Water Comes First, Roads Second
The Hollywood Reservoir and Mulholland Dam
Who wins in the Los Angeles battle of cars versus water? In 1922, there was much hubbub when the water department announced that they needed to build a dam in Weid Canyon in order to supply the city of Hollywood with water. A citizens’ group vehemently opposed it, stating that the dam would be a “menace” and any earthquake would destroy lives with flooding; besides, that land should be used for more homes, and a road to connect the San Fernando Valley to Hollywood and Los Angeles. Any other canyon wouldn’t have the proper grading to safely establish a road.
Chief Engineer of the Bureau of Waterworks, William Mulholland, insisted it was a necessity to build reservoirs to store the reserves of the aqueduct and no other location would work in the city. The board of public supervisors unanimously supported this decision and overrode the Hollywood Chamber of Commerce’s complaints.
On Oct 1, 1922, it was officially announced that Weid Canyon Dam would break ground the following spring. Mulholland scoffed at Hollywood residents’ fears that the dam could ever possibly break. Shortly thereafter, articles began to hype the project, stating that the manmade road across the manmade dam would allow access to the “unexploited beauty and ruggedness” of Weid Canyon without a trace of irony. Perhaps this was to appeal to the pouting car advocates who wouldn’t be getting their traffic road.
Nevertheless, plans were moving and construction began December 21, 1922, to build pipes connecting to the aqueduct. The citizens’ opposition group tried to appeal in early 1923 to the traffic commission, who also sided with Mulholland’s “this is where the dam is going” attitude, but this seems to be what began conversations that led to the 101 being constructed almost thirty years later. To appease the angry Chamber of Commerce, the traffic commission reassured them that there were already four new connecting roadways and the Weid Canyon dam would not block access from the valley to the city.
William Mulholland
Mulholland was long regarded as a hero- back in 1890, he was already proudly wearing a gold watch he earned after a flood had damaged the existing flume structure that provided water to the city. Mulholland went and cleared the channel personally on the morning before Christmas and didn’t sleep for four days, and the city never felt an interruption of service.
William Mulholland did what he wanted. A self-taught civil engineer, he was arrested in 1892 when he claimed a section of land for the Citizens’ Water company that had already been slated for a road in Elysian Park. Mulholland was rewarded by becoming superintendent of the water company a few years later. With his pal, Frederick Eaton, who was first city engineer and then mayor, they envisioned a greater Los Angeles. They made the water works part of the city’s control and this led to the infamous water wars- building the Los Angeles Aqueduct in 1913 and stealing the water from Owens Valley. You’ve seen Chinatown, come on. But a more in-depth and scholarly listen on the water wars can be found here.
So when it was time to expand the demand for water, no one was going to win against William Mulholland.
The Build
As the work progressed, Mulholland announced in December 1923 that the Weid Canyon reservoir would now be known as the Hollywood Reservoir. Work continued at a rapid pace to construct the 200-ft high dam, only briefly stopped by a fire in July 1924 that threatened all the homes on the Hollywood Dell side (then known as Bryn Mawr) and the Pilgrimage Playhouse. The fire became another advertisement for the reservoir, claiming it would have enough water to battle any fires in the future (which it does do! It’s a terrifying but exhilarating sight to behold the fire helicopters scooping from the reservoir to douse hillside fires today).
Nearing completion in 1924, the initial opposing voices were beginning to turn reverent. Nestled into the mountain, comparisons were made to its “Gibraltar-like” construction, and praise for the beauty of the dam- 125 feet wide and 200 feet tall, with the roadway at the top, pedestrian sidewalks flanking it, and the beautiful crescent arches.
The structure was completed in December 1924, and the dam was thoughtfully renamed Mulholland Dam, to honor the man who “made dreams come true” with the Hollywood Reservoir (though newspapers often still referred to it as Weid Canyon Reservoir for several years).
St. Francis Dam
Mulholland was using his same plans when he had begun construction on the St. Francis Dam in August 1924. He made some confident tweaks along the way before its completion in 1926, adding a little height here and there. The St. Francis Dam had some issues — leaks and cracks — but nothing Mulholland deemed abnormal or troubling. He inspected a new leak the morning of March 12, 1928, and determined it could be addressed in the future. However, just before midnight, the dam collapsed. The initial death toll of the flood was 385 victims, but bodies continued to be found semi-regularly until the mid-50s, and several of the dead were swept out and lost at sea. The center remainder of the dam (ghoulishly nicknamed “The Tombstone”) was demolished in 1929, as people continued to visit and gawk (and there were some additional deaths of people falling from the Tombstone to their death).
