Lucia R. Levers: California’s Reservoirs Hide Submerged Towns

In a published column for the California WaterBlog, Lucia R. Levers argues that California’s reservoirs hide an extensive underwater world of flooded towns, cultural sites, and ghostly inhabitants that swell in population every Halloween.

The Post-Inundation World Beneath the Surface

Levers describes Drowned California as a vast area comprising underwater remains of villages, roads, bridges, and train tunnels submerged by decades of dam construction. Communities like Cedar Springs lie beneath Silverwood Lake, as documented by local historical records from the San Bernardino Historical and Pioneer Society. Monticello rests under Lake Berryessa following the 1956 construction of the Monticello Dam, an inundation that flooded dozens of cultural sites belonging to Patwin tribes such as the Yocha Dehe Wintun, Kletsel Dehe, and Cachil Dehe. Further north, the town of Kennett and Winneman Wintu Villages were submerged by the creation of Shasta Lake.

The column suggests that aging infrastructure and deteriorating dams threaten the submerged towns.

Proposed Sites Reservoir Floods Indigenous Heritage Sites

California's history of water management has continually reshaped the land at the expense of historical settlements and indigenous heritage. The Sites Project Authority & U.S. Bureau of Reclamation 2023 review outlines how the proposed Sites Reservoir will flood new areas, impacting the town of Sites alongside cultural sites and burial areas belonging to the Grindstone Indian Rancheria of Wintun-Wailaki Indians, Paskenta Band of Nomlaki Indians, Cachil Dehe Band of Wintun, Kletsel Dehe Wintun Nation, and the Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation.

Remnants of these foundational shifts surface when water levels recede. Remains of at least seven native people have been discovered when Lake Berryessa levels dropped. Conversely, dam removal projects such as the Klamath River restoration have exposed previously flooded lands and villages that once lay beneath Copco Lake.

Recreationists Visit Sites with Submerged Municipal Foundations

Visitors frequent locations such as Whiskeytown National Recreation Area and Shasta Lake, often unaware of the municipal foundations resting below the surface. Other notable destinations include Emerald Bay State Park and Folsom Lake State Recreation Area.

As water levels fluctuate seasonally, modern recreationists share the space with the historical footprint of early California development.