This project was supported in whole or in part by the U.S. Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act, administered in California by the State Librarian Made accessible through a grant from the John Randolph Haynes and Dora Haynes Foundation and Photo Friends
On December 14, 1963, the dam collapsed, spilling 300 million gallons of water into the hillsides that swept away houses and cars and left three dead. Most of Baldwin Village, including the historic Village Green community, was flooded as well. The crack in the dam was ultimately attributed to subsidence caused by overexploitation of the Inglewood oil field. The disaster caused the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power to phase out small local reservoirs, opting instead to store water in groundwater basins and behind the Hansen Dam in Lake View Terrace. Photograph caption dated December 16, 1963 reads, "Los Angeles Dept. of Water and Power officials and engineers, encircled, began an inspection of 75-foot gash which rampaging floods cut through wall of Baldwin Hills Dam. Water began leaking slowly about noon Saturday. Final burst came at 3:38 p.m. More than 50 homes were destroyed in the canyon below. In foreground is crumbled floor location where first leak began. Arrow shows 60-inch drainage pipe whose capacity was insufficient to carry deluge from dam."
Type
Image
Format
1 photographic print :b&w ;26 x 21 cm. Photographic prints
Los Angeles (Calif.).--Department of Water and Power--Officials and employees Dam failures--California--Baldwin Hills (Los Angeles) Floods--California--Baldwin Hills (Los Angeles) Dams--California--Baldwin Hills (Los Angeles) Disasters--California--Baldwin Hills (Los Angeles) Men--California--Los Angeles Baldwin Hills Dam (Calif.) Baldwin Hills (Los Angeles, Calif.) Baldwin Hills Reservoir (Calif.) Valley Times Collection photographs
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