Article by Melvin and Camille Getz
Water – July 2007 – Colorado Central Magazine
WAY BACK IN 1952, the San Luis Valley celebrated a major water-related centennial. That event recognized the 1852 People’s Ditch of San Luis as the very first irrigation right granted in Colorado and noted the great accomplishments and challenges of one hundred years of irrigation. Governor Dan Thornton delivered the keynote address, and almost every notable water authority in the state took part in one way or another — speaking, listening, eating, and even marching in a parade through the streets of San Luis. The 1952 celebration is documented in a publication put out by the Colorado Water Conservation Board and Colorado Agricultural and Mechanical College (now CSU) entitled A Hundred Years of Irrigation in Colorado; 100 Years of Organized and Continuous Irrigation; 1852-1952.