On January 28, 1948, a plane crash occurred near Los Gatos Canyon, 20 miles west of Coalinga in Fresno County, CA (this county park contains the creek that runs through the 24-mile canyon).

The plane was deporting 28 Mexican fruit-pickers (with 4 American crew members) according to a U.S. treaty with the Mexican government known as the "Bracero Program". There is some dispute about whether the program was beneficial or not, but the fact is that none of the Mexican laborers (27 men and 1 woman) had their names listed in any of the media coverage.

The bodies of the Mexican laborers were buried in a mass grave at Holy Cross Cemetery in Fresno, California. The newspaper reports simply referred to them as "deportees." Only twelve of them were ever identified.

Woody Guthrie read the account, was outraged at the callous treatment of the workers, and wrote the lyrics to "Deportee (Plane Wreck at Los Gatos)."

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After the release of Dust Bowl Ballads in the summer of 1940, Guthrie was also working on numerous NYC radio programs. He sent for his wife and three children to join him at this four bedroom apartment.

The apartment became a social hub of Guthrie's world: the folks that continuously streamed included Alan Lomax, Lead Belly, Sonny Terry and Brownie McGhee.

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In 1972, this water tower was erected and the words "Home of Woody Guthrie" were painted on the side.

The move was vehemently opposed by the Okemah City Council and the local Chamber of Commerce for fear that America's most famous folk singer was purportedly a communist.

The other water towers read "Hot" and "Cold".

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Just down the street, on the Woody Guthrie family lot, is a tall cedar tree that has been carved into a Guthrie memorial.

On the east side, the carving reads W.G. and Okemah, and the other side says "This Land is Your Land." There is a path and a handrail up to the carving.

The carving was done by the neighbor across the street who has other carvings in his yard.

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On the SW corner of this intersection is the Crystal Theater, a vaudeville theater that was built in 1921 (when Guthrie was nine years old).

Woody would later recall how he used to sneak in to watch cowboy movies and other silent films. Today, the Crystal Theater is one of the venues that hosts the annual Woody Guthrie Folk Festival.

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