The Historical Society of Avon ParkAVON PARK, FL · EST. 1886
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Closure of the Avon Park Crate Mill and the Elberta Crate Corporate Succession

For nearly a century, the industrial crate mill complex on Hatcher Avenue in southwest Avon Park served as a primary employer for the town’s African American and working-class population, manufacturing wire-bound wooden veneer crates, boxes, and hampers for Florida’s citrus and vegetable growers.[taplines-mutual] While modern railroad and industrial summaries noted that the mill was acquired by the Revell Crate Company in the mid-1950s and subsequently operated by the Elberta Crate & Box Company before standing silent, county land records, property appraisals, building permits, and labor filings document the exact timeline of the plant’s final three decades, its cessation of manufacturing, its 2016 liquidation, and its subsequent commercial conversion.[hcclerk-deed-875-397][hcclerk-deed-2521-153]

The industrial site: Section 26 and the railroad corridor

The mill site occupied an 8.16-acre industrial tract straddling the main railroad corridor in Section 26, Township 33 South, Range 28 East, directly adjacent to the historic Black residential community known as the Mill Quarters:[hcpao-hatcher-parcels]

  1. 224 Hatcher Avenue (Parcel A-26-33-28-A00-0030-0000): A 5.01-acre tract lying west of the railroad right-of-way in Lots 5 and 6 of Block 3, housing the primary veneer mill and manufacturing plants (including a 52,569-square-foot industrial manufacturing structure erected in 1970 and a 22,500-square-foot warehouse added in 1982).[hcpao-hatcher-parcels]
  2. 229 Hatcher Avenue (Parcel A-26-33-28-A00-0040-0000): A 3.15-acre tract lying east of the railroad right-of-way in Lots 3 and 6 of Block 3, historically reserved for log yards, sidings, and later expanded warehouse storage.[hcpao-hatcher-parcels]

Transition from Revell Crate to Elberta Crate (1986)

Following the 1930 receivership and 1933 liquidation of the original Mutual Crate Company, the plant was acquired in the mid-1950s by the Revell Crate Company of Wauchula, directed by Hardee County industrialist F. L. Revell.[taplines-mutual]

Although regional railroad histories previously conjectured that the mill was transferred to the Elberta Crate & Box Company in the 1990s, Highlands County deed books establish that the acquisition took place a decade earlier. On 5 March 1986, F. L. Revell, Jr. and K. D. Revell executed a warranty deed conveying the 5.01-acre main mill property to Elberta Crate & Box Co. of Bainbridge, Georgia, for a recorded consideration of $500,000 (Official Records Book 875, Page 397, Instrument #577984).[hcclerk-deed-875-397]

Under Elberta Crate, the plant continued producing specialized wire-bound wooden containers, pallets, and agricultural crates for regional produce shippers.[iam-elberta-2008] On 14 June 2004, Elberta Crate expanded the site by purchasing the adjacent 3.15-acre parcel east of the tracks (229 Hatcher Avenue) from Florida Power Corporation / Progress Energy Florida Inc. for $48,300 (OR Book 1767, Page 596).[hcclerk-deed-1767-596] The company promptly erected a 36,652-square-foot commercial warehouse and office building on the east tract in 2005 (subsequently confirmed by a corrective deed in March 2012, OR Book 2317, Page 1108).[hcpao-hatcher-parcels]

Labor disputes and the 2008 shutdown phase

By the late 2000s, wooden crate manufacturing was in steep economic decline across Florida as citrus and vegetable packers shifted almost entirely to corrugated cardboard cartons and plastic reusable containers.

In May 2008, forty production workers at the Avon Park mill, organized under Local W356 of the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers (IAM), unanimously rejected a proposed contract from Elberta Crate management.[iam-elberta-2008] Union officials pointed out that the wages offered by the company failed to meet the federal poverty line for a family of three and that Avon Park workers earned approximately $1.30 per hour less than employees performing identical tasks at Elberta Crate’s Bainbridge, Georgia plant.[iam-elberta-2008] In addition, the union documented severe workplace safety concerns and filed formal unfair labor practice charges with Region 12 of the National Labor Relations Board (NLRB), which scheduled hearings for August 2008.[iam-elberta-2008]

During this same period, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) cited the Avon Park facility for multiple workplace safety violations.[iam-elberta-2008] Crushed by labor disputes, regulatory penalties, and the collapse of Florida citrus acreage following citrus canker and greening (huanglongbing), active crate assembly operations ceased shortly thereafter.

