<br />F 1 (I.~rJ ),,~~~'ip tio,,"
<br />~v~il~ble hist~.i~al "ec~.ds ~f f~ood. in the P~eblo
<br />.egion "inc~ ths ~id_1800's a.s pri~a~ily infDr~~ti~Q on fluadi~g
<br />effe~t3 of the ~.k~nsas Ri~o. and FQ~ntai~ C,'~ok. References to
<br />ll1.. 8"all~r ~ributary str9~m~ in the ~r..~ ~pp""r only "",rely i~
<br />~~tly r,~w"papc, ~ccdLnts, ~nC: s;:>~'cific inform"UOrl on ~r", inter,_
<br />"ity, duration, ~nd meg"iLde of the do,,"." "nd flood ~ffects
<br />for the ~tudy reachas of this report--'~'ild Horse-Dry Cre~k. 0'1
<br />Creek, ~~d Goodnight A.royo--is g8ne.~11y 1~ckin9.
<br />Resea,ch indicatas that the hi~to.iGal flood~ tacorced
<br />
<br />DRYCR[Ei(
<br />
<br />~8"'e trOC", thn ~r>or",O"5 nmo~nl of ~"t~. ~hi~l, ~~I"~ UU"",, "') C.~"k.
<br />
<br />The 5tre"~ and Its 'hlley
<br />Dry Creek is " north_bunk trit.~t~.y of tha A.k~n~a~
<br />River. The t"n"ns-.haped \liat'''5h~d, 5p~nning a distance of 5.0.
<br />~i:es h"", the he"d",,,l~re tD the ,"o~th "nd dth " ",,,ximu,", width
<br />of 2.3 ",il~~, co~stitutos ~ d.~in~ge 3rea of 5.~ squ~re ~il~~.
<br />[levations in the ,,~t8,shed v~ry from 5,255 feet at the he~dw~ters
<br />to 4,608 feat at the Arka~.e5 Rive. cor>fluonce.
<br />An spheme.al st.e~m, Dry Creek originatG~ at tho
<br />~outhern extre~ity of fleculite Mesa in the high plain~ notthaast
<br />of P~eblo ~nd flows in a southe.ly direction to di~charge into
<br />th~ Arkan~3s Riv~r between Pueblo's Booth Street and Neilson ~va-
<br />!'ue. The creE!k flm.s ,,,e the result Df snow"1l1lt and ta1nfdl
<br />r~noff durin9 the winter ~nd ea.ly spring. During the su~"'a. months,
<br />the flows result hOIT thunde,storns Or 9~net"l t"i~5 over the en~
<br />tira ~~ter6hed.
<br />T~e ,olling high plains terr~in i8 f~irly ~C~9h, b~o~
<br />k~n, ~nu ~per~ely veg~tat~d. Th~ veg~t~tion is ~ypic~l of the semi_
<br />~.id high plains__pr~dominantly ssga br~sh, ~~~tu6, ~nd native gr~sa.
<br />Th~ ~tudy r~~ch ~xtends from tha mouth of Dry Cr~ak ~t
<br />the ~rk"n$a6 River to ,'iH.. J.2u, ~U:Jroxim~tsly 1.[: ",il~~ nudh o~
<br />the U.S. Highway 50 Bypas$ b~idge. floods in thu ~tudy r~~ch
<br />no,"'al1y otiginete fro," runoff of the entire wata~shed d~e to the
<br />1imi t~d oreal e~t~"t of th~ drBirl~9". Th" $t~~r stop.." ,,~d 101"9
<br />na.ro"' "hope of the dr'ainage '''Q conducive to fil~t ,.iao" ~nd hig~'
<br />psak flows of aho~t duration. Tha BV8r~ge dope in the ",atel:shBd
<br />is approxi~ately 114 fnst pa~ mil& but, within the ~tudy r~~ch,
<br />is only 49 faet pa. mil.., Stn'a,,;b~u ~l..v"Llv"~ ",lUd_CL Lb. ~L,,";y
<br />reach vary from "plnox1m"tely 4,6D8 h~t ~t the mouth to 4,766
<br />feet at ~,ila 3.20, flood pl,dn width" lIIoClld Vd,y fro", "bout 50
<br />feat n,,", the mOClth during ~n Inter~edi~te Region..: r:ood to "
<br />",,,~i"um of :;0 foot ne": ~~o pip~ t:astle ~t IllEn C'.'" du~in'i ~
<br />St~ndard P:oj~d Flood. P"rUne~" d,."if1eg" ar~,,~ of Dq Cnl~"
<br />'~R giv~f1 In T~bl~ 3.
<br />
<br />in 1864, 1694, 192:, and IS35, involvinS ~ajor flooding in tho
<br />vicini ty of Pueblo, -'oGt p.obably included ~imultanemJ~ fiooding
<br />on thn ~t~dy l:e~ohe~ "3 ,"~ll. In the follo~in9 desc>:iptions of
<br />Pweolo's 1894 ~nd :921 floouo. refa.~ncoo to D.y Craek apply to
<br />~ild Ho.~o-Ory C.eek as d~~c,ib~d previou~ly in this rG~o,t.
<br />
<br />M'JyJD.l894
<br />Untie. the haadlir,e "HighD~t ~ate. on Rscord ','isits
<br />r_et,lo," t~,e [olnr~d,~ Chleft"in reocrt"d: "Th" dio~~t,OLE flood
<br />'.'~S ""~b,,bly oau~~ by the ve.y extnniva nlin" in tho ArKws~s
<br />ihlloy ~bov~ P,j~blo whlr.h h"ve bcen p~cv"l8nt for the P~"t 46
<br />"ou"~. The' "."dd,," no"dl"C; of thE! b"dnes~ porticn of the city
<br />
<br />j'cne c-~ 1971
<br />The USGS 'JJ3ter_Swpply Pape. 4~"I, "Th~ I\l:brl~as Rivs.
<br />flood of j'_rla :>-5. 1921," fu.niohod the following info,,,,~tio":
<br />"D;'y C.Bek, ~hich dl:~in5 ~n ~~ee of ~7..5 "qua~'" ~iles jlJ"t ""st
<br />of Pusblo on tho north side of the A,k"ns~:;, ~,,~ ~ubjact to it~
<br />""Va"B~t flood thu night of June Z.... ~t 11 p .m. ~hB b.idge
<br />dV~" h'~nty-foc.rth Street in Pueblo was ~~~h"d out.... Tni~ flood
<br />c~,,~~d the rive. nt P"oblo to rice by" :;.'., ju"~ 3, to ~ st,,~~
<br />of ~3.7 fed 0" the St~t.s ~"<J~ ju~t beiCJ~ th" M~jn S'~()et "I'id'Ja....
<br />Th" m"d"u~ di~ch~L'ge o~' the "tre~'n in the t'ir~t f~ov" "",c; fu,mu
<br />to ba 2~.400 cubl~ r~ul ~",r ~econc".
<br />
<br />22
<br />
<br />"
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