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Guide to the University of California, Riverside, Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station records
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Title: University of California, Riverside, Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station records
Date (inclusive): circa 1808-2007, undated.
Date (bulk): 1910-1955
Collection Number: 042
Creator:
University of California Riverside. Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station.
Extent:
63.0 linear feet
(54 document boxes, 3 flat storage boxes, 8 glass plate negative boxes, 3 index card boxes, 1 lantern slide box, 2 map-case
folders, unboxed material)
Repository: Rivera Library. Special Collections Department.
Riverside, CA 92517-5900
Abstract: The Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station (CRC-AES) records collection contains administrative records,
correspondence, faculty papers, publications, scrapbooks, clippings, photographs, reports, project files, and other material
relating to CRC-AES. Formerly known as the Citrus Experiment Station (CES), the bulk of materials precede the establishment
of UC Riverside's College of Letters and Sciences in 1954. The majority of topics document the history, events, faculty, staff,
facilities, research, and experiments of CES. Materials related to CES research and experiments pertain to the physiology
and morphology of citrus, fig, date palm, avocado, and other subtropical crops, soil management, smog studies, pest control,
and diseases. A majority of citrus related publications and faculty papers were originally part of the former University of
California Graduate School of Tropical Agriculture and Citrus Experiment Station Library. Project files pertain to research
and experiments conducted by CES staff, faculty, and associated members. In addition, other subjects include the history of
the citrus and avocado industry in Southern California, the introduction of the first Washington navel orange tree, and global
production and marketing of citrus and subtropical agriculture.
Languages: The collection is in English.
This collection is open for research.
For preservation and safety concerns, the use of nitrate negatives in Sub-series 8.5 has been restricted. Please contact Special
Collections & Archives for additional information regarding this material.
Copyright has not been assigned to the University of California, Riverside Libraries, Special Collections & Archives. All
requests for permission to publish or quote from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Special Collections
& Archives. Permission for publication is given on behalf of the Regents of the University of California as the owner of the
physical items and is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by
the researcher.
[identification of item]. University of California, Riverside, Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station
records, Collection 042. University of California, Riverside Libraries, Special Collections & Archives, University of California,
Riverside.
Processed by History Associates Incorporated, 2013.
Processing of the University of California, Riverside, Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station records
was generously funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, and administered by the Council on Library and Information Resources
(CLIR). The University of California, Riverside was awarded a Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives grant from
2010-2013, "Uncovering California's Environmental Collections," in collaboration with eight additional special collections
and archival repositories throughout the state and the California Digital Library (CDL). Grant objectives included processing
of over 33 hidden collections related to the state's environment and environmental history. The collections document an array
of important sub-topics such as irrigation, mining, forestry, agriculture, industry, land use, activism, and research. Together
they form a multifaceted picture of the natural world and the way it was probed, altered, exploited and protected in California
over the twentieth century. Finding aids are made available through the Online Archive of California (OAC).
The Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station (CRC-AES) was established by the Regents of the University
of California on February 14, 1907. In the late 1800s, the citrus industry was quickly expanding in Southern California causing
the need for a research facility closer than the State Agricultural Experiment Station located in Berkeley. In 1899, John
Henry Reed, a citrus grower and member of the Riverside Horticultural Club, developed a proposal for the construction of an
experiment station in Riverside for the purpose of improving the growth and production of citrus crops. Over the next five
years, Reed and his fellow club members created petitions, acquired endorsements, and lobbied the California legislature to
have a station developed. In May 1906, a group of commissioners created to represent the UC Regents approved a plan that would
allow for the establishment of an organization with two separate branches: a laboratory in Whittier and an experiment station
in Riverside.
Initially known as the Rubidoux Laboratory, the Citrus Experiment Station (CES) was constructed on approximately 23 acres
of land on the eastern side of Mount Rubidoux in Riverside. Leased to the University of California from the Huntington Park
Association, the site was comprised of a few small buildings, two cottages, and a stable. To celebrate the opening of the
Citrus Experiment Station on January 27, 1907, Riverside staged the largest Farmers' Institute ever held in California at
that time. During its earliest days at the Rubidoux laboratory, CES had only two technically trained staff and few staff assistants,
with research limited to topics in soil management, irrigation, and fertilization for the improvement of citrus quality and
production.
