Opening date 1916 Commission date 1933 Opened 1916 Added to NRHP 8 October 1991 | Length 546 ft (166 m) Height 4.3 m Area 2 ha Construction began 1913 | |
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Similar Granby Dam, Palo Verde Dam, Shadow Mountain Dam, Rocky Mountains, Laguna Diversion Dam | ||
How the west was watered a history of the grand valley diversion dam
The Grand Valley Diversion Dam is a diversion dam in the De Beque Canyon of the Colorado River, about 15 miles (24 km) northeast of Grand Junction, Colorado in the United States. It is a 14-foot (4.3 m) high, 546-foot (166 m) long concrete roller dam with six gates, which were the first and largest of their kind to be installed in the United States.
Contents
- How the west was watered a history of the grand valley diversion dam
- Map of Grand Valley Diversion Dam Palisade CO 81526 USA
- References
Map of Grand Valley Diversion Dam, Palisade, CO 81526, USA
The dam was built between 1913 and 1916 as part of the Grand Valley Project of the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) and diverts water into the Government Highline Canal for the full irrigation of 33,368 acres (13,504 ha) and supplemental irrigation to 8,600 acres (3,500 ha) in western Colorado's Grand Valley. A small hydroelectric plant with a capacity of 3,000 kilowatts (KW) was completed in 1933 on the Orchard Mesa Power Canal, a branch of the Government Highline Canal. In 1949, the dam and canal system were transferred to the Grand Valley Water Users Association, while the power plant was consigned to the Orchard Mesa Irrigation District.
Grand Valley Diversion Dam was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on October 8, 1991.