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<br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />. <br /> <br />In 1950, the SoutilCrn High Plains irrigated area contain.,d <br />approximately 1,850,000 2.cres of irrigo.tod land and 9,500 farms on which <br />irrigation was practicocl. Approximately 30 percent, or 560,000 of the <br />irrigated acres and 2,820 of the farms on \Thich irrigation wan l?ractioed, <br />is locatecl in t'le portion drained by the Red River (see Table 1). The <br />general area of heaviest development is indicatecl by crosshachtrro. in <br />Fi[lure 1. A snall part of the developed aroa extonds over into the <br />Arkansas Rivel' drainage basin in the vicinity of Amarillo. The acreage <br />in the developed area lying within the Arl:ansas River Basin near Illnarillo <br />is included and treatod as a part of the irrigation developments in tho <br />~ed TIiver Basin portion of the Southorn High Plains. <br /> <br />Inaomuch as the area under consideration constitutes an insepara- <br />ble part of the Southern Hi[lh Plains irrigated area, the trends in develop- <br />ment, hydrolo[;ic conditions, development costs, types of equipment, and <br />most of the irrigation practices in the area are the oame as those for <br />the Southern Hi:;h Plains irrigated area. Consequontly, part of the dis- <br />cussion \/hich fo11o\o13 pertains to irrigation in the Southern High Plnino <br />as a Hhcle. It should be I,ept in mind that tho area being considered <br />contains about 30 percent of tho acres irrigato~ and of the farT.IS on which <br />irrieation is practiced in the Southorn High Plaino. <br /> <br />History and Trond in Irri~ation DovoloPment <br /> <br />The Southern HiCh Plains was one of the last farming areas of <br />Texas to be devoloped. Crop production began abou'G 1890, but ~T[W not <br />iJnportant before 1910. From about 1910 to 1920 farming increased repidly <br />in the southerl'. pert, W;10I'e~LS in the northern po.rt the expand on CC\lllO <br />mostly during t!lC 1920-2'7 period. <br /> <br />According to Hutson, ~1indmills ~ICre usod <br />and feed crop tracts neo.r llic1J.nnd /lnd Plninvie~1 in <br />of ~lell irrie;aUon, however, is gonorally croditod <br />Plni:lView in 19JJ.. Progroo:3 in tho 20 yOllrs or so <br />doscribed by Broad1lUrct: <br /> <br />to irr~&ate a~all gardon <br />1897. 11 TIle beginning <br />to a dovc1opLl<mt near <br />follo~ring 19E is <br /> <br />By 1914 about 1/0 irrigation ,mlls had been completed in three <br />districts - Plainvie~J, Hereford and J.iuleshoe. The cleveJ.opment <br />as a lIhole Has only moderately successful, and during the next <br />20 years, from 1914 to 1934, only about 160 additional pumping <br />plants were installed, many of the older ones beinG unused during <br />that period. A part of the lack of success 'las due to the high <br />cost and relatively 1~1 efficiency of the low-speed pumps and <br />oil_burning pmler units then in use. Follm.1ing the advent of <br />the moderately-prieed high-speed turbine pun~s, powered by a <br />small automobile engine with direet drive, the effioiency of <br />the pumping plants rose sharply. ~ <br /> <br />11 <br />'1:./ <br /> <br />Hutson, Hilliam F. "Irrigation SYStcr,lS in Texas". U.S. Geo. Sur., <br />~Iater Supply and Irrigation Paper No. 13. Hashin,~ton, D.C. 1&'98. <br />Broadhurst, ~J. L. "Ground Hater in the High Plains in Texas". Progress <br />Report No.6, Texas State Board of lb.ter Engineers and U.S. Geological <br />Survey. Jan. 1947. <br /> <br />4 <br />