Water in Weld Timeline
By Carol Rein Shwayder
From Weld County Old and New Volume 1 1836-1983
Spanish Explorer Villasur 1790 Called Platte, Rio de Chato (shallow or thin)
Mallet Brothers 1739 River la Platte (French for flat)
South Platte (South fork of the Platte River)
Irrigation: Union Colonists dug cannel from Cache La Poudre River by Benjamin Eaton, Abner Baker, BD Sanborn
St Vrain Ditch Co April 16,1863
Ft Wicked Ditch Co 1872
1869: Bridge over Platte River planked by horse teams
1870-1871: Ditch #2 (Cache La Poudre Irrigation Co.)
1874: Greeley & Ft Collins battle over water rites of Cache la Poudre Ditch Co.
Brantner Ditch 1859
Holon Godfrey’s Ditch 1860
Big Bottom Ditch 1863
Eaton Hill Ditch 1863
Greeley (Union Colony #2 & #3) 1870
Fort Wicked Ditch 1872
Under the Ditch 1873
Schneider Ditch 1876
Loveland-Greeley Cannel 1881
1928: Moffat Tunnel completed
1936: Colorado Big Thompson Project completed
1947: Alva B. Adams Tunnel completed
1902: Reclamation Act signed by T. Roosevelt 50 years old Celebrated Colorado Big Thompson water project making Weld County leader in Ag
1950: Cloud seeding by ranchers at a cost of $50,000
July 1951: Narrows Dam proposed across South Platte River and Bijou Creek at Ft. Morgan. Water to cover 26,165 acres and the towns of Weldona, Goodrich, Orchard and Riverside Cemetery would be relocated.
Feb & March 1954: Blowing dust in North Weld County worst since 1930’s
Aug 2,1956: series of rain storms broke drought: no hail but flood damage
1956: drought - South Platte River nearly gone.
1961: 2nd wettest year on record 18.75”; records kept since 1888
June 14, 1965: once in a century storm. Arkansas River, South Platte River and Big Thompson flooded.
1967: Platteville, Greeley, Galeton, Kuner, Gilcrest and Windsor hit by hail
July 31, 1976: Big Thompson Flood
Jan. 17,1982: hurricane force winds
1982: Land Act Prohibited plowing up Grasslands
1983: wacky weather very hot and dry
1983: big flood summer record breaking heat
Sept 19, 1983: 30 degree drop in 24 hours 92 at noon and 14 by morning of the 20th