The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1908-12-20
Another Big Idaho Irrigation Enterprise
Is Under Way

the main canal are built of solid rein
forced concrete of substantial design,
with heavy controlling gates. About
two miles north from the main diver
son dam is being constructed an i'm
mense impounding dam, north of the
new town of Richfield about twenty
one miles. This dam will rise to a to-
tai height of 135 feet above the bed of
the Big Wood river. crossing at the
mouth of a canyon whose sides are of
solid rock. The storage reservoir which
is formed by this dam runs back up the
Big Wood river for a total distance of
nearly eleven miles and will contain
when full 10000 acre feet of water,
equivalent TO approximately 7,S50,000,-
600 cubic feet, or So SOC. 900 600 gallons of
water The watershed supplying this
reservoir covers nearly 1,500 square
miles. running up to and including the
southern slopes of the Sawtooth range
of mountains. which contain the high
est peaks in Idaho, several of them
rising TO an altitude greater than H.
600 feet above sea level This -ange of
mountains is almost. perpetually COW
cred with snow, and the melting Of
these SHOWS during dry seasons pre-
vailing south of the mountains will re-
plenish the vast storage reservoir well
beyond any possible needs of the COM
pany.
Il have had the privilege of study
ing irrigation methods and irrigated
lands in central Italy under commits
sion from the United States govern
ment, where irrigation has been prac-
ticed for many hundred years, but
consider the lands and the soil in couth-
ern Idaho. both those controlled by
our company and by the companies 10
4,
superior in grain-bearing and fruit-rriis-
ing properties than anything 1 saw in
Italy. or have seen in this country
THE construction work being done
on our dams and canals comes under |
the firm of J. G.. White g. Co of New
York city This company has a world |
wide reputation, with foreign offices |
in London and Montreal, and has con-
structed works in all parts of the world |
They have at present on our canals a |
force of over $50 teams, fully equipped |
and the construction of these canals is |
being pushed so that it is absolutely |
sure that water will be available on |
the entire Richfield tract and the lands |
south of Gooding by April l, 1909. In |
addition to this a winter force of over |
200 men, with steam shovels, derricks. |
steam drills, cable way, narrow-gauge |
track and dump cars, is at work on |
dam, and this dam will be completed /
before April I, 1909 to a height suffi- |
cient to store over 10000 acre feet of /
water, which will be more than suffi- /
Gent to supply all of the needs of the |
irrigation season of 1909. Work on the |
Wasteway tunnel is being pushed at |
the same time, and this tunnel will be |
completed and lined and ready for use
before the dam is brought to the height
above stated.
1t is hardly necessary to make anv
statements as to the rapid development |
OF the town of GoOding, and the splen- !
did facilities which will be offered there |
Tor the settlers on our lands in that |
vicinity. | wish TO speak. however, in |
the strongest terms of the possibilities |
of our new town of Richfield in Lincoln |
county. This town will be the center |
or over 10000 acres in our own segre-
CATION and nearly as much again of |
contiguous lands, a large part of which 1
has been taken and developed and con-
tains many of the finest ranches in that
part OF the state. Grazing lands ad- |
joining our segregation offer an addi- |
uonal inducement to the settler The |
town of Richfeld is having a real and /
substantial boom even at this time of |
the year. Building is progressing very
rapidly. Our company is constructing |
200, without furnish ngs, which will be
ready for occupation not later than
March /. We have nearly completed
the plans and estimates for the water
supply, lighting and power plant for
the town, developing our power from
a fall in the Little Wood river. which
our company controls, about one-half !
mile south from the townsite Our COM
pany has nearly completed a two-story
brick office building, the top floor to be
occupied by ]. G.. White & Co. and the
lower floor by the Richfield branch of !
the managers Office and the land sales
department. The First State bank of |
Richfield is constructing a two-story
brick bank building. Dwelling houses
are going up rapidly, together with a
large lumber yard, a stone livery sta
bic and severali business blocks Il
1t may not be amiss to state that II
arrangements are being completed for |
the segregation of an additional $1,000 |
acres of land in what we expect to call
our DIETRICH tract. lying about ten
miles east of ShOshone. on the main
line of the Oregon Short Line. Water
for this tract will be furnished from
the Little Wood river, into which we
have provided means to discharge water
directly from the impOunding reservoir
through our main canal on the Richfield |
tract and an old natural slough If |
present plans are carried into execu-
ton, our company will have a formal
opening of this Dietrich tract some time
in, the