History of Diversion Dam Celebrated

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History of diversion dam celebrated Places of Worship Our Other Publications Classifieds About Us Guestbook Desert Shopper Blythe Chamber of Commerce Palo Verde Valley Times 2006 -07 Rate Card http: / /www.blythecanews. com/main. asp? SectionID= 24 &SubSectionl... writing of a plan in which landowners defaulted their land to the District and with loans acquired by the District, purchase the land back at a discounted rate with a debt burden low enough to afford the costs of producing crops and livestock. In 1950, two years after Fisher resigned from the Board, he returned as a member of the first Gravity Diversion Committee, charged with finding a permanent solution to PVID's diversion problems. "He made many trips to Washington in an effort to get the current dame approved and financed," Fisher said. At the fairgrounds, a dinner was held and many historical photos lined the walls of the Jaycees building. PVID Trustee Jack Seiler, chair of the group's Legislative and Public Relations Committee, and with the help of PVID Chief Engineer Roger Henning and assistant manager Richard Gilmore, put together a slide show Kingman Daily Miner presentation of the history of the dam. Navajo Hopi Observer "To really appreciate what this dam did for development of the Valley, one Prescott Daily Courier needs to be aware of the problems early farmers had trying to divert water Verde Valley News from the Colorado River for irrigation," Seiler said. "In the pre - Boulder Dam Williams Grand years, the Colorado River could have winter flows less than 1,000 cubic feet Canyon per second (CFS) and summer floods carrying over 200,000 cfs." Winslow Mail He said that in 1879, Blythe, Calloway and George S. Irish constructed a The Pulse gate from Olive Lake slough and a canal southwest from there. Crews C Suns began building a diversion structure and a canal from the river at Black Intaglios Point, about 1 -1/2 miles north of the present dam. What's your favorite In 1904, the Blythe Estate was purchased by Frank Murphy and A.L. name for Blythe's "They built several miles of irrigation ditches and constructed levees on high professional ground away from and parallel to the river from a point % miles north of 2nd baseball team? Avenue along the Olive Lake slough to a point near 26th Avenue and Please select one: Defrain," Seiler said. Aviators " After Blythe's death in 1883, 20 years went by before anything further was w1 Heat done to develop the valley. C Suns In 1905, a number of homesteads were wiped out in a flood that swept the Intaglios area, the same flood that created the Salton Sea. Nomads In 1904, the Blythe Estate was purchased by Frank Murphy and A.L. Sizzlin' Snowbirds Hobson as the Palo Verde Land and Water Company. This company formed the Palo Verde Mutual Water Company (PVMW) in 1908 to furnish ^, Desert Dusters water for irrigation and to give levee protection for the Blythe Estate area Bandits and to sell water to others. At that time, C.K. Clarke, engineer for PVMW, built a three -gated lumber intake structure on the west side of a rock (D Bighorns outcropping about 1.5 miles south of Black Point, the site of the present Arizona river gate on the present dam. Spirit Vote In 1916, the three -gated intake structure was lowered and expanded to an View Results eight -gate concrete structure. Two sluiced gates into Olive lake slough were installed in the main canal. With the formation of the Palo Verde Drainage District in 1921, local farmers felt that the three agencies with similar boundaries was inefficient and the Palo Verde Irrigation District was formed. Over the years, problems with sediment and water elevations made it difficult to meet water demands. 2 of 4 11/26/2007 10:52 AM