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Woodland was known for its stately Victorian homes; Winters for its picturesque downtown and miles of walnut orchards, velvet green against the purple Vaca Mountains; and Davis for its bustling University of California campus.

Much of those are in the new “high” zone — including in Fresno, Madera, Tulare and Kern counties with their almond, pistachio and citrus orchards.

According to him, many other farmers in the area were even sending labourers, who come from Nepal to work in the orchards, back home because there wasn't enough to do.

In 1975, soon after Gaines moved west, he photographed a walnut orchard in Fresno near the university and drew its silhouettes with numbers rather than lines.

The El Centro sector — headquartered more than 300 miles from Kern County’s sprawling farm fields and orchards — led the unusual January raid at the tail end of the Biden administration.