia River Estuary Partnership, the City of Ridgefield, area schools, and local residents. Federal, state, and county agencies provided advice and assistance. Currently, additional funding sources are being sought to sustain watershed restoration work in the years ahead. The Gee Creek project ended in December 2009.The upper portion of the watershed is currently rural-residential, but is bisected by I-5 and associated industrial development while the lower portion flows through the rapidly expanding City of Ridgefield. Recent data shows Gee Creek has poor stream health, most likely due to runoff from agricultural, developed, and residential areas. Over the past 160 years, the entire length of the creek has been subject to the combined effects of farming and urbanization. Accelerating growth will continue to change conditions in the watershed.