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The Morris San Gabriel Dam, San Gabriel River Canyon, California

 
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Title
The Morris San Gabriel Dam, San Gabriel River Canyon, California
Date
1938
Description
A view of the retaining wall of the Morris San Gabriel Dam near Los Angeles, California, showing the lake beyond, surrounded by the San Gabriel Mountains.
Format Extent
1 postcard : Color ; 9 x 14 cm.
Subject
Dams--California--San Gabriel River Valley; Reservoirs--California--San Gabriel River Valley;
Note
During the 1920s, the need for flood control in the San Gabriel Valley necessitated the construction of dams along the San Gabriel River. After many years of financial, engineering, and political impediments, construction began in 1928 on an ambitious project that became known as the Forks Dam. It was to have been 425 feet high and 1,700 feet across, making it the largest concrete structure in existence at that time. One year and three million dollars into the project, however, a massive landslide destroyed much of the work. Although engineers had surveyed the site before starting construction, a new study determined that the dam could not be built safely due to unstable rock conditions, and the project was abandoned. In 1932, construction began on a new project, the Pine Canyon Dam. It was to be a concrete structure 325 feet tall and 756 feet wide at the top, designed to hold 42,000 acre feet of water in its reservoir. Upon its completion in 1934, it was renamed the Samuel B. Morris Dam after the chief engineer of the Pasadena Water Department who was chiefly responsible for the dam's construction. Around the same time, two more dams, the Cogswell Dam and San Gabriel Dam, were built along the San Gabriel River to provide further flood control.
Collection
Werner von Boltenstern Postcard Collection
Type
Geographic Location
San Gabriel Mountains (Calif.); San Gabriel River Valley (Calif.)
Language
eng
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