Gunnison Tunnel
Template:Use mdy dates Template:Short descriptionScript error: No such module "Infobox".Template:Template otherScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters". The Gunnison Tunnel is an irrigation tunnel constructed between 1905 and 1909[1] by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in Montrose County, Colorado.[2] The Script error: No such module "convert". tunnel diverts water from the Gunnison River to the arid Uncompahgre Valley around Montrose, Colorado.
History
At the time of its completion, it was the longest irrigation tunnel in the world and quickly made the area around Montrose into profitable agricultural lands. In 1972, the tunnel was designated a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE).[3]
The idea for a tunnel is credited to Frank Lauzon, a miner and prospector.[4] By the early 1890s he was farming in Montrose. Popular lore is that idea came to him in a dream that the waters of the Gunnison River should be brought to the valley.[4] In the late 1890s, the campaign for the tunnel was led by Omer Madison Kem. National funding was approved in 1902.
As construction was undertaken, two advances in technology made work safer and easier. Jackhammers fed by a compressor replaced hand-turned drill bits to set holes for blasting charges. Dynamite replaced black powder for blasting. By 1906 shifts of workers up to 30 at a time worked in the tunnel.[4]
The tunnel opened in 1909 to much fanfare with a dedication ceremony attended by President William Howard Taft.
It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1979.[5][6]
The tunnel is Script error: No such module "convert". long and is Script error: No such module "convert". in cross-section, with square corners at the bottom and an arched roof. It drops about Script error: No such module "convert". over its length. At the deepest, it is about Script error: No such module "convert". beneath the surface of Vernal Mesa.[6]
In 2009, some communities in the Uncompahgre Valley, celebrated the centennial anniversary of the Gunnison Tunnel opening.[7]
See also
- List of Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks
- List of tunnels documented by the Historic American Engineering Record in Colorado
References
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Further reading
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External links
- American Society of Civil Engineers site - The Gunnison Tunnel article
- The Gunnison Tunnel at StructuraeTemplate:EditAtWikidataTemplate:WikidataCheck
- Template:HAER
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- Pages with script errors
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- Gunnison River
- Tunnels in Colorado
- Water tunnels in the United States
- Water tunnels on the National Register of Historic Places
- Transportation buildings and structures in Montrose County, Colorado
- Curecanti National Recreation Area
- Historic American Engineering Record in Colorado
- Interbasin transfer
- Industrial buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Colorado
- National Register of Historic Places in Montrose County, Colorado
- National Register of Historic Places in national parks
- Transportation buildings and structures on the National Register of Historic Places in Colorado
- Water supply infrastructure on the National Register of Historic Places
- Historic Civil Engineering Landmarks
- Tunnels completed in 1909