Skip to main content

Image / Los Angeles aqueduct, damaged section of pipe, Inyo County, [1924-1931?]

Have a question about this item?

Item information. View source record on contributor's website.

Title
Los Angeles aqueduct, damaged section of pipe, Inyo County, [1924-1931?]
Date Created and/or Issued
[1924-1931?]
Publication Information
Los Angeles Times
Contributing Institution
UCLA, Library Special Collections, Charles E. Young Research Library
Collection
Los Angeles Times Photographic Archives
Rights Information
US
Description
Access to this collection is generously supported by Arcadia funds.
Aqueduct pipe with several bends and damaged sections, partly supported on concrete braces, with two men inspecting damaged at center right, in rocky area with hillside with shrubs and shack or mining adit in background
The Los Angeles aqueduct was bombed or otherwise vandalized in at least 10 incidents from 1924 to 1931. Cf. (1) Los Angeles Times article, 20 June 1927, “City Aqueduct Again Blasted, Dynamite Tears Out Sixteen-Foot Section, Fourth Recent Outrage Done During Night Hours, Explosion Occurs Two Miles South of Lone Pine.” The article states: “A heavy charge of dynamite exploded in the fourth attempt within the past month … shattered a sixteen-foot panel of waterway at the Puddle Creek Delta, two miles southwest of Lone Pine … Other outrages. Previous acts of violence against the Aqueduct are as follows: On the 5th inst., the side walls of a large open concrete conduit at the mouth of Cottonwood Canyon were wrecked by a charge of dynamite … May 28, 1927: Approximately 300 feet of the Aqueduct system was blown out at Big Pine … May 27, 1927: … a charge of explosive in No Name Canyon destroying about 450 feet of iron pipe … May 14, 1926: A ten-foot hole was torn out of the concrete Aqueduct by dynamite … about one mile south of the spillway in the Alabama Hills. November 24, 1924: A mob of men … opened the Alabama control gates … between Independence and Lone Pine … May 21, 1924: A heavy charge of dynamite was set off against an open portion of the Aqueduct at a point two miles north of Lone Pine. … No actual damage …” Cf. (2) Los Angeles Times article, 17 July 1927, “Blasts Peril Owens Mills, New Aqueduct Dynamitings Bring Contingency, Lake Level May Tie Up Chemical Plants, Large Repair Crews Rush Reconstruction Work.” The article states: “… two dynamite blasts … early yesterday wrecked the Aqueduct … The latest explosions occurred at Thebaut gate, eight miles north of Independence, and at Tuttle Creek south of Lone Pine. …” Cf. (3) Los Angeles Times article, 3 Nov. 1931, “Officers Trail Aqueduct Dynamiting Suspects, One of Pair Sought Here as Blast Rips Grapevine Siphon; No Water Shortage.” The article states: “Two men were being sought last night for complicity in the explosion of a terrific charge of dynamite which … tore out a section of the grapevine siphon on the Los Angeles Aqueduct, about fifty miles north of Mojave. …”
At lower right corner of negative: 12
Text from nitrate negative sleeve: [Typewritten:] Los Angeles Aqueduct [Handwritten:] bombing
Type
Image
Format
b&w nitrate negative
Identifier
uclamss_1429_0146
0146
ark:/21198/zz002d9c4g
Language
No linguistic content
Subject
Bombings--California--Inyo County
Environment
Government
Los Angeles Aqueduct (Calif.)
Source
Los Angeles Times Photographic Collection

About the collections in Calisphere

Learn more about the collections in Calisphere. View our statement on digital primary resources.

Copyright, permissions, and use

If you're wondering about permissions and what you can do with this item, a good starting point is the "rights information" on this page. See our terms of use for more tips.

Share your story

Has Calisphere helped you advance your research, complete a project, or find something meaningful? We'd love to hear about it; please send us a message.

Explore related content on Calisphere: