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<br />General Description <br /> <br />The precipitation as shown in the tabulation is quite <br />typical of the basin with the exception of the headwater areas <br />where it averages 20 inches annually in the lower mountain slopes <br />and 28 inches in the higher mountain areas. <br /> <br />HISIDRY <br /> <br />-The project area was originally a part of the Meocican <br />Territory which was ceded to the United States in 1848. The first <br />settlers were ranchers who established their holding and grazing <br />rights under grants obtained from Mexico.. The Trinidad service <br />area wa.s within the Vigil and st. Vrain grant which was made in. <br />1843. Because of hostile Indians, settlement was restricted until <br />peace was established in 1880. <br /> <br />Since the climate is semiarid, the early settlers experienced <br />difficulty in raising adequate supplies of food for themselves and <br />feed for their livestock. Therefore, irrigation was soon resorted <br />to whenever the lands and water supplies seemed to warrant its <br />development. The first recorded irrigation from the Purgatoire <br />River was started in 1846 by John Hatcher,. a stagecoach driver. <br />The first water right on the stream is for the Antonio Lopez <br />system, having a priority date of November 1,1861.' Other systems <br />established rights at later dates, and eventually 13 systems were <br />developed in the general Trinidad area.' They range from very <br />small and simple to moderately iarge and complex. All systems <br />except the abandoned Victor Florez are still in operation. Each <br />system is operated independently. <br /> <br /> <br />When the detailed investigations. for the Trinidad Project <br />were started, it was realized that a single organization would be <br />required to represent all of the systems to be included in the <br />project. Therefore, on December 2, 1960, the Purgatoire River Water <br />Conservancy District was legally organized to perform this function. <br />..The conservancy district bo~rd, consisting of nine members, has <br />been the central local agency giving guidance in conducting the <br />irrigation investigations of the project. . The formation of this <br />.district clearly:demonstrates that the water userS are in favor <br />of the project. <br /> <br />l' <br /> <br />Rev. 9/64 <br />