Flooding in California Page 323

Floods in California from December 1861-January 1862 were so severe that they made news around the world, as can be seen with this excerpt from the Illustrated London Times. This deluge created an inland sea that spread over thousands of acres, deep enough that boats could sail over the tops of telegraph poles in the Sacramento Valley. The waters carried hydraulic mining tailings that settled on the flatlands, creating what one observer described as a “desolate waste” in the flood’s aftermath. Identification Information: Ephemera Collection, 96-11-51 (A00725-04).

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