Many investigations followed, and the general conclusion was that the geological conditions at the base of the dam were to blame, and Mulholland was not found culpable criminally, but the coroner’s inquest gravely warned nothing should be left to the oversight of one man, regardless of his eminence. Mulholland never recovered from the tragedy. He lived the rest of his life in semi-isolation before his death in 1935, believing the blood of the dead was solely on his hands. To his credit, he never tried to spin anything positive or point to his other accomplishments to redeem himself.
After the St. Francis tragedy, Hollywood again was in an understandable uproar about the Mulholland Dam looming quite literally over their heads, bringing impassioned pleas for it to be drained before it could kill everyone. It was repeatedly, thoroughly inspected, and declared safe as a church due to the bedrock at its base. The forest we see now was planted to camouflage the dam and provide further stability.
Ivar Weid
But let’s go back to the name Weid Canyon, it’s a strange name. Mulholland is plastered all over this city, but Ivar Weid has been nearly erased from the history of Hollywood. The accepted story these days is that Daeida Wilcox named Hollywood, her husband Harvey registered the first map with that name on it in 1887. However, Ivar Weid, who was friends with the Wilcoxes, and with H.J. Whitley (of Whitley Heights, who also claims to have named Hollywood- he said it to Weid and then Weid blabbed and the Wilcoxes stole it) certainly seems to be another plausible candidate.
In 1930, Weid’s son Otto wrote a letter to the editor of the Los Angeles Daily Citizen, saying that his father and Wilcox owned adjoining land in 1886- Wilcox owning the flat area and Weid owning the hills. Weid commented on the vibrance of the holly berries everywhere in his canyon and suggested the name of Hollywood or Hollywoods to Wilcox. Weid called his hillside development Hollywood Heights and Wilcox would name the flats Hollywood.
With that bit of background, it’s fitting that the Hollywood sign frames so nicely over what was once known as Weid Canyon.
The Reservoir Today
So here we are, nearly 100 years later, and the Hollywood Reservoir is still one of the most serene and still (somewhat) secret parts of Los Angeles. Personally, I have spent countless days at the reservoir, have celebrated and mourned there, and it’s where I go when I need to think through anything, to find myself. I started walking there back in the late 2000s when the loop was closed after mudslides and neglect, and only the bridge section on the dam was open, and I remember the elation when the full loop was reopened in 2013. When lockdown hit in 2020 and all the parks were closed except this one (as it exists under the stewardship of LADWP), it was overrun with families and frantic fitness fans from all over the city. It was frustrating for me, for the neighborhood, that our special secret was out-but also forced me to start walking elsewhere, which is what led to Cahuenga Past’s humble beginnings.
To me, the Hollywood Reservoir is the most beautiful place on earth, and it soothes my soul in a way no other place ever has. From the bears carved above the arches on the dam to the creatures that live there, the quiet separation from the city while still being so close, hiding behind the tall forest, seeing the city without being seen. Loneliness is a universal quality, but the reservoir represents a deliberate choice for solitude. I like the paradox of being adjacent to the city and the neighborhoods while consciously seeking out a quiet and contemplative walk with nature. I love the purity and silence in the eye of the storm, the wondrous storybook quality of walking amongst deer and delighting at the gulls and turtles on the water. I appreciate that it remains unchanged, something to rely on in this ever-evolving city.
I’m looking forward to this event in a few weeks, I don’t know anything about the group, but I’m interested in hearing the LADWP guided tour and hopefully learning more about the operations of the funny little structures scattered around the perimeter.
Rules and Housekeeping
So now that I’ve hyped up the reservoir, here are the details for your visit:
No dogs, No filming, Gates open daily at 6:30am and close depending on time of year (November-February 5:00pm, March-April 6:30pm, May-August 7:30pm, September-October 6:00pm) and the reservoir is closed Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s Day.
And, if you missed it being rebroadcast, here’s the Dublab radio show I did talking a bit more about my own relationship with the reservoir, telling house stories, and playing some records I like to listen to when I’m walking. I’m loath to put this in writing, but one of my little resolutions is to record more of these in the upcoming year, so I hope you enjoy it. Wishing you and yours a safe and healthy close to this year.