Description
The Nikola P. Prokopovich Papers document United States Bureau of Reclamation geologist Nikola Prokopovich's work on irrigation,
land subsidence, and geochemistry in California. The collection includes draft reports and memoranda, published writings,
slides, photographs, and two films related to several state-wide water projects. Prokopovich was particularly interested in
the engineering geology of the Central Valley Project's canals and dam sites and in the effects of the state water projects
on the surrounding landscape.
Background
Nikola P. Prokopovich (1918-1999) was a California-based geologist for the United States Bureau of Reclamation. He was born
in Kiev, Ukraine and came to the United States in 1950. He earned his doctorate in Geological Sciences in Germany, where he
lived for a time before emigrating. After his arrival in the United States with his wife, Sylvia, Prokopovich worked a series
of odd jobs followed by more meaningful work at the University of Minnesota, and later with the US Geological Survey. Eventually,
he made his home in Sacramento, where he worked as a geologist with the Bureau of Reclamation's Mid-Pacific Region. He worked
out of the Sacramento office from 1958-1986, investigating the geology and geochemistry of California statewide water projects,
including the Central Valley Project and the Solano Project. Due to Prokopovich's extensive work on these projects and his
investigations into the effects of irrigation on land in the Sacramento and San Joaquin valleys, he became a respected authority
on land subsidence in water development projects.
Restrictions
Copyright is protected by the copyright law, chapter 17, of the U.S. Code. All requests for permission to publish or quote
from manuscripts must be submitted in writing to the Head of Special Collections. Permission for publication is given on behalf
of the Department of Special Collections, University of California, Library, Davis as the owner of the physical items and
is not intended to include or imply permission of the copyright holder, which must also be obtained by the researcher.
Availability
Collection is open for research.