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Owens Valley, California, Central Area

 
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Title
Owens Valley, California, Central Area
Creator
Symons Flying Service
Description
This photograph was taken looking to the west. The mountains in the background are the Sierra Nevada. Big Pine, California, home of J. D. Black, is to the upper right of the photograph. The Los Angeles Aqueduct intake, noted in pen in lower left, is where the water of the Owens River is diverted to the aqueduct. Marked on the photograph, the Tinemaha Reservoir stores Owens River water for times when the Aqueduct is incapacitated or else the flow of the river exceeds the capacity of the Aqueduct. Title supplied by cataloger.
Format Extent
1 photograph : b&w ; 21 x 26 cm
Note
The 120 mile long Owens Valley in California varies in width from two to six miles and reaches an elevation of 4000 feet at its floor. Two majestic mountain ranges seal off the valley. The Sierra Nevada dominates its western border. Its lowest peak is approximately 7,000 feet, its highest is Mt. Whitney (14505 feet), the highest point in the contiguous United States. Ranging in size from 4000 feet to 14000 feet, the White-Inyo Mountain Range marks the eastern border of the Owens Valley. To the southeast of the valley is Death Valley; Yosemite National Park is is in the Sierras to the northwest of the Owens Valley. The earliest inhabitants were the Native American Paiutes. Stimulated by gold and silver mining strikes in the nearby mountains, Anglo-American settlements had sprung up by the 1860s at such places as Bishop Creek (later Bishop) and Big Pine, leading to the displacement of the Paiute from the valley's best lands, although they remained in the valley. Agriculture, ranching, and mining were the economic mainstays of the valley. The snowpack in the mountains (fully evident in this photograph) provided abundant water for the streams and Owens River, making agriculture possible. In the early twentieth century, Los Angeles bought up land and water rights to obtain water for its growing population, resulting in the great Owens Valley Water Controversy as valley residents resisted Los Angeles' intrusion. Today, the City of Los Angeles remains the largest employer in the valley; tourism based on outdoor recreation is the other economic mainstay. The valley lies within the borders of Inyo County. The county seat is Independence, although Bishop (population 3,575) is its biggest town. Other important towns are Big Pine and Lone Pine.
Collection
J. D. Black Papers, CSLA-15, Series 3: Photographs, Box 3, Sleeve 41
Type
Language
eng
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