Crate Label, Wise Bird Brand, West Orange Citrus Growers, Vintage, 1940's

Before supermarkets. Before plastic wrap. Before everything was the same everywhere — there were crate labels.

This is an original Florida citrus crate label — a 1940s lithograph printed by Louis Roesch Co. of San Francisco for the West Orange Citrus Growers Association, Winter Park, Florida. It has never been used. Never folded. Never attached to a crate. It is New Old Stock in excellent condition.

The label is magnificent. A great horned owl — the archetypal Wise Bird — sits in sharp profile against a full moon, the night sky dark around them both. The composition is elemental: owl, moon, darkness. Louis Roesch Co., printing fine California labels since 1879, understood exactly what they had in this image — something ancient, beautiful, and slightly mysterious. The Wise Bird name leans into it completely. This owl does not merely decorate a label. It presides over one.

Frame it year-round as wildlife art, as a piece of nocturnal natural history, or as an elegant nocturne for a wall that deserves more than the expected. For those who celebrate Halloween, it is also one of the finest seasonal decor pieces in the crate label world — a genuine antique with the atmosphere of the holiday built directly into its imagery. At 9.0 by 9.0 inches it suits a standard 10x10 or 11x11 frame — the square format is unusual and makes it stand out in any gallery arrangement. One available.

A wonderful gift for an owl lover, a bird art collector, a Florida citrus history enthusiast, a Halloween decor collector, or anyone who wants something genuinely striking on their wall that carries a century of atmosphere.

A note on crate label collecting: Original lithographic crate labels from this era are increasingly scarce. NOS examples like this one — never used, never folded, in original unused condition — represent the best of what survives. Collectors prize them for their graphic quality and the window they open onto a vanished chapter of American agricultural and commercial history.

• Brand: Wise Bird Brand / West Orange Citrus Growers Association, Winter Park, Florida
• Lithographer: Louis Roesch Co., San Francisco, California (est. 1879)
• Type: Citrus crate label
• Made in: USA
• Dated: circa 1940s
• Dimensions: 9.0" wide | 9.0" tall
• Condition: New Old Stock (NOS) — unused, excellent condition. Age-appropriate yellowing on the reverse only. Please review all photos carefully — we cannot accept returns.
• Framing: Fits a standard 10x10 or 11x11 frame — ready to display