Liquidation and real property transfer (2016)

Elberta Crate & Box Company retained legal title to the idle Hatcher Avenue real estate until the spring of 2016.

On 30 March 2016, Elberta Crate formally exited Highlands County by executing a warranty deed conveying both parcels (224 and 229 Hatcher Avenue, comprising 8.16 total acres) to 224-229 Hatcher Avenue, LLC for $108,000 (Official Records Book 2521, Page 153, Instrument #1808835).[hcclerk-deed-2521-153] The modest sale price—less than a quarter of what Elberta had paid for the main tract thirty years prior—reflected the decommissioning of mill machinery, the cessation of industrial manufacturing, and the vacant state of the premises.

Modern adaptive reuse (2017 to present)

On 12 January 2017, 224-229 Hatcher Avenue, LLC conveyed the entire complex to Sebring-based commercial real estate firm Florida Realco LLC for $375,000 (Official Records Book 2561, Page 731, Instrument #1838599).[hcclerk-deed-2561-731]

Between 2018 and 2024, Highlands County building department records trace the transition of the former mill site into commercial storage, distribution, and building supply facilities:[hcbcc-permits-hatcher]

  • October–December 2018: Commercial miscellaneous and electrical service upgrades were installed at 224 Hatcher Avenue (Permits 18100006 and 18120233).[hcbcc-permits-hatcher]
  • May 2020: Heavy industrial electrical service was reconfigured on the west parcel (Permit 20050267).[hcbcc-permits-hatcher]
  • June 2023 to October 2024: Extensive commercial interior renovations, security perimeter fencing, structural foundation additions, commercial signage, and life-safety systems were installed at 229 Hatcher Avenue (Permits 23060301, 24050777, 24100236, 24100718, and 24120131) to accommodate the opening of a wholesale commercial building and roofing supply depot operated by ABC Supply Co. Inc.[hcbcc-permits-hatcher]

Today, while the 1970 and 1982 industrial mill buildings at 224 Hatcher Avenue remain standing under light industrial classification, the site’s century-long era as an active wooden crate mill concluded with Elberta Crate’s 2008 operational cessation and 2016 deed liquidation.[hcclerk-deed-2521-153][hcpao-hatcher-parcels]

References

Where this comes from

Evidence
corroborated — More than one independent source agrees.
Review
unverified — Drafted from sources but not yet checked by a volunteer.
Rights
society

Sources

  1. Highlands County Clerk of Courts, Highlands County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Official Records Book 875, Page 397 (Warranty Deed, 5 March 1986, Instrument #577984) (1986) · official
  2. Highlands County Clerk of Courts, Highlands County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Official Records Book 1767, Page 596 (Warranty Deed, 14 June 2004, Instrument #1254453) (2004) · official
  3. Highlands County Clerk of Courts, Highlands County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Official Records Book 2521, Page 153 (Warranty Deed, 30 March 2016, Instrument #1808835) (2016) · official
  4. Highlands County Clerk of Courts, Highlands County Clerk of the Circuit Court and Comptroller, Official Records Book 2561, Page 731 (Warranty Deed, 12 January 2017, Instrument #1838599) (2017) · official
  5. Highlands County Property Appraiser, Highlands County Property Appraiser, Parcels A-26-33-28-A00-0030-0000 (224 Hatcher Ave) and A-26-33-28-A00-0040-0000 (229 Hatcher Ave), Avon Park, Florida (2026) · official
  6. Highlands County Building Department, Highlands County Board of County Commissioners, Building Department Permit Portal, Parcels A-26-33-28-A00-0030-0000 and A-26-33-28-A00-0040-0000 (2026) · official
  7. International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, Florida Members Reject Elberta Crate Contract, IAMAW Woodworkers Department Report, 20 May 2008 (2008) · secondary
  8. Donald R. Hensley, Jr., Mutual Crate Company of Avon Park, FL (2020) · secondary

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