In 1904, the newly created Los Angeles Department of Water and Power issued its first public report. 'The time has come, ' it said, 'when we shall have to supplement the supply from another source.' With that simple statement, William Mulholland was about to become a modern Moses. But instead of leading his people to the promised land, he would cleave the desert and lead the promised waters to them. Marc Reisner
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William Mulholland was the head of the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power in 1904. The Los Angeles Aqueduct was being built by him so that California could be supplied with fresh water. One day, someone told him that the city of Los Angeles already had enough water. Mulholland was so powerful that he did not have to listen to anyone else's opinion at all. He knew what he had to do and he did it.

Source: Cadillac Desert: The American West And Its Disappearing Water

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