Turnbull Canyon

Interesting canyon with locally well known twisty road and a perennial creek. Used to be part of the Turnbull Ranch, which the Pickering Land and Water Co purchased in 1887 for $29,460 to supply the new city of Whittier with water. Within two years, the water company had installed pipes down the canyon, and had constructed two large reservoirs to store water for distribution to the City. To increase water flows for the growing city, the water company also dug a tunnel over 1/4 mile into the side of Turnbull Canyon, approx 3/4 of the way up the canyon. Water was then drawn from the tunnel and piped down the canyon to the two reservoirs, and thence from the reservoirs the water was delivered to the city.
In 1899, the Pickering Land and Water Company transferred the existing water distribution system to the newly incorporated City of Whittier (including the reservoirs and supply pipes in Turnbull Canyon, which appear to have been abandoned by that time.)