July 2025, Issue #67
The Unexpected
Every day is different in the Water Resources Archive. At any time, a researcher could walk in with a new project, a potential donor could email about their cache of historical files, or two collections could speak to each other. We have come to expect the unexpected.
Recent days have been filled with new collections coming in and creation of online collection inventories, which are how researchers discover what we have. The sleeping baby pictured above was surprisingly found in one of the new collections: read on to find out more.
Enjoy solving this issue’s water puzzler and learning about a big archival anniversary. If you have an unexpected occurrence to share—whether a collection of old photos, a strange research question, or something simply unpredictable—please contact us.
– Patty Rettig, Archivist, Water Resources Archive
Conversing Collections
Two collections we recently organized and inventoried “spoke” to each other in unexpected ways. They document people who worked on opposite sides of the state at different times in history. Yet since one served as the attorney for the Northern Colorado Water Conservancy District and the other was the general manager of the Colorado River Water Conservation District, their coincidental conversation makes sense.
William R. Kelly (above, right) wrote about being a participant in the Colorado-Big Thompson transmountain diversion project from its initiation in 1933 and subsequently serving as NCWCD’s lawyer. Rolly Fischer (above, left) marked up his copies of the 1935 and 1936 reports of Colorado’s first statewide water planning meetings. All of this details the history behind the landmark 1937 legislation which altered our water future by establishing conservation districts, conservancy districts, and the Colorado Water Conservation Board.
50th Anniversary of Archives & Special Collections
CSU Libraries Archives & Special Collections is 50 years old! Look for opportunities throughout the year to celebrate five decades of preserving and making accessible more than 500 collections about university history, water, agriculture, and more, and join CSU Libraries for an official celebration on March 5, 2026, at Morgan Library. For more information on our rich history, visit the 50th Anniversary page.
A Wealth of Imagery
Several collections recently donated to the Water Resources Archive fall into the “unexpected” category. One has a surprising wealth of imagery, making it our best set of visual documentation of irrigation on the West Slope. The Records of the Uncompahgre Valley Water Users Association includes the typical annual reports and newspaper clippings any organization would have, in this case related to the construction of the Gunnison Tunnel and associated facilities. Being built from 1903 to 1909 as the earliest Bureau of Reclamation project in Colorado, this irrigation system serves a large area near Montrose.
Atypically, the collection includes an estimated 3,000 photographs (or more!), ranging from construction to crops, from sleeping babies to Representative Wayne Aspinall. The image above is a detail from a construction scrapbook which includes photos of workers and families, giving a view into the lives of our water ancestors.
Water Puzzler
Seventy years ago, in an unexpected turn of events, opposition to this proposed dam (pictured above) changed federal legislation—and started the U.S. environmental movement. During the early 1950s, the federal Colorado River Storage Project bill proposed several dams on tributaries in Colorado. Had the structure in question on the Green River just below the confluence with the Yampa been constructed, the geographical feature for which it was named would have been flooded with several hundred feet of water.
Because of its location in Dinosaur National Monument, part of the National Park Service, opponents advocated to uphold the tradition of preserving wilderness. Though the remote area near the Colorado-Utah border saw few visitors, environmental groups, including the Sierra Club and the Wilderness Society, opposed the dam, marshalling the site’s natural beauty to promote their cause, in the form of articles, books, float trips, and films. Removal of this dam from the bill enabled the passage of the legislation a few months later in 1956. To repeat: this was a major dam that was never built.
What was the name of this proposed dam?
Do the Unexpected
Frankly, we don’t expect people to make a monetary contribution after reading this e-newsletter. But we would love it if you did! Take the unexpected action now of sending a few dollars our way. This will help us preserve fragile image formats, take our next donor trip across the state, and employ our essential student assistants. Simply go to our online giving page and select Water Resources Archive from the dropdown menu. Surprise us with a donation of any amount!
Puzzler answer:
Echo Park Dam. Learn more through the Papers of Mark W. T. Harvey.
This electronic newsletter provides updates about the Water Resources Archive. To be added to this distribution list, please send an e-mail that includes your name and a request to subscribe.
This newsletter is created by Patty Rettig.
Designed by Demi Connelley
All images courtesy of CSU Libraries Archives & Special Collections