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41 <br /> Illinois. What went unrealized until a few years later was that <br /> the Great Plains in general had entered a periodic wet cycle, <br /> with above average precipitation, followed by a dry cycle during <br /> the mid 1890s (Mehls 1984b:X:1-2) . <br /> One rather unique settlement was Longmont, in the northern <br /> section of Boulder County. The Colorado-Chicago Colony, known as <br /> the Chicago Colony, was founded in Illinois in 1870. The purpose <br /> of the colony was to purchase land and establish a communal <br /> living arrangement in the West. The group settled in the 5t. <br /> Vrain Valley near Old Burlington. Longmont was founded by those <br /> colonists wanting a temperance society. Longmont and the <br /> surrounding area grew quickly. The large number of initial <br /> settlers made development of a large irrigation system necessary, <br /> (Athearn 1976: 116-228; "Old Burlington interview" CWA, CSHS, <br /> vol. 253) . <br /> The initial success of farmers is partially attributable to <br /> irrigation. Individual irrigation efforts began with earliest <br /> farmers in southeastern Colorado. The large community irrigation <br /> systems began after the Civil War. Until that time short ditches <br /> carrying water from streams to low lands were most prevalent. <br /> Irrigation on the larger scale was first undertaken near Greeley. <br /> Soon, the pattern was successfully duplicated. By 1889 Colorado <br /> ranked second, behind California, among states in irrigation <br /> development . For the Study Area this meant a series of canals <br /> crossing the lands to provide irrigation. <br /> Other projects provided water for agricultural and domestic use. <br /> In 1905-1906 plans to build a reservoir near Lyons met with <br /> disdain. The project called for flooding the town and moving the <br /> inhabitants to the area known as Dow [sic) Flats. Needless to <br /> say, nothing came of the plan at the time. A later water <br /> diversion project was much more successful . The Colorado-Big <br /> Thompson, a trans-montaine water project affected the entire <br /> northeastern section of the state and provided a constant source <br /> of water supply to the eastern plains. Ideas for the project <br />