319, [11] pp. With numerous plates from photographs (incl. in the pagination); 14 maps, plans & graphs in the text; 23 loose folding maps, plans and graphs (formerly in rear endpaper pocket); large folding map, loose as well. 27x19.6 cm. (10¾x7¾"), original green cloth, lettered in black. First Edition.

Official report on the massive engineering project which diverted the waters of the Owens River to the plains of Los Angeles, allowing that city to grow at an increasingly frenetic pace, and reverting the lush Owens Valley to a dusty crevice. Included are numerous photographs of the breathtaking regions of the southern Sierra Nevada from which the water was to come, and the man made dams, ditches and tunnels through which it made its way to irrigate the orange fields of the San Fernando Valley. The many folding plans and diagrams detail the physical configuration of the canals and other features, as well as graphing the impact upon Los Angeles and her ability to grow.