Name/Title
Print, PhotographicEntry/Object ID
2008.13.14Description
B & W digital scan of Division Creek Power Plant with Sierra Nevada mountain range in background. This plant, a concrete structure, is the one that currents operates today.
In April 1908, in the shadow of the towering snow-clad High Sierra, the Division Creek Power Plant No. 1, Los Angeles’ first municipal power plant, was placed in operation.
"The powerhouse was a small frame building with a tiny 120-kilowatt generator. It harnessed the flow of a small creek tumbling down from the High Sierra, producing hydroelectric power for construction work on the new Los Angeles Owens River Aqueduct which was just getting started at the time. It was the first known use of electricity for a construction project of this kind." --from LADWP Archives, waterandpower.org.
This photo was either taken by or from the collection of Edward Francis Leahey.Collection
Edward Francis Leahey Collection