Alabama Gates 2024 is a weekend of free community events in Lone Pine, California, November 15 – 17, 2024, commemorating the centennial of the Alabama Gates Occupation. This significant historical event occurred when the people of Owens Valley non-violently seized the Los Angeles Aqueduct’s control gates just north of Lone Pine on November 16, 1924, diverting the entire flow of the aqueduct into the historic Owens River channel in protest of the City of Los Angeles’ aggressive land acquisition and water harvesting activities within the valley that began with the construction of the Los Angeles Aqueduct in 1913. The 1924 Alabama Gates occupation evolved into a multi-day community picnic as 700 Owens Valley residents gathered in solidarity with the occupiers over four days.

Our November 15 – 17, 2024, program includes roundtable discussions at Lone Pine’s Statham Hall, a no-host community picnic at Lone Pine’s Spainhower Park featuring local food truck concessionaires, film screenings at the Museum of Western Film History, and an interpretive walking tour with a local naturalist at Patsiata (Owens Lake). Full program schedule is available at alabamagates2024.org. Pre-registration is required for all events.

This event is produced by There It Is—Take It! in partnership with Sierra Forever (formerly ESIA). Our program was made possible with support from California Humanities, a partner of the NEH.