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About Us

The Citrus Label Society is a California-based club founded for the purpose of providing meeting places for citrus label collectors to gather together and exchange citrus box labels, enjoy special citrus-related programs, and to share information about the citrus industry. Today, it continues to provide venues in Southern California for these gatherings and also provides this website contact for those who live too far away to attend the meetings. The location of the next meeting place is posted on the home page of this website. Visitors are always welcome. You do not have to be a member to attend the meetings and you do not have to be a citrus label collector to attend. Just show up at the time and place listed and have a great time.

The hobby of collecting citrus box labels dates as far back as 1900, but it wasn’t until the early 1970s that label collecting began to catch on in a big way. By the mid-1970s, a few nationally published magazines and many West Coast magazine and newspaper publications ran feature articles on citrus box labels and the hobby of collecting them. This fueled interest in them and led to several unsuccessful attempts at forming collectors clubs.

Lorne Allmon
Lorne Allmon

In 1981, the Citrus Label Society was formed. Several people were involved in the development of this club, but it was clearly Lorne Allmon of Riverside who was the founder of the Citrus Label Society, and it was through his many years of dedicated service that this club remained operational. Right at his side through the seminal years of development was Floyd McDonald of San Bernardino. When these two gentleman stepped down, Noel Gilbert of Fullerton and Tom Spellman of Upland stepped up and have carried on as dedicated leaders.

Shortly after the society was established, Lorne Allmon began publishing The Citrus Peal newsletter. It was developed as a four- to six-page newsletter to advise members where and when the CLS was going to have the next meeting. Discussions of what happened at previous meetings were documented, along with information regarding citrus industry history. Other CLS members, including Linda Mackie of Huntington Beach, carried on as editor of the publication after Allmon retired, and most recently, member Jim Campos of Carpenteria provided the Society with a colorful and informative version of The Citrus Peal.

When the Internet came along, members Jeff and Rose Dillon of Palm Desert set up a website for the Citrus Label Society. For a number of years, they did a great job of operating the site. Through their efforts the club was able to reach many more people and to achieve international exposure. After they stepped down, member John Bowen of Yorba Linda took over and made many contributions and readjustments to the site. He did an exemplary job serving as webmaster and editor during the time he filled those positions.

As of this year (2014), the Citrus Label Society has determined that there is not a need to print and mail The Citrus Peal newsletter. All the information it formerly provided members can be posted on the website. This will reduce expenses for the club and make the information readily available to all people who visit the site. Everything on the site will be printable, making it possible to easily obtain hard copies of the website content. Daralee Ota is serving as webmaster and Gordon McClelland is serving as editor.

As we continue into the 21st Century, the Citrus Label Society is doing what it originally set out to achieve. We are providing regular meeting locations, and are sharing and preserving historical information related to the citrus industry. Again, we welcome your participation and especially your physical attendance at our scheduled meetings where you will see hundreds of beautiful, original, old citrus labels, and meet others who are interested in these unique visual images that document California’s rich citrus heritage.