Description
The collection consists of materials from Max Bartell, an engineer responsible for multiple water development projects and
reports for the city of San Francisco in the early 20th century. Materials in the collection include correspondence, reports,
documents, news clippings, and photographs, concerning water supply sources for San Francisco, Calif., other California regions
and municipalities, the Tuolumne River, and the Hetch Hetchy Project.
Background
Max J. Bartell was born in 1879. In July 1908 he was appointed Assistant Engineer with the City Engineer of San Francisco.
His early accomplishments included runoff investigations and reinforced concrete sewer design. He designed the Beale St. steel
bridge and began stream flow measurements on the Hetch Hetchy Project, a plan to deliver water to the City of San Francisco
from the Tuolumne River. He worked with Percy V. Long, City Attorney, John R. Freeman, consulting engineer, and M.M. O'Shaughnessy,
City Engineer, in conjunction with the project. He also investigated alternate water supplies for the city from the Mokelumne
River, the Stanislaus River, the McCloud River, and the San Joaquin River. In 1914 he was made Chief Hydraulic Engineer for
the city and investigated the total available water supply from the Alameda Creek system for the Spring Valley Water Company.
He also reported on the underground water supplies of the Livermore Valley, the Niles Cone of Alameda Creek, and the City
of San Francisco. He analyzed the Raker Act and its effects upon the water rights of the City and County of San Francisco
and served as an expert witness for the City Attorney in water rates cases regarding water productivity and value of water
productivity for rate making purposes. In his 41-year career he was responsible for many other projects and reports on San
Francisco's water development. He retired from city service in 1949 and died in April 1968 in San Francisco.
Extent
2.08 linear feet
(5 boxes)
Restrictions
Copyright has not been assigned to the University of California, Riverside Libraries, Special Collections & University Archives.
Distribution or reproduction of materials protected by copyright beyond that allowed by fair use requires the written permission
of the copyright owners. To the extent other restrictions apply, permission for distribution or reproduction from the applicable
rights holder is also required. Responsibility for obtaining permissions, and for any use rests exclusively with the user.
Availability
The collection is open for research.