TEXAS CITRUS & other labels
TEXAS CITRUS
Commercial citrus growing in Texas has been restricted to counties in the
Lower Rio Grande Valley. The first trees were planted in the late 1870s
north of Edinburg. By the mid 1890s, orange trees near Brownsville were
in full bearing. In 1910, the first serious commercial plantings were made,
and by 1920, the citrus industry was of considerable size. Some experiments
in the Galveston, Houston, and Beaumont areas suffered frost damage and
were not replanted. The citrus industry suffered several
setbacks, in the form of a hurricane in 1934 which caused extensive damage
and severe freezes around 1950. These freezes reduced the population of
trees from 14 million to 3-1/2 million. Grapefruits and oranges were planted
early, and with each disaster, came experimentation and change. Today, Texas and Arizona are important commercial citrus producing
states. Along with California, these regions are the leading citrus producing
land in the world.
The following list represents Texas citrus labels from more than 20 towns and cities. The earliest citrus labels known from date in the 1920s, although many may have existed before that.
Better' n Eve r 1/2 grft in llhc under title / cherry Pharr 5.00
Better' n Ever (blu) cut grft on clear plate above title Pharr 5.00
Better' n Ever (brn) cut grft on clear plate above title Pharr 8.00
Better' n Ever (red) cut grft on clear plate above title Pharr 8.00
Blue Ribbon bold title on blue; 2 fruits below Mercedes 8.00
Blue Ribbon (stock) blue compote w/ oranges; orchard scene Mercedes 35.00
Bob's Extra bold red & yellow title on blue McAllen 6.00
Bonita white script title on grn/blk bkgrnd Weslaco 8.00
Bonita blu/wht title above 1-1/2 grapefruits Weslaco 10.00
Donnatex blue bent title over 2 cut grapefruits Donna 8.00
Double D big red/ylo "D" on blue background Donna 5.00
Embassy fancy sign on yellow brick wall Weslaco 18.00
Frenchy french cartoon chef holds 1/2 grft La Feria 35.00
Gold Mine (bronze) state of Texas tilted w/ wht title Pharr 10.00
Grand Prize wht/red bold title across blk; ribbon belo Pharr 15.00
Grand Prize gold title/blu ribbon on blk square Pharr 10.00
Grandstand diagonal image of cartoon drum major Pharr 8.00
Hartner's Perfect Pack big red heart in center of round label Denver 15.00
Inside Quality happy black-woman w/ red bandana La Feria 15.00
Mar V Lus big "V" center of title; eagle logo above McAllen 18.00
McAllen ylo tilted title on big blue star McAllen 10.00
Mex-Rio pretty girl's face; rose; bent title; oran La Feria 10.00
Mex-Rio (7x7) pretty girl's face; rose; bent title; oran La Feria/Tamps 8.00
Military hat,gloves,sword; red/wht title on blu Weslaco 40.00
More Gold ylo/wht title angled across purple label Pharr 5.00
Morning Judge colorful deco-type rooster crowing title Donna 10.00
Night Rider cowboy gallops horse in front of moon La Feria 15.00
Patriotic ribbons , eagles, banners, shield. Nice La Feria 25.00
Pattison's blue compote w/ oranges; orchard scene Harlingen 25.00
Progreso wht title on red panel; 2 fruits above Progreso 5.00
Progreso wht title on red panel; 2 fruits above Progreso 8.00
PT (several types!) yellow PTon blue label, w/ fruit in front Mission 3.00
Radiant Red mission bldg. cartoon King with crown Mission 12.00
Rio Moon 2 cartoon kids & dog on bench; moon !!! Edinburg 70.00
Rio Roya l red draps pulled aside, reveal aerial view McAllen 45.00
Road Runne r big yellow delivery truck; bird on title Weslaco 135.00
Rogers (5 types) red/ylo/wht title on blue; 1/2 grft Weslaco 5.00
Royal (limes) 7 ylo limes, lt. blue title on blk label Laredo 15.00
San Roman red/ylo title across blue label Los Fresnos 6.00
Shirley fruit radiates blue rays; title across top Weslaco 10.00
SOS red/ylo title on blue; 3 lightning bolts Raymondville 4.00
Southern blk/wht title across violet label Alamo 7.00
Sparkle 7 wooden letters w/ glitter glued on them Mercedes 20.00
Stampede 2 cowboys on horses in cattle stampede Pharr 65.00
Sterling red title above grove scene; inset plate New York 25.00
Stock Label #1140 1/2 grft on old blue plate, blu info panel 5.00
Stock Label #183 ylo,red,grn leaves, grouping of citrus 6.00
Stock Label #184 cut.whole grft, big brn vase, on target 6.00
Stock Label # 5007 (w/ ad!) oval yello info panel on plaid, grn ribbon 5.00
Stock Label #7094 beautiful bayou grove scene, palms, fruit 8.00
Stock Label #8028 grft, orange, mandarin, blossoms. Nice! 8.00
Stock Label # 840 pretty 1/2 grft on plate, sky, grove scene 14.00
Stock Label #926 fruits in beautiful bowl, groves, skyNice! 12.00
Stock Label #926 grft, orange, 1/2 grft, branch 10.00
Stock Label #935 Blue compote w/ fruit, groves in distance 15.00
Sun Rich wht title in blk panels on jewel sunburst Mission 25.00
Sun Up Lemons big target-sunburst with title aiming into Elsa 15.00
SweeTex wht title in red strip; wavy blue strip Weslaco 12.00
Sweetmex smiling girl w/ grn necklace holds sign Weslaco 10.00
Tex Doe (4 types) young deer reaching into tree for grft Brownsville 35.00
Tex Doe (4 types) young deer reaching into tree for oranges Brownsville 35.00
Tex Rio pretty smiling girl w/ sombrero/ red beads La Feria 25.00
Tex Rio (7X7) pretty smiling girl w/ sombrero/ red beads La Feria 15.00
Tex Shore red/wht title on blue; 1/2 grft Brownsville 6.00
Tex-Pink 1/2 grft on clear glass plate Mission 10.00
Texas Beauty vanishing gold/brn title on blue ; Star cn Mercedes 14.00
Texas Belle vanishing gold/blu title on red; bell cntr Mercedes 12.00
Texas Citrus Fruit blue compote w/ 2 oranges; grove; grft Edinburg 35.00
Texas Girl smiling woman hold bunch of orangest Mission 25.00
Texas Girl smiling woman hold bunch of grapefruit Mission 25.00
Texas Grande blu title on wht; Tex. map below w/ fruits San Benito 30.00
Texas Moon Man on horse lights cigarette; cows,moon Donna 18.00
TexaSweet brn/wht title angles across blue; map Mission 10.00
Top Stock title spelled in rope; cow head on "O" Pharr 18.00
Tropic Moon palms, water, moon, shore in shadows Edinburg 28.00
Tropic Valley (stock) blue compote w/ 2 oranges; groves Edinburg 35.00
Trueheart white title on big red heart McAllen 17.00
Vita-sweet diag title w/ 5 lightning bolts behind Pharr 35.00
Well-Known for a good pack big red arrow (diag.) w/ title Pharr 10.00
White Wing pigeon on limb Harlingen 30.00
Woodroof's framed title Edinburg 6.00
(Page last updated: 8/19/99)