Rivers in the Desert cover art

Rivers in the Desert

William Mulholland and the Inventing of Los Angeles

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Rivers in the Desert

By: Margaret Leslie Davis
Narrated by: Paul Boehmer
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About this listen

Rivers in the Desert follows the remarkable career of William Mulholland, the visionary who engineered the rise of Los Angeles as the greatest American city west of the Mississippi. He sought to transform the sparse and barren desert into an inhabitable environment by designing the longest aqueduct in the Western Hemisphere, bringing water from the mountains to support a large city.

This "fascinating history" chronicles Mulholland's dramatic ascension to wealth and fame - followed by his tragic downfall after the sudden collapse of the dam he had constructed to safeguard the water supply (Newsweek). The disaster, which killed at least 500 people, caused his repudiation by allies, friends, and a previously adoring community. Epic in scope, Rivers in the Desert chronicles the history of Los Angeles and examines the tragic fate of the man who rescued it.

©1993 Maggie Davis (P)2021 Tantor
Americas Engineering History History & Culture State & Local United States Technology Gilded Age Los Angeles
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