. The fertile lands of Colorado and northern New Mexico .. . tone and granite that divides the narrowcanon of the Gunnison River from the broad, fertile levels of the Uncom-pahgre Valley. Through 30,600 feet, or five and three-fourths miles, this tun-nel, lined throughout with concrete, brings a mighty river to make fertilemore than 150,000 acres of lands. This tunnel reached completion and wasopened by President Taft in September, 1909, with formal ceremonies, andwhen, after the official pressing of the button, the turbid waters of the Gunni-son poured out of the massive portals a new era daw
. The fertile lands of Colorado and northern New Mexico .. . tone and granite that divides the narrowcanon of the Gunnison River from the broad, fertile levels of the Uncom-pahgre Valley. Through 30,600 feet, or five and three-fourths miles, this tun-nel, lined throughout with concrete, brings a mighty river to make fertilemore than 150,000 acres of lands. This tunnel reached completion and wasopened by President Taft in September, 1909, with formal ceremonies, andwhen, after the official pressing of the button, the turbid waters of the Gunni-son poured out of the massive portals a new era dawned for the Uncompahgre. The development of the Uncompahgre has been similar to the burstingout of the waters under the Presidents touch. For thirty years the Uncom-pahgre Valley has been known to have soils of incomparable fertility andclimatic conditions which assured full crops of fruit and other products, all ofthe highest quality. Water was scarce. The Uncompahgre River, whichflows through the valley, is small in volume and fickle in flow. Only a very. Government Irrigation Canal carrying water from the Gunnison Tunnel THE FERTILE LANDS OF COLORADO 65 small part of the land which could be reached by ditches could be sufficientlywatered, and very serious disasters followed attempts to spread the meagersupply of water out too thin. But since an abundance of water has been at hand, the UncompahgreValley has in one bound taken its place at the head of the list of prosperous,productive and diversified farming valleys in the state of Colorado. Less than one-third of the valley has yet been occupied by farmers, butsettlement is now going forward at the rate of 100 acres a day, and the tideseems to be increasing. At this rate, in less than a year the bulk of all thisvast area of land will be producing big crops of alfalfa, potatoes, sugar beets,wheat, oats, barley, hogs, or growing fruit trees into orchards. Location and Climate The Uncompahgre (pronounced Oon-kum-pah-gre) Valley
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Keywords: ., bookauthordenveran, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookyear1912
