History Commons^™

A Watershed Event For A Watershed Community: The Development Of Flood Control For The Santa Ana River Basin, Adam Scott Miller

History in the Making

Southern California receives the vast majority of its yearly rainfall in the relatively short time period between the months of December and March. Occasionally, this intense rainfall creates floods that have historically threatened and devastated the communities of this region. The twentieth century proved challenging for local flood control agencies. California experienced tremendous population growth, resulting in migrants settling on the existing floodplains. Unaware of the periodic, hidden menace, newcomers were ruined when rivers and their tributaries flooded. It became clear that a significant change in flood control methods was required. In 1936, Congress passed the Flood Control Act appropriating …