Imperial County CA Archives History - Books .....Irrigation 1918
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Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com February 15, 2006, 6:00 am

Book Title: History Of Imperial County California

CHAPTER IV
IRRIGATION
BY EDGAR F. HOWE

   WHEN Congressman Roberts of Pennsylvania had traversed the desert to enter
Imperial Valley, he said: "The one incomprehensible fact with me is that you
people came here. Now that you are here and have brought about this marvelous
development, I can well understand why you stay here. But how did it happen that
you came out into this Valley when it was such a forbidding desert as I have
seen in coming here?— that is the mystery."

   Congressman Roberts did not realize that there is in America a nomadic race
of beings, always pressing toward the frontier and carving empires to endure for
the ages. Here in Imperial Valley, last of the American frontiers, they saw
their opportunity, and we may believe that as they settled down near the river
to make new habitation they but duplicated the processes of the ancient
Assyrians and Egyptians, throwing off the nomadic instinct for the time being
and adding to the processes of the ancients the skill of the moderns.

   It was no accident that brought forth Imperial Valley from the desolation of
the Colorado Desert. There is no alchemy and no mysticism in the methods whereby
the desert is reclaimed. Everywhere in modern husbandry the scientist is
analyzing the soil and determining the element that is lacking for highest
productivity, and he has discovered that in arid lands the one missing element
is moisture. That supplied, the plant food that has been accumulating through
the ages brings forth crops to astonish those unacquainted with the desert.

   Early in the 40's General Kearny's expedition crossed Southern Arizona, noted
the great success of the Pima Indians in the Salt River valley growing cotton
and other cultures, thence came on through what was to become the famous
Imperial Valley.

   A decade later they were followed by soldiers of the United States, and so
early as that time the possibility of reclaiming the desert by bringing water
from the Colorado River was reported on by army officers.

   A little later Dr. Wozencraft of San Bernardino became interested in bringing
this about, and did his utmost to get Congress to make an appropriation to this
end, but when it seemed that he might succeed, the Civil War came on, and for
years nothing could be done in regard to reclamation works. After the war he
again tried to secure government aid for the work, but was unsuccessful.

   During the 70's individuals became interested in a project to bring about the
work as a private enterprise, but nothing came of those efforts, covering a
series of years.

   The California Development Company finally was formed, composed of C. R.
Rockwood, A. H. Heber, Dr. W. T. Heffernan and others. These were men of
moderate means, but all they possessed was put into the work of making surveys
and hunting for bigger capital to carry on the work. A number of years went by
without accomplishment until the spring of 1900, when George Chaffey, as general
manager, began the great work of building which was to be conducted during the
fourteen months in which he headed the enterprise.

   Mr. Chaffey was a Canadian civil and mechanical engineer, and more than
twenty years before he had been connected with the development work at
Riverside, and thence had gone to found the colonies of Ontario and Etiwanda,
Southern California. Following his success in Southern California he had gone to
Australia to take charge of great government irrigation works, and these works
being completed, he had just returned to this country when he became interested
in the Imperial enterprise, of which he was made the head. He began his task
with adverse financial conditions. Not only had all the stock of the company
passed to private hands, but the company had considerable floating obligations
and had sold water rights for 35,000 acres of land. Its only assets consisted of
a camp equipment and an interest in a surveying outfit. As he built canals the
holders of water rights located them along the canals, thus making it difficult
to finance additional works.

   Adding to the difficulties, the United States Agricultural Department bureau
of soils sent here a young and inexperienced man to report on the soils of the
Valley, and the report he made was so unjustly adverse that banks which had
co-operated to a degree withdrew their support.

   In spite of these obstacles, in fourteen months Mr. Chaffey dug 700 miles of
canal, and colonists having come to the Valley in large numbers, mainly from
irrigated sections of California and Arizona, the section was given an impetus
that nothing could stop.

   Building in this way it was inevitable that the works should be constructed
with a view to cheapness rather than endurance, and the colonists have paid a
heavy penalty for this, though greater stability is being wrought out by the
people for themselves in these later days, and the irrigation works will in time
take rank with the best the world knows.

