History of Electricity in the Coachella Valley - Indio, CA - Signs of History on Waymarking.com

LOCATION: I was waymarking a few other locations and came across this very sizable mural located on the corner of Civic Center Mall and Fargo St. I was shocked at how desolate this downtown district is, void of businesses and full of empty, boarded-up buildings scattered through a 2-3 block area. The one bright spot in this part of the city was seeing this very-well-painted mural on the side of a building.

This mural represents the history of electricity in Coachella Valley over the decades, from the early 1900s through the 1950s. There is a painted representation of parchment paper with historical text that reads:

History of Electricity
in the
Coachella Valley
The Coachella Valley's developing agricultural industry created a need for electric services. Substation were located next to cold storage houses, providing power to preserve the Valley's bountiful produce. In 1943, the Imperial Irrigation District took over the delivery of power to the eastern Coachella Valley. Dedicated IID workers braved the harsh desert environment to build power lines that would transport precious electricity. Reliable, affordable electricity was instrumental in transforming the desert into the flourishing cities that exist today. _____________________________________________________

One has to smirk after reading the last line of this historical text since this mural is a stark contrast to its surroundings and one gets the feeling of being in a ghost town. There is a metal plaque hanging on the far right side of the mural that represents "Friends of the Murals", a group of citizens and organizations who made a minimum contribution of $2000 to become a member. It was placed by the Indio Chamber of Commerce Historic Mural Project. I was able to locate a website page devoted to mural projects all over Indio here.

Overall, this large mural represents one of the nicer murals I've come across in my travels.

Group that erected the marker: Indio Chamber of Commerce Historical Mural Project URL of a web site with more information about the history mentioned on the sign: [Web Link] Address of where the marker is located. Approximate if necessary: Civic Center Mall Drive Indio, CA USA

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Date Logged Log   03/25/2014 merlot visited it