Struggle for Water in 1920s Los Angeles

This paper will discuss the conflict between the residents of the Owens Valley and the city of Los Angeles through the end of the 1920s over the appropriation of water in the Owens Valley by the city. The first part of the paper will examine the background of the controversy. The second part of the paper will describe the high point of the struggle in the middle part of the 1920s. The last part of the paper will discuss the outcome and the ramifications of this struggle.

Located on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada, the Owens River drainage system is long and narrow, extending 120 miles from the Mono divide to Owens Lake. Near the Mono divide, the floor of the valley is about 8000 feet above sea level; there is a drop of 2200 feet from the end of the Long Valley to Owens Valley proper in a distance of about 20 miles. With an advantage of an initial elevation of about 4000 feet, it is possible to divert water from the river at a point some thirty miles above the lake, cross the hills at the lower end of the Sierra Nevada, cross the Mojave Desert, and flow it through tunnels in the Coast Range to the San Fernando Valley, all by gravity flow. Most of the river's discharge consists of snow melt from the Sierra Nevada (Ostrom 11-12).

Both the Owens Valley and the Los Angeles Basin are arid in climate, receiving about the same amount of annual precipitation. The main difference is that the Owens Vall

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or ideal sites for well drilling. These wells then pumped water from the ground supplies of adjacent owners. When these owners went to court and obtained injunctions against the city, the city simply bought the affected properties (Karhl 106). As a result of these developments, a rift developed within the Owens Valley community. One side wanted to sell their property at the relatively attractive prices the city was offering. The other side called these individuals and families "traitors" for selling out to the encroaching city interests. This second group was much larger than the first. Those who wanted to prevent Los Angeles from gaining control over the valley's water were increasingly representing non-agricultural commercial interests. They recognized that the city's appropriation of the water was harming the indigenous economic interests of the valley, preventing any sort of economic growth (Karhl 106-108; Walton 201-202). In response to the acquisitions of the city, these residents organized themselves into interest groups in an effort to improve their bargaining positions. In the summer of 1922, a coalition of farmers, ranchers, and businessmen formed an irrigation district. This district would ostensibly be a m
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Some common words found in the essay are:
Los Angeles, Owens Valley, Service Commission, Bishop Creek, Angeles Aqueduct, Owens River, Eaton Mulholland, Bank America, los angeles, owens valley, Valley Rebellion, Francisquito Canyon, valley residents, water rights, valley los, valley los angeles, owens valley los, public service commission, service commission, public service, valley city, city los, water owens valley, water owens, city los angeles,
Approximate Word count = 2913
Approximate Pages = 12 (250 words per page)

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