Letting Nature Do Its Thing: Early Flood Control and Environmental Disaster Along the Los Angeles River

Los Angeles, often praised for its nearly perfect weather, grapples with a delicate balance between utopia and dystopia. Despite the idealized image promoted by city boosters in the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, the region faced significant dangers such as wildfires, earthquakes, and periodic flooding of the Los Angeles River. This essay delves into the pre-1940 history of flooding in Los Angeles, investigating why addressing the flood risk of the Los Angeles River took until the 1930s and exploring alternative solutions dismissed by economic and political leaders. The essay contributes to existing scholarship by highlighting early flood control efforts initiated “from below” by citizens, business owners, and private railroad companies. These initiatives, predating federal intervention in the 1930s, underscore a grassroots approach characteristic of responses to environmental challenges in many cities in the far American West. The analysis extends to the 1930 Olmsted-Bartholomew plan and examines proposed flood-risk management strategies that could have shielded the region from river overflow. Despite their potential effectiveness, these alternatives were not pursued, illustrating how economic priorities took precedence over alternative urban settlement patterns. In essence, the essay explores the interplay between the perception of environmental threats, civic responses, and societal values associated with these responses. The frontier myth played a crucial role in shaping these values, as it encouraged self-help approaches, defining Los Angeles as a do-it-yourself city. By examining these diverse themes, the essay uses the case of the Los Angeles River to uncover the management of environmental disasters in the far American West.