The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1906-10-12
IRRIGATION PROJECT
NEARING COMPLETION
Government Dams at Belle
Fourch Will Be Done
Within Year.
- anNEor Ia rLE MArInA
LARGEST IN THE NATION
Immense Dam Being Built of Cons
crete and Steel, and Reservoir
Will Cover 5000
Acres.

Belle Fourche, S. D., Oct. 5.-Befora
another year has passed, the first re.
suits of the immense irrigation project
now in process Of completion will bA
seen. By that time the inlet canal
carrying the water six and one-haH
miles to the reservoir dam will have
been completed, and the lands whick
will draw their supply from the ditches
taking their rise from this canal will.
land included in this project will not
however, be supplied with water before
1909, as the great reservoir dam Will
not be completed until that year.
Driving down the valley of the Belle
Fourche river, one travels for two
step in this work, the diversion dam
which is almost completed. This dam
like all the work, is constructed with
view to permanency. 1t is all built
OF concrete and steel, with the excep-
ton of the false work in putting in
the concrete. From this dam the..wa.
ter passes through the inlet CANAL also
practically completed, for distance
Of six and one-half miles to the imJ
mense reservoir dam, the largest earth.
en- dam in the United States. 1t will
cover 5000 acres of land and will hold
200,000-acre feet of water. The ems
bankment itself will be over one mile
long. 115 feet high, 500 feet wide al
the bottom and 20 feet wide at the top
1t will be built entirely of earth, with
the exception of a concrete facing next
to the water. The contract for this
work was let year ago, the contracts
ors being allowed four years in which
to complete the task. The contract
also includes work on both the NORTH
side and the south side feeders and ID
valued at over $1000,000.
The contractors are now pushing
work with large force of men, nearly
thousand men and a quarter as many
teams, to say nothing of the three
steam shovels which are never idle
forming the working force of this firm
The work of building the dam is so
immense an undertaking that although
men have been busy since early In
the summer there does not appear, to
the casual observer, to have been muck
accomplished. AT present, however, tho
sum total of each days grading is the
moving of not less than 1000 yards Of
earth. Fairly rapid progress is made
as the country is not a difficult one in
which to work, owing to the absence OF
rock and the character of the earth.
The gravel for the concrete work, O,
which large amount is done, is OBJ.
tanned from the gravel pits near Sno.
ma and hauled a distance of six miles
by the traction engine. Each of these
engines draws five wagons holding
seven cubic yards, or ten tons, each
about thirty-five cubic yards, or fifty
tons. The cost daily for each trair
is about $685. and each train makes
two trips. The building of narrow
gauge railroad from the gravel pit.
to the dam is now being considered
and it is estimated that with this
method of transportation the cost
would be considerably reduced.
The contractors on the south side
feeder canal, which runs from the
dam through the south stretch of coun.
try, secured an extension Of time oE
their contract. and now expect to have
the first eight miles completed by the
middle of this month. Some of the
most difficult construction work on the
entire project is encountered in this di.
vision, as many draws and creeks are
to be crossed. where concrete culverts
must be built to care for the storm
waters. There will also be concrete
reinforced steel inverted syphon sir
feet in diameter and 800 feet in length
to carry the water under the Belle
Fourche river 1t will be placed from
five to eight feet below the bed Of tho
stream, and will be less expensive thar
steel spans.