William Mullholland is often hailed as the man who brought water to Los Angeles, but there’s an earlier group Angelenos owe flowers to: The original founders of L.A., and the Zanja Madre.
The system of zanjas — Spanish for trench or ditch — was the city’s first irrigation network that brought water from the L.A. River to people’s homes and fields.
How the ditches began
For the 44 pobladores who came from New Spain (modern Mexico) to settle in today’s downtown, every drop of water was liquid gold. Having quick access to water helped sustain life and raised crops for food.
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When the pueblo of Los Angeles was founded in 1781, the town was purposely located near the L.A. River. One of the first things community members built in June of that year was a water system. They joined together to carve out the first sections of a crude dirt pipeline delivering L.A. River water, the Zanja Madre (Mother Ditch), about seven weeks after settling.
They finished it in October 1781, but once the United States seized power, more zanjas were dug out. That led to the earliest industrial use of the Zanja Madre by Eagle Flour Mills in 1855, according to archeologist Marc Beherec, and more heavy use followed.
But the zanja system was delicate. The dam intake had to be repaired after rain and the ditches had to be cleaned up often for the water to reach each customer.
The Zanjero, or “water overseer,” was responsible for maintaining the system alongside a group of deputies. The position got paid better than the mayor, signifying the price tag and commodification of water.
They ensured ditches worked properly, but there was another element that made the job a big deal — they wore police badges and had the authority to arrest anyone using the water without a permit.
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In 1881, the L.A. city council voted to change “zanja” and “zanjero” to “ditch” and “water overseer” to accommodate English-speaking residents.
The city created a zanja department, but the day-to-day was still rough. At one point, zanjeros missed a day of work because all the shovels broke. Then, floods in 1884 washed out the dirt ditches and made officials go back to the drawing board. The result, costing $125,000, was to turn some of the zanjas into closed brick conduits and improve others with concrete.
The zanjas reached their prime that decade, with an estimated 6,897 acres irrigated in city limits, including vineyards and citrus farms.
By 1902, the zanja system was made up of four separate areas connecting back to the L.A. River. At its height, L.A. had 52 miles of zanja.
Why the zanjas died off
There were public-use and safety concerns.
That’s because the zanja network was a bit haphazard. Some of it was still above ground or not upgraded with cement. For example, in 1898 an association petitioned the City Council to lay pipes down on Naomi Avenue in a bid to get a “very dangerous” open zanja closed off.
In 1901, a 7-year-old boy with epilepsy fell onto an open zanja on Date Street and died.
People would bathe in these zanjas, which at some points could be 12 feet wide. Residents would go for a summer swim, dump trash, and even wash their clothes in the water they’d drink and irrigate from.
But it was William Mulholland who may have sealed the zanjas’ fate.
As superintendent of the L.A. Water Department, he wrote in a 1903 report to the board of water commissioners that “the zanja system has made its usual poor showing for the year,” making sure to show how the upkeep expenses were outpacing income.
Then, after a rainless summer, Mulholland allocated the water to the domestic drinking supply only — stripping farmers of the much needed resource — to start shutting it down.
May 1904 was the last month the city zanja department sold water. The ditches were abandoned, but portions were repurposed for a stormwater system.
Where they’ve been found today
After more than 240 years, the zanja system has been covered up, destroyed, and forgotten.
But every so often, parts of it come to light.
Eighteen archaeological encounters with the system have been documented as of 2022, though there have likely been more times people have come across the pipes.
But officially, crews have found it during things like Metro line work, street widenings, and building construction.
You can run into the zanja system, too. Olvera Street has a brick path extending from the fountain that represents the route of the Zanja Madre, and the Stimson House on Figueroa Street still has the above ground barriers up.
