As a cooperative, Sun-Maid is made up of approximately 850 family farmers who grow raisin grapes within a 100-mile (160-kilometer) radius of the processing plant.

Nearly half of all Sun-Maid raisins are packed for consumer sales, whether in a box, a bag, or a canister in varying sizes.

In 1873, Francis T. Eisen planted an experimental vineyard of Muscat grapes on 25 acres (10 hectares) along Fancher Creek, just east of Fresno.

Packing houses quickly became a vital link between the grower and the consumer, and dozens sprouted up across the San Joaquin Valley.

Employing hundreds of immigrant people, these facilities received the sun-dried raisins from growers, which they stored, processed, packaged, and shipped throughout the United States and to countries around the world.

When the transcontinental railroad was completed in 1869, farmers and immigrants from the East settled the area for the first time, and growers were able to quickly transport products from the West to new markets.

As the railroads expanded, so too did the area surrounding Fresno Station, attracting farmers to grow agricultural products to satisfy the increasing demand from faraway markets.

The artist experimented with a variety of positions and props, finally settling on the pose with an overflowing tray of grapes and a glowing sunburst in the background.

Her image with the sunbonnet and the tray of grapes was updated in 1956 and again in 1970, using drawings made a decade earlier of company employee Delia von Meyer (Pacheco).

The artwork, sold as piecework to the Sun-Maid Raisin Co., has been reproduced internationally and is perhaps the artist's best-known work, unchanged for more than 40 years.