Have you ever heard of the Santa Clara River? If you haven’t, this river is a slow-flowing body of water that flows through Santa Clarita, California. The river is 83 miles long and the mainstream runs from Ventura to Santa Clarita. The river has just started to flow again due to the amount of rain California has been recently receiving. You may pass the river when you go to school, or you could live next to the river. Many water collecting areas near Rio Norte go into the Santa Clara River.

Are you wondering why the Santa Clara River is named how it is? Even though the city of Santa Clara is near San Francisco? Well, the name doesn’t come from the city of Santa Clara; the name of the river came to honor Saint Clare of Assisi who died on August 11, 1253. Then, the name was changed to Rio de Santa Clara. This inspired the name that comes from 1769 that we know now, the Santa Clara River.

The history of the Santa Clara River changed the river a lot. The northern portion was home to the Tataviam People and the southern part was occupied by the Chumash People. Most of the Santa Clara River was used for agriculture. The river also supplied humans with fish, water, and rich farmland. Eventually, California went into a drought and the Santa Clara River now only flows after it rains. The Santa Clara River in Santa Clarita now isn’t much of a river anymore. It is more like a wash.

The river is not immune to floods so the river can flood occasionally. There has been a lot of rain recently and the river started to erode its edges. Furthermore, places that are normally safe can fall into the river. When it rains a lot, the river can get dangerous. For example, in 2003, a section of the river near Ventura collapsed because of major flooding. Adding on, the Santa Clara river had a bad flood in 2005 which swept houses away and caused millions of dollars in damage.

Most students in Santa Clarita know about this river. Student Wesley Pasoce stated, “a trash pick up event where you go there and collect trash” Keeping the river clean is important because the river flows into the ocean. Plus, there are many farmers that farm from the river’s water. If trash gets into the crop’s water it could give them diseases or even kill them! All in all, the river is vital for local communities and supplies them with water.

Finally, the Santa Clara river is important because it supplies resources to the people that occupied the river. Similarly, it also supplied resources to local towns and counties. However, the river can be dangerous and can be at risk of flooding. To help the river, people pick up trash and try to preserve the beautiful environment. If you didn’t know about the Santa Clara River; now you do.