Bixby Slough facts for kids
Bixby Slough (pronounced "slew") was a large, ancient wetland in Los Angeles County, California. It was a big freshwater marsh in the Carson-Harbor City-Wilmington area. This wetland flowed into San Pedro Bay, which is part of the Pacific Ocean.
Bixby Slough was like a network of small streams, swamps, and muddy areas. Over time, this natural wetland was changed to create the large, man-made Port of Los Angeles. Sadly, about 90 percent of wetlands in Los Angeles County have been destroyed. The loss of wetlands like Bixby Slough in the South Bay area was very significant.
History of Bixby Slough
In ancient times, long before Europeans arrived, the area around Bixby Slough was home to the Tongva people. They had villages there called Suanga and Massunga.
Later, during the "Spanish days" in California, the area was known as Cañada de Palos Verdes. This means "glen of the green sticks." For a while in the late 1800s, the main body of water was called Lagunita, meaning "little lake." In the early 1900s, it was also known as Machado Lake.
The name Bixby Slough came from a landowner named Jotham Bixby. He bought part of the land in 1872. For many years, the wetland was the only source of fresh water for the animals on his ranch.
From the early 1900s to the 1920s, people thought about connecting the Slough to the Port of Los Angeles. This would have involved digging a channel. However, these plans were never carried out.
In 1937, the Los Angeles Times newspaper described Bixby Slough as a large, 200-acre "sink." During rainy seasons, it could become a deep lake, sometimes 35 to 45 feet (10.6-13.7 meters) deep. Since it had no natural outlet, the water would stay there all summer.
Later that year, people started to see the Slough as a problem. They called it a "flood menace" and a "health menace." County leaders were asked to drain it. This would open up the land for factories and other businesses.
By 1947, lifeguards were even placed at the Slough. This was to help with the problem of young people drowning while riding rafts. In 1951, the Los Angeles City Council discussed what to do with the "mud-encrusted" Slough. More boys had recently drowned there.
In 1953, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors decided to fund a storm drain. This drain would carry the stagnant water from the Slough to the ocean. The water trap had caused many deaths of young children.
The drain was finished in 1955. It helped control the water levels in the swamp-like Slough. The area around the lake was prepared for a new recreation area. The storm drain ran underground and emptied the Slough into the west basin of Los Angeles Harbor.
In 1957, money was set aside for what is now Ken Molloy Harbor Regional Park. This park is 285 acres and includes a 45-acre body of water called Harbor Lake or Machado Lake.
What Lived There?
Bixby Slough was a freshwater marsh with plants that grew out of the water. Both Bixby Slough and nearby Dominguez Slough would get bigger during wet seasons. Closer to the ocean, they even turned into salt marshes.
A report from 1939 described it as a shallow freshwater marsh. It said that even when the water surface was only a few acres during dry years, it still contained catfish.
The ground under the water was described as "slimy, sucking and treacherous." This made conditions in the Slough very dangerous. In the 1920s, Bixby Slough was also a "mud mine." It provided a special kind of mud for nearby oil drilling operations. This mud was different from the surrounding soil. When it dried, it became very hard and shiny, like marble.
The area that is now the lake at the park used to be much wider. It was surrounded by plants like willows, bulrushes, and milk thistles.
Today, the Harbor Park and the newer Bixby Marshland are efforts to bring back some of the natural environment. They help restore some of the benefits that were lost when Bixby Slough was destroyed.
