Unit 4, Lesson 4: How Did Mexican Americans Build a Community in Bryn Mawr?Main MenuHow Did Mexican Americans Build a Community in Bryn Mawr?The Beginnings of the Citrus IndustryEarly Mexican SettlersNot Always WelcomePicking and Packing OrangesAmericanizationBuilding A CommunityActivityLearn MoreAudrey Maier0f8f4f35e42fcdb6d08eabfaff98566fef8bbb7f
Citrus Ranching
12018-07-09T17:16:51-07:00Audrey Maier0f8f4f35e42fcdb6d08eabfaff98566fef8bbb7f308592A worker climbs a ladder to pick oranges from one of the trees on the Frink Ranch. During the early citrus growing decades the trees were allowed to grow tall. Later ranchers realized the dangers of large trees and annually cut the groves to keep all the trees at a uniform size. This helped to prevent falling accidents and reduce injuries among orange pickers.plain2018-08-06T01:28:31-07:00Loma Linda Area Parks and Historical Society Digital Archiveearly 1900sJoe FrinkPhotographAudrey Maier0f8f4f35e42fcdb6d08eabfaff98566fef8bbb7f
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1media/Widly jpg for FB.tif.jpg2018-07-09T23:43:49-07:00Picking and Packing Oranges3plain2018-07-16T21:11:16-07:00Mexican workers in the citrus industry were paid low wages. The men who picked the oranges and the women who packed the oranges were paid based on how many fruits they could pick or pack in a day. The faster they worked the more the workers were paid. Because of this, many families did not make enough money. Sometimes children would work too, in order to help make more money. These child workers were called ratas or “rats” in Spanish because they would scurry around the groves and pick low hanging fruit.
4. Look at this photograph of Mexican school children in Bryn Mawr, notice their work overalls. What would it have been like to work and go to school? How would their work affect the student’s education?
