Did anyone see on the news about 3 days ago...

dcamp78

wear an entire town was being torn down?

I think they said it was in the Midwest or West.

Dockwalliper

Yeah. The Govt. bought them out at 110% of evaluation. They were on a flood plane.

dcamp78

Does anybody on this forum live near this town?

If so, why not round up the group and go to the site for some serious beeping?

DesertRat

It has been two years now since I posted my original post about the former village of Monolith which is close to my home. I still have been unsuccessful it gaining access to the site to search it. Big corporations are reluctant to give permission it seems.

Here is a copy and paste from my archived original thread.


Back in 1909 the City of Los Angeles purchased land and opened the monolith Cement Plant in Tehachapi Ca. to provide the cement needed for the California aqueduct project. When announcing the plant's opening, William Mulholland commented "The plant will give employment to about seventy-five men. A little village has been built near the works, where these men and their families will be comfortably housed." Thus was born the village of "Aqueduct." Although it started as a mere camp, over the months it developed into a small community. The City constructed all the buildings, including 21 dwellings of from one to six rooms each and six frame tent houses. Seven bunk houses accomodated 130 bechelors. A kitchen and mess all fed the hungry laborers, and a hospital building was erected as well.Streets were surveyed; sewer and water systems installed. The general needs of the families were provided by a privately owned store. A schoolhouse was built in 1910. The name of the village was officially changed to "Monolith" in April 1910 at the behest of the Southern Pacific Railroad which owned the siding of the same name.

The village flourished throughout the construction of the aqueduct and produced roughly 1,200 barrels of cement daily. During the 30's cement from the plant was used in the construction of Boulder Dam project on the Colorado. During WWII cement from monolith was used soley in the war effort and was used to construct the U.S. Naval Ammunition Dump in Hawthorne Nevada and later on the U.S. Naval Base at Guam Island. Production during the war years reached 3,000,000 barrels /year.

At it's peak in 1945 the village was home to 345 people. On May 22, 1945 the last and longest term resident arrived. By 1960, with improved transportation and an increased job market, employees no longer needed to live close to work and housing opportunities in nearby Tehachapi beckoned people away from monolith. The company initiated a policy of no new renters and as buildings became vacant they were boarded up. By 1972 the population was down to only 10 families and on September 30, 1972 the cash register at the store rang for the last time. In 1974 the remaining residents were relocated and in 1975 the site was demolished and the debris removed. Only foundations remain today.

Below are satellite photos (dated 1995) and a hand drawn map (drawn in 1976) of the site.
I went to the cement plant (which still owns the land) yesterday and spoke with the Head of environmental engineering to gain permission to search the site. He is sympathetic and sid it will be tough to get permission but with the amount of liability insurance I carry and with an archeological clause (I report any significant findings) I may be able to gain access. I'm trying not to get too excited because odds are not in my favor but I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

In the photos below I have superimposed the map to give a better understanding of the layout.












Some day.........some day.

CyStater

Elkport, IA maybe? It is northwest of Dubuque. Destroyed by flood, all the residents chose the government buyout.

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