When the "Jungle" met the forest: Public work, civil defense, and prison camps in Postwar California

Abstract

In January and February 1969, winter rains pounded southern California counties merci lessly. The wettest winter in eighty years caused millions of dollars in losses in regions agriculture, ravaged canyons with flash floods, and buried roads and freeways east of Los Angeles and neighboring Orange County. Matters went from bad to worse on February 25 when six thousand Southlanders fled their canyon homes in fear of mudslides. Many stayed behind, such as Quick family: mother, father, and their four Five of Quicks' neighbors died in disaster. Cut off from outside world for three days in Silverado Canyon on western slopes of Santa Ana Mountains, Quick fam ily was rescued by a team of convicts from region s prison forest camp.1 The Quicks were no bleeding-heart liberals likely to mollycoddle criminals. Volun teers in Ronald Reagan's gubernatorial campaign, they supported Vietnam War and cracking down on Berkeley student protests. But 1969 flood washed out their law and-order stand. Grateful for heroic deeds of sleep-deprived, soaked, and starv ing men who put their life on line for others, Mrs. R. Quick asked governor in a letter to reduce their sentences. She showed no interest in men's criminal record? it was their race that caused Mrs. Quick's biggest surprise: Everyone always shows worst side of negroes. None were there to record negro prisoners up to chests in water (raging water) forming a human chain passing children and people to other side. It was not just their courage and strength that seemed remarkable, but the gentle way they handled children. Like most of flood victims, Mrs. Quick saw model citizens in