Updated: September 16, 2008
rom
1885 to the mid-1950, colorful
paper labels, pasted on the
wooden orange crates, were
shipped all over the nation. Each
packinghouse had several different
labels to promote their fruit. The
labels identified the grade
and brand of the fruit. There
were over 8,000 label designs. Among
the brand names were Golden
Surprise, Atlas, Pasadena
Luscious,
King, Sunshine, Have One,
Mercury,
and Orange Queen.
A
snow-capped mountain with
orange groves and palm trees
was a popular image. Other
images included birds and
animals, landscapes, airplanes
and other forms of transportation,
Native Americans, Egyptian
scenes, ships, sports, military
figures, cowboys, women, literary
figures, including Huck Finn
and Cinderella, children,
the California Missions, and
of course, oranges.
There
were labels featuring the
Mission Inn, including the
Parent Tree brand, the Rain
Cross brand, and the Mission
Inn brand. Pictured
on the Mission Inn label were
Joseph and Napoleon, the two
macaws who lived at the hotel
for many years. There
were at least two versions of
the Parent Tree brand. One
pictured the Washington Navel
tree planted by President Roosevelt
in 1903 and a small boy wearing
a sombrero in front of the “Old
Adobe.” The
second version pictured the
Companario (bell tower) in
the background, but no boy.
Over
35 printing companies (lithographers)
employed artists to create the
labels. Although
the artists rarely signed their
work, each artist had a particular
style and as a result, their work
is identifiable. In
mid-1950 the packinghouses switched
from wood to cardboard boxes to
ship the fruit. There
was no longer a need to produce
the labels. Printed directly on
the boxes was the information
identifying the grade or brand
of fruit. |
