The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1915-01-21
STATE ENGINEER
MAKES REPORT
TO THE COUNTY BOARD OF FEAS-
ABILITY OF STRAlGHTEN-
ING RIVER
PLAN A FEASIBLE ONE, Says Mr.. DEsR
Plans Are Outlined for Strengthening
Channel to Garry OFF the Surplus
Water of Spring Floods


The State Engineer has made the
following report On the feasibility Of
strengthening the Sioux river west Of
the city, having one yer the matter
thoroughly with the county board last
week:
Honorable Board of County Commits
sioners.
Gentlemen:
After having made an inspection of
the route of the proposed drainage
ditch throughout the Sioux River val
ley in ~Brookings county in company
with your honorable board and inter-
ested citizens on the 18th and 14th of
this month, I beg leave to submit the
following report:
1t has been petitioned by the land
owners of this section that the pro-
posed ditch shall begin in the vicinity
where the Sioux River crosses the sec
ton line between sections / and y in
Township 40, Range 81, Brookings
County, South Dakota, and run thence
in a southerly direction through Brook
ings, Volga and Medary Townships,
following in its general course the
Sioux River to a point in the vicinity
of what is generally known and called
tho "Cnpntu I inc priInav onrace {ho
said Sioux River on the county line
between Brookings and Moody coun-
ties in said state, at or near the south
west corne of Section SO, Medary
Township.
First of all | wish to say that this
matter was called to my attention in
the winter of 1907, and since that
time have personally witnessed sew
eral floods in this valley, one of them
being as bad as any remembered by
the oldest citizens of the county. l
have been of the opinion that this
valley lies so fiat that little could he
done to facilitate the passage of food
waters because, if the same situation
farther down the river cannot be re-
lieved, water is bound to back up and
spread over low land. However, upon
a more careful examination, I firmly
believe that much can be done to re-
lieve the situation in this particular
low spot. The resistance to stream
flow in the river can be very much
lessened and when these waters are
delivered more expeditiously to the
people farther down stream, the mat
ter, or rather the water, will be cup to
them" /, therefore, heartily endorse
the feasibility of this project and here
by recommend the employment of a
competent engineer to make a survey
thereof as soon as possible.
North of the Chicago & Northwest
ern Railway track the river seems to
have a greater fall than south of it.
I recommend that horseshoe bends at
this point, which are few but large, be
cut across in places decided Upon dur
ing our inspection. South of the Chi
cago & Northwestern Railway track
where the country is exceedingly fiat,
recommend that the ditch deviate
from the course of the river and be
run in a generally ~southeasterly direc-
ton through the low lying meadows
and swampy bayous, finally turning
more and more to the east as it ap-
proaches the Sioux River at the Moody
county line. My reasons for recon-
mending the above plan rather than
following the course of the river
throughout are as follows:
The Sioux River is exceedingly tor
tuous over this latter portion to the
Moody county line, so that it is al
mc-t impossible to take much advant-
age of its channel in Strengthening.
This portion of the work would neces-
sarily be quite expensive on account
of the number of times the channel
would have to be crossed with a
dredge and the large amount of tim
Der that interferes and would increase
the cost Of construction. On the other
hand it would seem that the cost of
n continuous ditch from the rail
road to the Moody county line, swing
ing out from the river about a mile
through meadows and bayous above
mentioned, might not be any more
than the cost of Strengthening the
horseshoe bends in the river itself.
There are two great advantages in
this latter plan; n Is, the large
acreage of what is now hay land
would be converted into much more