2. LA Aqueduct – William Mulholland Mulholland was an Irish immigrant who first came to LA and began working as a ditch digger. He worked his way up to become head of LA Department of Water and Power (DWP). Living in LA under a water shortage, his dream was to provide sufficient water to meet the growing demands of an expanding LA. Mulholland ventured to Owens Valley where he saw a plentiful water source, and engineered the LA Aqueduct to carry this water to the citizens of Los Angeles. As water came, so did more citizens, Mulholland sought other water sources, and instead of sharing the Owens River with the citizens of Owens Valley, he tapped into the source again, cutting off farmer’s and rancher’s supply. Mulholland is known as the father of Los Angeles, but died with a shadow of the tragic St. Francis Dam disaster that killed more than 450 individuals.
3. LA Aqueduct The direct result of the city of Los Angeles tapping into the Owens River, was that what was once a lush fertile agriculture center, became a dry and barren desert. The engineering skills required for the job were large, but the city accomplished their project in 5 years and under budget. Using Mule teams to haul the giant hollow steel pipes, large enough to fit a train in. Workers lacked refrigeration, air conditioning and even water was scarce on the job. Turnover was high, exhaustion common. Temperatures reached into the 100’s during the day and down to freezing at night.
4. LA Aqueduct Only a select few high shrewd capitalists profited from the LA Aqueduct. Mulholland did not see profits, only large city salary. Many of these officials bought land in the undeveloped San Fernando Valley, seeing ahead to the day when the water overage for LA would be stored there. These capitalists sold land to prospective tenants, selling what the valley would one day look like. The San Fernando Valley used the Aqueduct as irrigation to irrigate the numerous orchards that were planted. At first, land that was cheap and worthless, soon soared in value with the introduction of the LA Aqueduct. It seems that the Owens Valley prosperity was diverted to San Fernando Valley to benefit these few capitalist s and to build one the largest cities in America.