In 1912, the retirement of Dean Wickson of the College of Agriculture and director of the State Agriculture Experiment Station
in Berkeley prompted a decision by the UC president and regents to consider a reorganization of the university’s agricultural
research and activities. In 1913, Herbert John Webber was appointed dean of the newly formed Graduate School of Tropical Agriculture
in Southern California as well as the new director of CES. In January of that year, a freeze in Southern California caused
a record loss in citrus crops, prompting the California Fruit Growers Exchange to lobby for an increase in citrus funding.
The result allowed for a new and larger citrus experiment station to be built. In 1914, Webber worked closely with the Riverside
Chamber of Commerce and city officials to convince the UC Regents to keep the station in Riverside instead of moving it to
the San Fernando Valley. On December 22, 1914, the regents voted 14 to 4 in favor of keeping the station in Riverside. The
dedication ceremony for the new Graduate School of Tropical Agriculture and citrus station took place on March 27, 1918 at
the new 475 acre site located at the foothills of the Box Springs Mountains, five miles east of the original Rubidoux site.
During his tenure, Webber recruited eleven scientists and organized six divisions within CES: agricultural chemistry, plant
physiology, plant pathology, entomology, plant breeding, and orchard management. In June 1917, Webber directed the installation
of experimental plots on the new site for the purpose of studying orange cultivation and fertilization. This was the start
of the citrus variety collection (CVC), one of the greatest citrus tree varieties collections worldwide. Some of the most
important achievements within CES during Webber’s directorship were in biological control, plant diseases, soils and plant
nutrition, and studies regarding mottle-leaf disease, the mealybug, and subtropical agriculture with a focus on avocados.
After Webber’s retirement in 1929, Leon D. Batchelor became the second director of CES. During his term, he focused on fertilizer
experiments and research on tristeza disease. Through the development of a new rootstock that was tristeza resistant, the
threat of extinction of California citrus trees was prevented. In 1932, the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA)
established a College of Agriculture and the Division of Subtropical Horticulture was transferred from Berkeley to Los Angeles.
Over the course of the next few years, divisions were transferred from Berkeley, Davis, and Riverside to Los Angeles. This
resulted in the Graduate School of Tropical Agriculture being discontinued in Riverside in 1939. In 1946, Webber and Batchelor
co-edited
The Citrus Industry, a two volume work regarding citrus growth, production, and distribution.
In 1951, Batchelor retired from his post as director and Homer D. Chapman took over until the end of that year. In January
1952, entomologist and CES staff member Alfred M. Boyce became the new CES director. During Boyce’s term, CES expanded its
research to include the nation’s first department of Nematology, and dedicated time to research in air pollution and insect
resistance to pesticides. In 1954, the Riverside campus established a College of Letters and Science and became a general
University of California campus in 1959. In 1960, a College of Agriculture was created at Riverside and Boyce was appointed
the first dean. Through this partnership, CES researchers and scientists acquired joint research and teaching appointments.
In 1961, CES officially changed its name to the Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station (CRC-AES) to reflect
new growth and developmental changes within the research conducted at the station. Since the 1960s, the CRC-AES has continued
research in areas such as biological control and pest management, and has added new areas in molecular biology, genetics,
and agriculture in arid and semiarid regions. In 2007, the CRC-AES celebrated its 100th anniversary. Today, the CRC-AES is
administered by Agricultural Operations, a department within the College of Natural and Agricultural Sciences at UC Riverside.
Through Agricultural Operations, CRC-AES continues to grow and manage crops for the future research of citrus and subtropical
agriculture.
