The Zanja

San Bernardino County · Bryn Mawr · location approximate

Spanish missionaries introduced the principle of irrigation in San Bernardino Valley, thus opening the way to settlement. Franciscan fathers engineered, and Indians dug, this first ditch, or "zanja," in 1819–20. In historical sequence the zanja supported the San Bernardino Asistencia, Rancho San Bernardino, pioneer ranches, orchards, and Redlands' domestic water supply.

1971 register text, presented as a historical document. It uses the period's terms for Native people; the state's landmark listings still carry most of this wording, and the California Office of Historic Preservation maintains the program's current texts.

Many of these plaques have since been recast or their texts revised. The California Historical Landmarks program and its current texts are maintained by the California Office of Historic Preservation. California Office of Historic Preservation ↗

David Rumsey Map Collection, Stanford Libraries

Marker data: State of California, Department of Parks and Recreation, California Historical Landmarks (1971)

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