Mupu Citrus

Yesterday, I mentioned the wall decorations in one of the posted pictures. Today is about those decorations.

Growing up, I was well versed in the citrus industry, especially around Santa Paula. My father worked for Mupu Citrus, a Sunkist house for many years, and my Grandfather had a citrus ranch where I put in many hard working hours. In the summer, when I was younger, I worked for my Grandfather, hoeing weeds, irrigating, plowing and whatever was needed. When I got older I worked at Mupu building packing crates, then cleaning the waxing machine, as a driver hauling fruit from the orchards (that lasted about a month until I got run over by the truck) and finally in house, loading trucks and boxcars with cartons of fruit. And, of course, I smudged!! I did that for many years in high school and college.

When my dad retired, Betty and I had gone to San Francisco and found a shop that had crate labels. We found one from Mupu Citrus and gave it to my Dad for Christmas. For those of you that don't know what a crate label is, before cardboard became the norm, fruit was packed in wooden crates (see jobs held above) and a label from whichever house packed said fruit was pasted on each end. These labels are actually works of art and have become very collectible over the years. Some, such as some from Mupu Citrus, are pretty valuable due to rarity. This brings us to the decorations on the wall.

Wall Decoration
All of the crate labels framed on the wall are from Mupu Citrus.

Mupu Citrus labels not framed.
These labels are not as colorful as the ones on the wall, so I haven't framed them as yet. They are a major part of the history of Mupu Citrus though. I do have other labels from houses other then Mupu that are not framed.

Indian Theme
Mupu Citrus' name was derived from the Mupu Indians that previously lived in the Santa Paula area, therefore, these labels reflect that culture.

Labels based on location.
South Mountain is the southern boundary of the Santa Cara Valley, so that's where the label name came from, to that end, Mariposa is on the north side. The poppies, of course, reflect the California state flower, emphasizing the California citrus connection.

Crate lid and notepad
This is a lid from the top of a crate (I made many of these) and above that is a notepad with Sunkist on it. I found both of these on Ebay and really got them for a song. The significance of the notepad is that when my father was a field foreman for Mupu, he would use such a pad to estimate the amount of fruit expected from a particular orchard. When I saw this on Ebay, I compared the writing with my Dad's and concluded that this particular pad may have been his since the seller was from Fillmore. After I received it, I was more than convinced it was. Whether it was or wasn't, it is still worth having.

Well, hows that for a little history? Hopefully you learned a little something about Mupu Citrus and what a major role it played in my growing up.