California Water Wars - Collapse | 5

American History Tellers

Wondery

Society & Culture, Kids & Family, History, Education For Kids

4.7 • 18.3K Ratings

🗓️ 19 February 2020

⏱️ 40 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

With the failure of the Watterson brothers’ banks, the Owens Valley community was forced to abandon its fight for water rights against the city of Los Angeles. William Mulholland, the Los Angeles water department superintendent, could finally breathe a little easier. The city now had full control over its water supply for the foreseeable future.

But he would discover that some things can’t be foreseen. Construction had finished in 1926 on the last of the nineteen dams that lined the aqueduct. Standing 200 feet tall, the St. Francis dam held back billions of gallons of water. But by spring of 1928, troubling cracks were beginning to appear in the dam’s surface. The events of March 12, 1928, would lead not only to a terrible catastrophe, but would forever change the way the citizens of Los Angeles thought about William Mulholland -- the man who brought them water.

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Transcript

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0:00.0	Hey, prime members, you can listen to American History Tellers add free on Amazon Music,
0:05.6	download the app today.
0:09.4	Imagine its March 12, 1928.
0:20.8	Some Monday morning and you work as a city dam keeper at the St. Francis Dam, 40 miles
0:25.5	north of Los Angeles.
0:27.3	You live in a cottage on site with your girlfriend, Lyona, and your young son.
0:31.8	It's an unusual job, but you've made a life for your family in the constant shadow of this 200-foot tall concrete dam.
0:38.5	St. Francis is one of the last links along the aqueduct, ensuring that millions of Los Angeles residents get their water.
0:46.1	The trees are rustling and swaying in the nearby hills, blustery wind blowing as you inspect the dam site.
0:52.1	It's your job to take daily inspections, but this morning you've seen something disturbing.
0:57.1	Tony?
0:58.5	You're nearly to the power station building when you hear Lyona calling you from down the path from your cottage.
1:03.4	She catches up with you.
1:04.7	I saw you left your thermos on the counter, I thought you might be missing it.
1:07.7	Oh, yeah, thanks. I appreciate it.
1:11.1	She sees your face as clouded by something.
1:13.6	Is it worse today? The cracks?
1:15.7	I can't tell. Not with a wind sending the water of the top like that.
1:19.2	If there are any more new leaks, then they're hidden by the spillage.
1:23.2	But I did see...
1:25.0	You train off. You don't want to worry her unduly.
1:28.5	But you promise to be always straight with each other.
	...

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