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In 1875,
Frederick Eaton (1856 – March 11, 1934) became head of the Los Angeles
City Water Company[2], where he hired Mulholland as a ditch-digger in
1878. When Eaton became Mayor, he created the Los Angeles Department of
Water and Power, appointing Mulholland as superintendent. Together, they
planned and organized the Aqueduct, which was completed in 1913. |
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Eaton used inside information from the Aqueduct project to enrich himself
and his friends at the expense of the city of Los Angeles and other
landowners. Eaton claimed in an interview with the Los Angeles Express in
1905 that he turned over all his water rights to the city of Los Angeles
without being paid for them, "except that I retained the cattle which I
had been compelled to take in making the deals . . . and mountain pasture
land of no value except for grazing purposes."[3] See California Water
Wars for more information. Eventually, the story goes, his demands became
so great that they ruptured his relationship with Mulholland. Eaton wanted
a million dollars for some land needed by Mulholland to build a dam
reservoir. Mulholland refused to buy and relocated the dam. This relocated
dam was the St. Francis Dam, which soon collapsed.
[ From
Wikipedia ] |
