Zanja Madre
A group of the pueblo’s first residents complete the original zanja—an open, earthen ditch that delivers water to the pueblo. A brush dam, or toma, pools water, which then runs along an elevated slope down to the pueblo. The flow splits into multiple ditches, carrying water to various portions of lowland. Placed close to present-day Broadway at the foot of the Elysian Hills by the LA River, the Zanja Madre feeds eight branch line zanjas.
RELATED STORIES
Parks and Gentrification
During the 80s, Downey Recreation Center — one of the few public parks in Lincoln Heights — was inaccessible and uninviting. Still, as the only park in the area, neighborhood kids like Lazaro Arvizu found themselves there often. Located in between the Swiss Dairy Company Plant (now home to the newly built Albion Riverside Park),…
A Tree Grows in Elysian Valley Pt. 2
After Ruben Molina and his family moved into Elysian Valley in 1958, Ruben, aged 5, soon found himself in what he calls “paradise.” At the time, the ongoing construction of the 5 Freeway left behind sandlots in Elysian Valley — the remnants of the homes that were destroyed to make way for this huge infrastructure…
La Madre Monte and El Mohan
Many of us grow up hearing stories passed down from generation to generation. Mythology can be an especially powerful force in our youth, inviting us to consider — sometimes for the first time — the interconnectedness of all things and the repercussions of our actions. For LA-based artist Carolina Caycedo, these narratives materialized quite literally…
River Playground
“My dad worked the graveyard shift, so my mom took care of us, but my mom was busy oftentimes at the sewing machine meeting her deadlines. We got to go play when we didn’t have to support her.” Helen Leung cherished the moments when she and her sister were given free reign to explore the…