John J. Crowley

Fr. John J. Crowley (December 8, 1891 - March 17, 1940), often referred to as the Desert Padre, was an early 20th century Catholic priest in California's large but sparsely populated Eastern Sierra. He served there from 1919 to 1940, with an interlude, mainly in Fresno, from about 1924 to 1934. He is remembered for his prodigious efforts to help improve the economic well-being of all Eastern Sierra residents (not just the Catholics, of whom there were about 600) whose lives had been adversely affected by the diversion of water from the Owens Valley to the rapidly growing but water-deficient Los Angeles area (see: California water wars)