The best laid plans…

Starting around the turn of the 20th century, plenty of people in the area thought the future of Las Vegas lay in the agricultural fields surrounding town, put under the plow by means of irrigation. The Las Vegas Irrigation Project, proposed and explored in 1912, included dammed reservoirs and canals from five miles north of town to just south of Romeroville. James Hand, owner of the Placita Ranch near Los Alamitos began the Ten Lakes Project. He proposed to divide his 75,000 acre property into parcels of 5,000 acres each, available to homesteaders. Lake Isabel and Lake David are remnants of the project. The Van Houten Plan, 26 miles north of town, would divert Mora River water to the Cherry Valley reservoir, then out to farm fields. The Camfield Project, abandoned in 1912 would irrigate fields close to Las Vegas, through Gallinas water stored in the Sanguijuela Reservoir. Revived and revised in 1916 as the Storrie Project, the association incorporated in 1922, but was out of business by 1926. Farmers left after failures due to devastating effects, other than lack of water, in this semi-arid climate — wind, hail, and late freezes. Since 1926, the Storrie Project has reinvented itself several times. The current allocation of land and water is a far cry from the original concept, but, it’s one with staying power.

Linda Gegick
Museum Adminstrator