Historic Resource Evaluation Project - Tuolumne Utilities District

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Figure 6. Tuolumne County Water Company’s flume near Donnell’s Flat. (Kuchel & Dresel lithograph, drawn by F. Holtzmann, courtesy of Columbia State Historic Park Archive.) building on Main Street in Columbia, and remained there until the water company was sold in the early 1900s (Friends of Columbia State Historic Park 2005:26-27). The system was completed in early August, with a debt of $75,000, but carried scarcely any water because of evaporation; the miners would have to wait for the rains to commence mining. The company was incorporated that month, but Wallace, a native of England, was prevented by law from being president, so was given the title Assistant Engineer and Surveyor. He described the company members as: …lawyers, doctors, ministers, mechanics, sailors, & laborers, all working to-gether with Frenchmen, Spaniards, Germans, Norwegians, English, Scotch, & Irish, & of course, Americans, yet we are all on an equality, & have to work alike (Wallace 1852, in Eastman 1970a:308). The work of the company was described in exuberant fashion by William Perkins: These works, taking into consideration that they are carried out by miners without the aid of engineers, or engineering skill, are stupendous, and are a wonderful commentary on what the search after gold enables men to perform. The work alluded to, when completed will make the fortune of Foothill Resources, Ltd. 3.6 TUD Ditch Sustainability Project Francis Heritage, LLC Historic Resource Evaluation Report
all concerned in the undertaking, for the miners and owners of claims will pay any amount of money for a constant supply of water, without which their claims are valueless (Perkins 1964:305). Along the route of the canal, ditch tenders and work crews lived in log cabins, where food and supplies were brought to them, with sawmills established along the water company’s route supplying lumber to build the flumes. Work on the tunnel at Spring Gap, over 3000 feet long with a flume six feet high and seven feet wide to carry the water, began only a year after formation of the company (Figure 7). Work in the canyons was just as difficult, as the high flume was 1200 feet long and 200 feet high, requiring incredible amounts of lumber for the flume boxes and bents (Figure 8). During construction, money was continually being borrowed to fund these activities, many of which were later purchased by an investor who turned out to be a friend of the Tuolumne County Water Company’s D.O. Mills (Friends of Columbia State Historic Park 2005:26- 27). In letters home to his mother, engineer Wallace discussed the technology and engineering of the ditch construction and provided valuable information abut the early years in Tuolumne County. He described the cutting of timber for the flumes: We had at first proposed putting up a water power Saw Mill for the purpose of cutting the immense quantity of boards which we will require, but we have now purchased a Steam Engine, & are about erecting a saw mill on top of the mountains, where there is plenty of timber growing, and there to saw a great quantity of the boards required, and then shift the mill to another place further on as we progress with the work… When this work is completed we shall have a large stream of water running into the richest mining district in this part of the country… The water will also be a great use and value for agricultural and mill purposes… (Eastman 1969:298). By the end of 1852 the company’s water system was complete, consisting of about 18 miles of flume, 30 miles of earthen ditch, and four small reservoirs (Eastman 1970:310), as well as a diversion dam at Lyon’s Flat. Ditches were dug by hand or with scrapers drawn by horse or mule, while wooden flumes, which used thousands of board feet of lumber, were required to carry the water around the steep cliffs and over the canyons. This system engineered by John Wallace is the early Gold Rush years is still in use today, although Lyons Reservoir has been enlarged and Five Mile Creek is not used. Once in operation, by December of 1852 the water system proved profitable, averaging more than $9,000 a week in income, with investments totaling $350,000. The ditch carried a stream three and a half feet in width by two in depth, furnishing an abundant supply. In addition to routine maintenance, expensive repairs were frequently needed due to breachings, flooding, landslides, and trees and animals falling into the canal, so that the company felt justified in charging high prices for water. Foothill Resources, Ltd. 3.7 TUD Ditch Sustainability Project Francis Heritage, LLC Historic Resource Evaluation Report
Page 1: TUOLUMNE UTILITIES DISTRICT DITCH S
Page 4 and 5: Foothill Resources, Ltd. ii TUD Dit
Page 6 and 7: Section 4 Ditch (P-55-003161; CA-TU
Page 8 and 9: Foothill Resources, Ltd. vi TUD Dit
Page 10 and 11: Figure 1. Project vicinity. Consu
Page 12 and 13: Foothill Resources, Ltd. 1.4 TUD Di
Page 14 and 15: sparsely or intermittently; new set
Page 16 and 17: 1850s Gold Rush. As many as 10,000
Page 18 and 19: Foothill Resources, Ltd. 1.10 TUD D
Page 20 and 21: Of particular assistance in determi
Page 22 and 23: Foothill Resources, Ltd. 2.4 TUD Di
Page 24 and 25: In 1855 the need for more water for
Page 26 and 27: Figure 5. Reservoir of the Tuolumne
Page 30 and 31: Figure 7. Entrance of the tunnel at
Page 32 and 33: Figure 9. Montezuma Flats, ca. 1859
Page 36 and 37: Visiting Camp Coffroth, named for J
Page 38 and 39: All that certain Water Ditch or Can
Page 40 and 41: in three months. The dimensions of
Page 42 and 43: have the right to improve or enlarg
Page 44 and 45: In the 1855 directory, James Street
Page 46 and 47: nature of its early ditches (Figure
Page 50 and 51: Roach’s Camp Ditch The Roach’s
Page 52 and 53: Figure 13. The Rawhide Mine near Ja
Page 54 and 55: Figures 14 (above), 15 (below). The
Page 56 and 57: Figure 16. Portion of the 1909 map
Page 58 and 59: For Criterion C, according to JRP a
Page 60 and 61: TUOLUMNE COUNTY WATER COMPANY SYSTE
Page 62 and 63: B. That are associated with the liv
Page 64 and 65: time water was taken from the North
Page 66 and 67: Figure 18. Portion of the Map of th
Page 68 and 69: Placer gold was discovered in the l
Page 70 and 71: Figure 20. Western portion of John
Page 72 and 73: Figure 22. John Wallace’s undated
Page 74 and 75: Figure 24. Placer mining on the roa
Page 76 and 77: Shaw’s Flat Ditch was used for ge
Page 78 and 79:
Figure 26. General Land Office Plat
Page 80 and 81:
History. The present Kincaid Ditch
Page 82 and 83:
Evaluation. The Kincaid Ditch appea
Page 84 and 85:
ductile iron pipeline is laid in th
Page 86 and 87:
Phoenix Ditch (P-55-003751; CA-TUO-
Page 88 and 89:
On August 27, 1861, William Clark,
Page 90 and 91:
C Figure 28. Portion of Tuolumne Co
Page 92 and 93:
Ownership of the TW&EPC system was
Page 94 and 95:
ditch had been absorbed into the TC
Page 96 and 97:
Camp Road, various concrete and/or
Page 98 and 99:
Ditch, in anticipation of providing
Page 100 and 101:
Columbia Ditch system connection th
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Ridge to the Soulsby mill were cons
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There are eighteen features includi
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Table 1: Other Sites and Features R
Page 108 and 109:
California Department of Transporta
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Goldberg, Susan K., Alice L. Hall,
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Marvin, Judith, and Terry Brejla 20
Page 114 and 115:
Progressive Association 1901 Tuolum
Page 116:
Thom, Robert, M.E. (continued) 1915
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Historic Resource Evaluation Project - Tuolumne Utilities District

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