Why Not Free Water? Because of the Cost
- Title:
- Why Not Free Water? Because of the Cost
- Alternate Title:
- Why Not Free Water? Because of the Cost
- Collection:
- Persuasive Maps: PJ Mode Collection
- Creator:
- Los Angeles Bureau of Power & Light
- Date:
- 1922
- Posted Date:
- 2017-04-14
- ID Number:
- 2237.01
- File Name:
- PJM_2237_01.jpg
- Style/Period:
- 1920 - 1939
- Subject:
- Politics & Government
Advertising & Promotion
Unusual Graphics/Text - Measurement:
- 9 x 12 (centimeters, height x width)
- Notes:
- A remarkable polemic map on the back of a 1922 electric bill! The Los Angeles aqueduct - world's longest at the time - was completed in 1913 by the legendary superintendent William Mulholland. http://www.history.com/topics/los-angeles-aqueduct, accessed March 20, 2016. The aqueduct brought ample water from the Owens Valley on the Eastern side of the Sierra Nevada mountains, not only for the massive growth of the city, but for the San Fernando Valley as well. The map identifies the "source of the City's water supply" at an elevation of 3800 feet in the "snow covered Sierras" and shows a bird's-eye view of the 250-mile course of the aqueduct "to faucet" in Los Angeles.
Text on the map explains to customers that their bills (which had presumably increased) were necessary because of the cost of the aqueduct system, over $50 million (roughly half a billion 2016 dollars), as set out in detail. It also provides data showing that water rates in Los Angeles were roughly equal to the average rates in other large US cities. (Note: In 1922, the Los Angeles Department of Public Service consisted of two units, Mulholland's Bureau of Water Works & Supply and the Bureau of Power & Light, which sent this bill. I'm unaware of whether similar maps were included with water bills.)
For further information on the Collector’s Notes and a Feedback/Contact Link, see https://persuasivemaps.library.cornell.edu/content/about-collection-personal-statement and https://persuasivemaps.library.cornell.edu/content/feedback-and-contact - Repository:
- Private Collection of PJ Mode
- Format:
- Image
- Rights:
- For important information about copyright and use, see http://persuasivemaps.library.cornell.edu/copyright.