Citrus Crate Label

ClassificationsPrinted Materials-labels

Date1920s

Made AtCalifornia, United States, North America

MediumPaper and ink

Credit LineGift of Gordon T. McClelland

Object number38380.3

DescriptionThis object is a crate label for Lochinvar Brand oranges. The label indicates that these oranges were grown and packed by Gold Buckle Association in East Highlands, San Bernardino County, California and distributed by Sunkist Growers, Inc. The label itself was printed by Schmidt Lithography Company in Los Angeles.

Along with other crops such as celery and lima beans, citrus groves began sprouting up all around Southern California in the late 19th century, leading to a boom in the citrus industry and earning the region an international reputation as a land of abundance. Following this theme, brands of citrus were given names that evoked wealth, prosperity, and romance. Combined with label design such as this depiction of a woman and armored knight riding on a medieval horse, the final result made the produce seem more luxurious and desirable to consumers. The name Lochinvar refers to a ballad within the narrative poem Marmion (1808) by Sir Walter Scott wherein the titular hero rides off with his beloved before she can be married to another.

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