Friends of the River

Friends of the River was founded in 1973 by Mark Dubois and Jerry Meral during the struggle to save the Stanislaus River from New Melones Dam. Some believe that the campaign to save the Stanislaus River marked the end of massive dam building in the United States, making the Stanislaus River the "last river lost". Many photographs, documents, and other materials relating to this failed campaign are available online at the Stanislaus River Digital Archive.