Manuscripts

The man and the tree : epic of the navel orange and Luther C. Tibbets

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Description: Mills' monograph covers her father's life including his move to Riverside, California, his navel orange crops, and the founding of the Riverside Land & Irrigating Company. Mills also spends much time on her father's legal troubles that eventually led to him losing the majority of his property. Mills talks in general about the navel orange industry in California, California history, Riverside, San Bernardino, irrigation, and John Wesley North. The monograph includes photographs and maps of land owned by Tibbets. Accompanying the monograph is two volumes of court transcripts of cases involving Tibbets, both in San Bernardino and Riverside from 1875 to 1899.
Type: Manuscripts(Opens in new tab)
Production date: 1942.
Call number: mssHM 67903-67905
Creator: Mills, Minnie Tibbets

Picking oranges, Riverside, California, U.S.A

Visual Materials

View of workers in an orange grove in Riverside, California, picking oranges from trees amid ladders and boxes of fruit crates lettered "Riverside Navel Orange Co."

photCL 555

First bearing orange tree in San Ber'no Co., Van Lenvan's orchard

Visual Materials

Rows of orange trees run from foreground into the distance on the ranch of Anson Van Leuven (or Van Lenvan) in San Bernardino, California.

photCL 74 (573)

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James Mills letter to H.W. Nixon

Manuscripts

Letter from James Mills, Jr., to H.W. Nixon of the Citrus Historical Committee giving a brief biography of Mills' father, James Mills Sr. The biography focuses on Mills Sr.'s experiences with the citrus industry in California, including his various business associates and organizations. Written on James Mills Orchards Company letterhead.

mssHM 73660

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Seedless Washington Navel Oranges

Visual Materials

The Citrus label collection contains more than 1,500 lithographed labels related to the California citrus industry in the United States from 1880 to 1960, with the bulk of the collection dating from 1890 to 1940. The vast majority of the collection consists of lithographed labels produced for Californian growers, packers, and distributors to identify brand names and packing locations on wooden shipping crates of oranges, lemons and grapefruits. Many of the labels were printed by Los Angeles and San Francisco lithographers. The collection includes a range of lithography techniques from crayon drawing and hand stippling to the use of Ben Day screen patterns and half-tone lithography. The collection also includes more than 100 examples with "bronzing," a printing technique where varnish is printed on the label, followed by a dusting of fine bronze powder. A significant number of labels are stamped on verso with a received date by the Fruit Growers Supply Company, and some include signatures of approval or notations about printing corrections. The collection provides a broad view of the development of citrus fruit advertising over time, and also touches upon topics of commerce, manufacturing, travel and tourism, and promotion of the western United States. In the earliest examples, themes include naturalistic designs of flowers, animals, women, historical subjects, and scenic landscapes. Brand names, simple designs, block letters, and geometric patterns dominate in later examples. Many of the labels depict orange groves, scenic views, or flowers, though the collection also includes a wide variety of imagery beyond these themes including Native Americans, transportation, children, and portraits of famous or fictional people.

ephCL S_53

Riverside orange groves

Visual Materials

Panoramic view of orange groves and agricultural crops in Riverside County, California.

photCL 555

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Parent Tree Brand

Visual Materials

Image of the parent naval orange tree planted by Theodore Roosevelt at the Mission Inn in Riverside, California. Mexican man wearing a sombrero and poncho stands at right.

ephJLC_CIT_000516

The man and the tree : epic of the navel orange and Luther C. Tibbets

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Picking oranges, Riverside, California, U.S.A

First bearing orange tree in San Ber'no Co., Van Lenvan's orchard

James Mills letter to H.W. Nixon

Seedless Washington Navel Oranges

Riverside orange groves

Parent Tree Brand