Waterwheel (McCoy, Colorado)

The Waterwheel, in Eagle County, Colorado, is a historic device to lift water from the Colorado River to a height where it may be distributed for irrigation. It was built in 1922. It is located southeast of McCoy, Colorado at the Colorado River. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1977,[1] at a time when it was in deteriorated condition. It has since been rehabilitated by the Colorado Water Restoration Foundation, Ltd.

Waterwheel
Nearest cityMcCoy, Colorado
Coordinates39.902786°N 106.717235°W / 39.902786; -106.717235
Arealess than one acre
Built1922
NRHP reference No.77000372[1]
Added to NRHPApril 11, 1977

It stands 40 feet (12 m) high and is about 6 feet (1.8 m) wide. It was built of jackpine logs crafted by hand tools. It lifted water 32 feet (9.8 m) in 35 buckets around its perimeter, which emptied into a wooden trough that flowed into an irrigation ditch.[2]

It could be raised out of the water in winter to avoid damage from ice, and lowered to appropriate level to capture the river's flow.[2]

It is significant as the last surviving water wheel out of many once in use on the Colorado River. It was built by Earl Brooks, a rancher, and Franklin Dixon and Jim Jones, without any formal design being available or produced.[2]

See also

References
  1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
  2. Karen A. Burns (c. 1977). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Waterwheel". National Park Service. Retrieved January 15, 2020. With accompanying photo from 1976
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