| 1899: | John Henry Reed developed a proposal for the construction of a citrus experiment station in Southern California. |
| 1906: | UC Regents approved a plan to institute an experiment station in Southern California in May. |
| 1907: | The Citrus Experiment Station (CES) site was officially established on Mt. Rubidoux on February 14. |
| 1913: | A record breaking frost devastated citrus crops across Southern California in January. |
| Herbert J. Webber was named the first director of the CES. | |
| 1914: | UC Regents voted 14 to 4 in favor of keeping the station site in Riverside. |
| 1917: | Herbert J. Webber established the citrus variety collection (CVC) through the installation of experimental plots on the new station site. |
| 1918: | The Citrus Experiment Station and the new Graduate School of Tropical Agriculture were dedicated on March 27. |
| 1924: | Summer sessions in Subtropical Horticulture for undergraduate students were instituted in Riverside. |
| 1929: | Herbert J. Webber retired and Leon D. Batchelor took Webber’s place to become the second CES director. |
| 1931: | The north wing of the CES building was constructed. |
| 1933: | Summer sessions in undergraduate instruction in Subtropical Horticulture were suspended. |
| 1939: | The Graduate School of Tropical Horticulture was discontinued. |
| 1940: | Herbert J. Webber and Leon D. Batchelor co-edited and released The Citrus Industry. |
| 1951: | Leon D. Batchelor retired and Homer D. Chapman took Batchelor’s place as director for the remainder of the year. |
| 1952: | Alfred M. Boyce took over as CES director. |
| 1954: | A College of Letters and Science was established on the Riverside campus. |
| 1957: | CES celebrated its 50th anniversary. |
| 1959: | UC Riverside became a general campus. |
| 1960: | A College of Agriculture was established at UC Riverside and Alfred M. Boyce was appointed the new dean. |
| 1961: | CES officially changed its name to the Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station (CRC-AES). |
| 1968: | The first International Citrus Symposium was held at UC Riverside in March. |
| 1982: | CRC-AES celebrated its 75th anniversary. |
| 2007: | CRC-AES celebrated its 100th anniversary. |
Collection Scope and Content Summary
The Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station (CRC-AES) records collection contains administrative records,
correspondence, faculty papers, publications, scrapbooks, clippings, photographs, reports, project files, and other material
relating to CRC-AES. Formerly known as the Citrus Experiment Station (CES), the bulk of materials precede the establishment
of UC Riverside's College of Letters and Sciences in 1954. The majority of topics document the history, events, faculty, staff,
facilities, research, and experiments of CES. Materials related to CES research and experiments pertain to the physiology
and morphology of citrus, fig, date palm, avocado, and other subtropical crops, soil management, smog studies, pest control,
and diseases. A majority of citrus related publications and faculty papers were originally part of the former University of
California Graduate School of Tropical Agriculture and Citrus Experiment Station Library. Project files pertain to research
and experiments conducted by CES staff, faculty, and associated members. In addition, other subjects include the history of
the citrus and avocado industry in Southern California, the introduction of the first Washington navel orange tree, and global
production and marketing of citrus and subtropical agriculture.
This collection is arranged into ten series and twelve sub-series. The series and sub-series arrangement is as follows:
- Series 1. Administrative records. 1868-1978, undated.
- Sub-series 1.1. Budgets. 1868-1953, undated.
- Sub-series 1.2. Curricula. 1916-1978, undated.
- Sub-series 1.3. Facilities. 1912-1965, undated.
- Sub-series 1.4. Libraries. 1912-1966, undated.
- Sub-series 1.5. Personnel. 1914-1974, undated.
- Sub-series 1.6. Publications. 1908-1964, undated.
- Sub-series 1.7. Research. 1915-1975, undated.
- Series 2. Faculty papers. 1873-1971, undated.
- Series 3. Citrus industry records and publications. 1890-1991, undated.
- Series 4. History of the Citrus Experiment Station. 1899-1978, undated.
- Series 5. Scrapbooks. 1908-1957.
- Series 6. Press clippings. 1899-1985, undated.
- Series 7. Project files. 1907-1967.
- Series 8. Photographic material. 1898-1986, undated.
- Sub-series 8.1. 35mm slides. 1937-1960s, undated.
- Sub-series 8.2. Black-and-white photographs. 1898-1986, undated.
- Sub-series 8.3. Lantern slides. 1904-1938, undated.
- Sub-series 8.4. Glass plate negatives. 1904-1929, undated.
- Sub-series 8.5. Nitrate negatives. 1808-1950, undated.
- Series 9. Citrus Experiment Station anniversary celebrations. 1933-2007.
- Series 10. Maps, site drawings, and other oversize materials. 1888-1952, undated.
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the library's online public access catalog.
Agriculture.
Avocado.
Batchelor, L. D. (Leon Dexter), b. 1884
Boyce, A. M.
Chapman, Homer Dwight, 1898-2005
Citrus fruit industry.
Citrus fruits--Research.
Citrus--Diseases and pests.
Citrus.
Entomology.
Horticulture.
Parker, E. R. (Edwin Robert), 1896-1952
Quayle, Henry Josef, 1876-
Riverside (Calif.).
Thomas, Edward Ellis, 1883-1936
Uncovering California's Environmental Collections Project
University of California Riverside. Citrus Research Center and Agricultural Experiment Station.
Webber, Herbert John, 1865-1946.
Administrative records.
Articles.
Clippings (information artifacts).
Correspondence.
Documents.
Lantern slides.
Maps.
Negatives (photographic).
Notes.
Photographs.
Publications.
Reports.
Slides (photographs).
Typescripts.