Robinson's Feed Company
BY JUDI HACHMAN
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Longevity. For more than a hundred years, the Robinson family has been supplying area farmers with necessities to keep crops growing, animals fed and the water pumping.
In 1869, San Francisco native William James Robinson took a job in a grain farming operation in Antioch. When he married Helen Johnson in 1886, they farmed in Lathrop, California. Around 1900 they relocated in the Victor area, east of Lodi, farming and venturing into the dairy business. Although William remained in the dairy and grain business for only six years, he is credited with starting one of the first water pumping plants in the Lodi area.
As the area grew and prospered, Robinson saw a need to provide well-milled feed for cattle, horses and poultry, and in 1906 he started Robinson’s Feed and Fuel at the corner of Pine and Stockton Streets in Lodi.
Lodi grew, and so did Robinson’s. They moved the business to Main Street and Lodi Avenue, and William took in his son-in-law Judge E.L. Weaver and his 22-year-old son Willard as partners. The new facility included a public truck scale which is still in use today.
In the 1940s Willard assumed the reins of the family business. In 1946 he retired, turning the business over to his son Emory, his cousin LeRoy Weaver and his daughter and son-in-law Evelyn and Ed Olson. By the late 1950s Ed ran the whole operation.
During the 1940s Olson expanded Robinson’s to include a store in Galt, and later one in Clements/Lockeford. In the 1980s he added another dimension to the business with the addition of a Country Western Shop.
The Robinson family played an active role in the community of Lodi. Willard Robinson served on the Lodi City council in the 1950s, and was mayor in 1955 and 1956. He was also the first president of the San Joaquin County Historical Society.
Evelyn Olson was a Lodi City Councilwoman in the 1980s, and was named the Lodi Chamber of Commerce’s Outstanding Citizen of the Year in 1995. She also received the San Joaquin County Historical Society’s Golden Acorn Award for outstanding volunteerism.
The fourth generation to run Robinson’s Feed Co. is Olson’s son Rex. He is recognized for bringing the stores into the computer age, and expanding their inventory beyond pet food and farming supplies.
Today, Robinson’s Feed and Country Western Store has three locations in Lodi, Galt and Lockeford, and five generations of Robinsons have operated the business since its beginning 102 years ago.
In 1869, San Francisco native William James Robinson took a job in a grain farming operation in Antioch. When he married Helen Johnson in 1886, they farmed in Lathrop, California. Around 1900 they relocated in the Victor area, east of Lodi, farming and venturing into the dairy business. Although William remained in the dairy and grain business for only six years, he is credited with starting one of the first water pumping plants in the Lodi area.
As the area grew and prospered, Robinson saw a need to provide well-milled feed for cattle, horses and poultry, and in 1906 he started Robinson’s Feed and Fuel at the corner of Pine and Stockton Streets in Lodi.
Lodi grew, and so did Robinson’s. They moved the business to Main Street and Lodi Avenue, and William took in his son-in-law Judge E.L. Weaver and his 22-year-old son Willard as partners. The new facility included a public truck scale which is still in use today.
In the 1940s Willard assumed the reins of the family business. In 1946 he retired, turning the business over to his son Emory, his cousin LeRoy Weaver and his daughter and son-in-law Evelyn and Ed Olson. By the late 1950s Ed ran the whole operation.
During the 1940s Olson expanded Robinson’s to include a store in Galt, and later one in Clements/Lockeford. In the 1980s he added another dimension to the business with the addition of a Country Western Shop.
The Robinson family played an active role in the community of Lodi. Willard Robinson served on the Lodi City council in the 1950s, and was mayor in 1955 and 1956. He was also the first president of the San Joaquin County Historical Society.
Evelyn Olson was a Lodi City Councilwoman in the 1980s, and was named the Lodi Chamber of Commerce’s Outstanding Citizen of the Year in 1995. She also received the San Joaquin County Historical Society’s Golden Acorn Award for outstanding volunteerism.
The fourth generation to run Robinson’s Feed Co. is Olson’s son Rex. He is recognized for bringing the stores into the computer age, and expanding their inventory beyond pet food and farming supplies.
Today, Robinson’s Feed and Country Western Store has three locations in Lodi, Galt and Lockeford, and five generations of Robinsons have operated the business since its beginning 102 years ago.