Cuyamaca Water Company

Last updated

The Cuyamaca Water Company (CWC) was a water company which operated in San Diego County, California between 1910-1926. The origins of the Cuyamaca Water Company can be found in the San Diego Flume Company. The San Diego Flume Company was purchased on June 1, 1910 for $125,000 by the prominent San Diego politician and developer Ed Fletcher and a businessman from Montana, James Andrew Murray. The initial purchase transferred all water rights and properties owned by the San Diego Flume Company to the newly created Cuyamaca Water Company. CWC was principally financed by Murray, and managed by Fletcher.

Contents

Early years

The CWC provided water to farming land stretching from the San Diego City Limits to the El Cajon valley. Fletcher realised the importance of water to farming, and used his real estate business to increase the profits of both companies by raising the cost of water in areas that he owned.

The CWC and the California Railway Commission had many disputes over the prices that the CWC wanted to charge their customers. When the company was bought all outstanding contracts went to the CWC, and the CWC had undertaken to uphold the prices that were in place. However, by the time that sales were finalized the prices had dropped. An appeal was made to the Railway Commission to raise prices, but it was denied because the CWC was declared a public utility by the Railway Commission.

Expansion

The Railway Commission then wanted the San Diego Flume redone in concrete. Fletcher proposed that the flume be redone in a roofing material. The roofing material was approved and it cost $45,000. The material kept the flume running for another 20 years and the efficiency of the flume, helping to greatly increase profits from 1915 to 1923.

After the relining of the flume the CWC built two reservoirs near the downstream terminus of the flume. One was the Grossmont Reservoir which was built in 1913 with a capacity of 30 million gallons, and the other was the Murray Dam which replaced the La Mesa Dam.

In 1914 the CWC began to sell water to the city of San Diego. This led to the irrigators filing a complaint that they were getting poor water supply because the CWC was diverting water to the city. The CWC had a dual structure rate which determined how much the customers would pay by their land size. In 1917 the Railway Commission made the CWC disband the dual rate structure because of complaints by the customers and irrigators.

In 1920 in a case that was upheld by both the Railway Commission and the US Supreme Court prices were raised. Increased sales to the city interested the CWC because they purchased by the amount of water used and not by the land size.

Eventually, after several attempts, Ed Fletcher successfully sold the Cuyamaca Water Company to the La Mesa, Lemon Grove and Spring Valley Irrigation District for $1.4 million on January 4, 1926.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Log flume</span> Type of flume used to float logs to a sawmill

A log flume is a watertight flume constructed to transport lumber and logs down mountainous terrain using flowing water. Flumes replaced horse- or oxen-drawn carriages on dangerous mountain trails in the late 19th century. Logging operations preferred flumes whenever a reliable source of water was available. Flumes were cheaper to build and operate than logging railroads. They could span long distances across chasms with more lightweight trestles.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">California State Route 125</span> Highway in California

State Route 125 (SR 125) is a state highway in the U.S. state of California that serves as a north–south freeway in the San Diego area. It runs from SR 11 and SR 905 in Otay Mesa, near the Mexican border, to SR 52 in Santee. SR 125 also connects SR 54, SR 94, and I-8.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wyangala Dam</span> Dam in New South Wales, Australia

Wyangala Dam is a major gated rock fill with clay core embankment and gravity dam with eight radial gates and a concrete chute spillway across the Lachlan River, located in the south-western slopes region of New South Wales, Australia. The dam's purpose includes flood mitigation, hydro-power, irrigation, water supply and conservation. The impounded reservoir is called Lake Wyangala.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Diego River</span> River in California, United States

The San Diego River is a river in San Diego County, California. It originates in the Cuyamaca Mountains northwest of the town of Julian, then flows to the southwest until it reaches the El Capitan Reservoir, the largest reservoir in the river's watershed at 112,800 acre-feet (139,100,000 m3). Below El Capitan Dam, the river runs west through Santee and San Diego. While passing through Tierrasanta it goes through Mission Trails Regional Park, one of the largest urban parks in America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Murray (California)</span> Reservoir in San Diego, California

Lake Murray is a reservoir in San Diego, California, operated by the City of San Diego's Public Utilities Department. Although thinly divided by a few housing communities and select roadways, it is technically considered to be part of the jurisdiction which makes up Mission Trails Regional Park. When full, the reservoir covers 171.1 acres (69.2 ha), has a maximum water depth of 95 feet (29 m), and a shoreline of 3.2 miles (5.1 km). The asphalt-paved service road lining roughly two-thirds of the lake's perimeter is a popular recreation site for the Navajo community as well as residents of the northernmost neighborhoods in La Mesa. It lies south of Cowles Mountain and a small golf course. It also functions as an important aeronautical reporting point for aircraft inbound to land at Montgomery-Gibbs Executive Airport.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ed Fletcher</span> American politician

"Colonel" Ed Fletcher was a real estate developer and U.S. Republican and Democratic politician from San Diego, California.

