This packing shed, constructed in 1891, is one of the oldest farm buildings on the ranch. It was designed by James M. Creighton, a prominent architect in territorial Arizona.

Exactly how the shed was used is not known, but presumably, it was here that the figs, grapes, apricots, and peaches grown on the ranch were prepared for shipping.

In 1895 the first Thompson grapes were planted at Sahuaro Ranch, and soon the ranch had 130 acres of this variety, which is preferred for drying as raisins. At first, the grapes were shipped fresh to California, but in 1899 William Bartlett began drying his own raisins and selling them under the name of the Phoenix Raisin Seeding and Packing Co.

As citrus and cattle became the most important products at Sahuaro Ranch, this building was no longer used to pack fruit for shipping. By the 1930s it was being used to store grain and other agricultural supplies.

ON THE RANCH TODAY
The veranda, or covered porch, is a reconstruction of the original porch from the 1890s, but the rest of the building's exterior is original. The interior, which has been remodeled more than once, originally had a dirt floor. The concrete floor was added in the early 1950s.