WSP07190

• File Number: 8220.124.A
• Description: Pine River
• State: CO
• Basin: San Juan/Dolores
• Water Division: 7
• Date: 1/1/1942
• Title: Preliminary Investigation Proposed Pine River Irrigation Project: Preliminary Report
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Report/Study

Among the better claes of them, such as could be provided tor on this

proJeot, their clean comfortable adobe buildings, adapted to the climate,

cost less than a third as much as the usual set of frame farm buildings.

They derive a large part of their sustenance and their enjoyment of life

and in ge~eral all of their ways of living, from the land, and can maintain

a decent standard of living with A minimum of cash cost. People ot their

race are be.nkers, merchants and prOfeSSional people in the towns. They

are respected by their neighbors.

Since; bec~use of conditions of land distribution, ownership and topography;

a correspondingly larger area of dry farm lands, and grazilllg and rocq brush

lands must be acquired along with the area of irrigable lands; the southern

part of the project area seems well adapted to resettlement of landless

Spanish-American families along with some families of Anglo-European deeelllt,

and it is believed that the more than 9,000 acres of new irrigable lands

t

that are available will afford farms for some 100 families if this policy

is followed.

It is reported that the Indian Service has~urchased from private owners
apprOXimately 9,000 acres of land (believed to be mostly dr.y lands) .in the

locality and that their acquisition program is still in progress and other

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large owners are considering selling. All the National Forest range lands

and Taylor Act range lands within the Ute Indian Reservation have been taken

over by the Indian Service. A great m~ of the distressed families in

the area are owners of small tracts or have small equities in their land.

The conditions of poverty under which they live are described as appalling