Grossmont College is a public community college in El Cajon, California. Its name originated with the silent film actor and producer William J. Gross, who was enticed by Ed Fletcher to invest in the purchase of land, part of which was called Grossmont. The campus sits in the Fletcher Hills community of El Cajon and is bordered by the cities of San Diego and Santee. Grossmont College along with Cuyamaca College make up what is the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District. Grossmont is part of the California Community College System.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sweetwater River (California)</span> River in California, United States

The Sweetwater River is a 55-mile (89 km) long stream in San Diego County, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">J. J. Hagerman</span> American businessman

James John (J.J.) Hagerman was an American industrialist who owned mines, railroads and corporate farms in the American West in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was one of the most influential men in territorial New Mexico.

The Imperial Irrigation District (IID) is an irrigation district that serves the Imperial Valley and a large portion of the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert region of Southern California. Established under the State Water Code, the IID supplies roughly 500,000 acres (200,000 ha) of Imperial Valley farmland with raw Colorado River water to support irrigation. IID also supplies electrical energy to the Imperial and Coachella valleys.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">U.S. Route 80 in California</span> Former section of U.S. Highway in California, United States

U.S. Route 80 (US 80) was a U.S. highway in California that continued east across the country to Georgia. The western terminus of US 80 was in San Diego, California, and it continued east through the city on several different alignments through the years. The highway went through the Cuyamaca Mountains, encountering many switchbacks, before descending to El Centro. After passing through the sand dunes, the highway crossed the Colorado River into Yuma, Arizona.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lower Otay Reservoir</span> Reservoir in San Diego County, California

Lower Otay Reservoir is a reservoir in San Diego County, Southern California. It is flanked by Otay Mountain to the southeast, the Jamul Mountains to the east, Otay Lakes Road and Upper Otay Reservoir to the north, and the city of Chula Vista to the west.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lake Hodges</span> A reservoir in San Diego, California.

Lake Hodges is a lake and reservoir located within the city limits of San Diego, California. It is about 31 miles (50 km) north of Downtown San Diego, just north of the Rancho Bernardo community, and just south of the city's border with Escondido. When full, the reservoir has 1,234 acres (4.99 km2), a maximum water depth of 115 feet (35 m), and 27 miles (43 km) of shoreline. Lake Hodges has a total capacity of 30,251 acre-feet of water. Lake Hodges is owned by the city of San Diego, supplies water to the San Dieguito Water District and Santa Fe Irrigation District, and its mailing city address is Escondido.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">San Vicente Reservoir</span> Reservoir in San Diego County, California

San Vicente Reservoir is a reservoir created by the San Vicente Dam in San Diego County, California. It is located in the Cuyamaca Mountains, approximately 4.3 miles (6.9 km) north of Lakeside off California State Route 67.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Viejas Group of Capitan Grande Band of Mission Indians</span> Indian tribe in California, United States

The Viejas Group of Capitan Grande Band of Mission Indians of the Viejas Reservation, also called the Viejas Band of Kumeyaay Indians, is a federally recognized tribe of Kumeyaay Indians.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sweetwater Dam</span> Dam in San Diego County, California

The Sweetwater Dam is a dam across the Sweetwater River in San Diego County, California. It is located approximately 12 miles (19 km) east of San Diego, 9 miles (14 km) and borders Bonita to the southwest and La Presa to the northeast. The 108-foot (33 m)-high masonry arch dam impounds 960-acre (390 ha) Sweetwater Reservoir.

Irvine Ranch Water District (IRWD) is a California Special District formed in 1961 and incorporated under the California water code. IRWD headquarters are located in Irvine, California.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">El Capitan Dam</span> Dam in San Diego County, California

El Capitan Dam is an embankment dam on the San Diego River in southern California. The dam forms the 112,800-acre-foot (139,100,000 m3) El Capitan Reservoir and serves mainly to supply water to the city of San Diego as well as providing flood control. The dam is connected to the San Diego municipal water system via the El Capitan Pipeline, which extends approximately 30 miles (48 km) to the city. It is the second largest storage facility in San Diego's water supply system, after San Vicente Dam.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Avalon Dam</span> Dam in Eddy County, New Mexico

Avalon Dam is a small dam on the Pecos River about 5 miles (8.0 km) north of Carlsbad, New Mexico, United States. The dam is a storage and regulating reservoir, and diverts water into the main canal of the Carlsbad Project, an irrigation scheme.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carbon Canal</span> Irrigation canal in Utah, United States

The Carbon Canal is an irrigation canal in the central portion of Utah, United States. The canal was constructed by the Carbon Canal Company between 1907 and 1909 to provide water to agricultural fields west and south of the Price River.

References