Bentonville/Blocher Evaporator - S. E. 3rd St.  - The photo below shows wagons waiting to unload apples at Blocher Evaporator, in Bentonville Arkansas. The plant was built in 1888 as Bentonville Evaporator Company and was later sold to Jim Blocher. The evaporator operated each season, with the exception of a few years where the apple crop totally failed, giving hundreds of jobs to local laborers and affording a market for apples between the top and lower grades. When first built, the evaporator could process 800 bushels of apples a day. According to Mr. Blocher, the plant at its peak value represented an investment of about $15,000. The reason given for closing the evaporator was a decline in the use of dried fruits, and the increase in wages made it impossible to make a profit.  The evaporator was razed in January of 1941.