   The supreme evil that came upon the Valley as a result of the cheap
construction came through conducting the irrigation canal through Mexico.

   Abutting on the international line as it does, a chain of sand hills lies
between Imperial Valley and the Colorado River and extends a short distance
below the line into Mexico. From an engineering point of view-it was the logical
thing to do to conduct the canal around the chain of hills. But insomuch as that
vested the control of the canal in a foreign country, it was a most serious
obstacle to the development of the full resources of the American lands, it
being necessary to make great concessions to Mexico.

   It would be much better if the writing of this historical sketch could be
delayed a few months, for then, in all probability, the triumph of the colonists
over this obstacle could be recounted. As these words are written there is a
delegation in Washington conferring with the representatives of the Interior
Department, and there is assurance that arrangements will be perfected whereby a
canal wholly within the United States will be constructed and the irrigation of
the half million acres now in Imperial irrigation district, and nearly as much
additional land outside the present boundaries of the district, will be divorced
from the six hundred thousand irrigable acres in Mexico.

   In late years a new line of organization has been followed, which has placed
the irrigation system in the hands of the residents of the Valley. The financial
difficulties of the California Development Company and its closely affiliated
Mexican company (the stock of the latter owned by the former and maintained as a
method of control of the canal in Mexico) eventually led to a receivership, and
the Southern Pacific Railroad Company having advanced the company a sum of
money, the railroad company became the controlling factor. The people of the
Valley in 1911 organized an irrigation district under the laws of California,
and for three millions of dollars purchased the irrigation system, assuming the
obligation of the original company in its contract with the Republic of Mexico
to give to the Mexican lands one half of all water brought through that country,
providing those lands require that quantity of water. The district also
maintains a Mexican corporation, the function of which is the same as that of
its predecessor.

   In the original organization the Development Company was a parent company,
having contracts with a series of mutual water companies for the delivery of
water at 50 cents an acre foot, the farmers holding stock in these companies on
the basis of one share (usually) to the acre. Each of these mutual companies
serves the water used in a well defined section of the Valley.

   In forming the district this organization was continued, the district serving
the mutual companies and not the individual farmers and continuing the former
charge. The mutual companies levy assessments from time to time to cover the
maintenance of their distributing canals and their office expenses, and charge
the farmers at the rate of 50 cents a second foot for actual water deliveries.
The irrigation district has as its revenue the water rentals from the mutual
companies and levies taxes to make up the deficit, these taxes applying on all
real estate in cities and country, exclusive of improvements.

   In many respects there is in this irrigation project a suggestion of that on
the lower Nile. The Colorado River draws its great volume of water from a
drainage area that reaches almost to the Canadian line and which includes the
whole western slope of the Rocky Mountains. Scant summer rain in arid America
and the melting snows of the mountains give to the river great variability in
volume of discharge, which rises and falls with almost clock-work regularity.
The maximum discharge comes about June 20 each year, and the annual outpour of
the river is about sixteen million acre feet.

   With present development there is a good margin of safety above the minimum
flow, but at the rate development is proceeding along the river, it is evident
to all that something in the form of storage must be devised in years not far
distant.

   Taken as a whole, the farmers use an average of a trifle over three acre feet
per acre a year, the maximum demand being in June, July and August, but time
undoubtedly will bring about considerable change in this respect. The use of
water runs so extensively to summer maximum now because of the great acreage of
cotton grown, but the tendency already manifest toward fall and spring garden
crops leads to the belief that cotton in the years to come will occupy a smaller
percentage of the total area, and the more intensive culture of fall, winter and
spring crops, and the more extensive planting of fruits, particularly grapes and
dates, will lead to a more equitable distribution of water service throughout
the year.


Additional Comments:
Extracted from:

THE HISTORY
OF
IMPERIAL COUNTY
CALIFORNIA
EDITED BY
F. C. FARR

IN ONE VOLUME
ILLUSTRATED
Published by ELMS AND FRANKS
BERKELEY, CALIFORNIA 1918


Printed by Taylor & Taylor, San Francisco


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