The earthen dam was constructed between 1966 and 1971 by the United States Bureau of Reclamation, with a height of 173 feet (53m), 1,050 feet (320m) long at its crest, and a morning glory spillway.[2] It impounds the East Fork Cimarron River for irrigation storage, as the main part of the larger Bostwick Park Project on the Western Slope.[3] The dam is owned by the Bureau and operated by the local Bostwick Park Water Conservancy District.
Part of the reservoir in April 2025
The reservoir it creates, Silver Jack Reservoir, has a normal water surface of 293 acres (119ha), a normal elevation of 2,671 metres (8,763ft)[4] and a maximum capacity of 12,820 acre-feet (15,810,000m3).[5] Recreation includes fishing, camping, boating, hunting, and hiking.[6]
Political Approval
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The political approval of the **Silver Jack Reservoir** (the central feature of the Bostwick Park Project) was a complex, decade-long effort that required significant political influence at both the state and federal levels. The project was finally authorized by Congress as part of **Public Law 88-568** on **September 2, 1964**. ### Role of U.S. Congressman Wayne N. Aspinall The federal approval was largely dependent on the immense power of **Wayne N. Aspinall**, the Democratic U.S. Representative from Colorado who served as the Chairman of the **House Interior and Insular Affairs Committee** from 1959 to 1973. * **Champion of Western Water:** Aspinall was the single most powerful figure in Congress regarding Western natural resources. He fiercely believed in using federal power and resources (like the Bureau of Reclamation) to develop and control Western water. * **The CRSP Framework:** The Silver Jack Project was too small to secure funding on its own. Aspinall ensured it was included as a "Participating Project" under the **Colorado River Storage Project (CRSP) Act** of 1956. This framework allowed smaller, needed irrigation projects like Bostwick Park to be financially viable by subsidizing them with revenues generated by large CRSP power-generating dams (like Glen Canyon). * **Final Authorization:** Aspinall's committee chairmanship meant he controlled the legislative agenda for all such projects. He successfully steered the bill (H.R. 3672 in the 88th Congress) through Congress, making the Bostwick Park Project (and thus the Silver Jack Dam) legally authorized for construction. ### Role of State Representative Hiram A. McNeil McNeil's involvement was **critical at the local and state level**, ensuring the project had the necessary political will and local structure to receive federal funding. * **Local Management:** McNeil served on the board of the local **Cimarron Ditch & Reservoir Company**, giving him direct, expert knowledge of the farmers' severe late-season water deficit. * **State-Level Advocacy:** As a Democrat in the Colorado General Assembly, he rose to become the **Chairman of the Water Committee** (starting in 1957). This made him the state's lead legislator on water policy, giving him a direct conduit to Congressman Aspinall (the federal gatekeeper). * **Securing Local Cooperation:** McNeil's role was to ensure that the local farmers and water districts were organized and willing to form the necessary **Bostwick Park Water Conservancy District** and sign the repayment contracts required by the Bureau of Reclamation. Without this organized local demand, Aspinall could not have justified pushing the project through Congress. In essence, **Aspinall provided the federal legislative muscle and the funding mechanism**, while **McNeil provided the necessary local political advocacy and organization** to secure the dam's approval.[7]
References
↑ "Silver Jack". National Inventory of Dams. May 24, 2021. Retrieved September 22, 2024.
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