Eagle Nest Dam

Infobox_nrhp | name =Eagle Nest Dam
nrhp_type =


caption =
nearest_city= Eagle Nest, New Mexico
lat_degrees = 36
lat_minutes = 31
lat_seconds = 54

lat_direction = N
long_degrees = 105
long_minutes = 13
long_seconds = 44
long_direction = W
locmapin = New Mexico
area =
built =1916
architect= Ranney,Willis
architecture= No Style Listed
added = April 18, 1979
governing_body = Private
refnum=79001537cite web|url=http://www.nr.nps.gov/|title=National Register Information System|date=2008-04-15|work=National Register of Historic Places|publisher=National Park Service]

The "Eagle Nest Dam" is a dam just east of the town of Eagle Nest, New Mexico on US Route 64. The dam is on the Cimarron River, and it is responsible for Eagle Nest Lake.

In 1907, two wealthy ranchers, Frank Springer [cite book
last = Caffey
first = David L.
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Frank Springer and New Mexico : from the Colfax County War to the emergence of modern Santa Fe
publisher = Texas A&M University Press
date = 2006
location = College Station
pages = 261 p
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = ] and Charles Springer were granted a water permit (New Mexico Permit #71) to impound the water of the Cimarron River for irrigation by building a dam. Construction of the dam began in 1918, and continued until 1920. [cite book
last = Pike
first = David
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Roadside New Mexico: a guide to historic markers
publisher = University of New Mexico Press
date = 2004
location = Albuquerque, NM
pages = 434 p
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = 0826331181 ] The dam is convert|140|ft|m high and convert|400|ft|m wide. At the top, the dam is convert|9.5|ft|m wide, and it is convert|45.2|ft|m wide at the base. [ [http://www.nmmagazine.com/regions/northeast/eagle_nest.php New Mexico Magazine, the state magazine for New Mexico ] ] It is considered the largest privately-built dam in the United States. [cite book
last = Jackson
first = Donald C
authorlink =
coauthors =
title = Great American Bridges and Dams
publisher = John Wiley & Sons
date = 1984
location = New York
pages = 251 p
url =
doi =
id =
isbn = 0471143855] The resulting lake, known as Eagle Nest Lake has an area of convert|2500|acre|km2 sqmi and measures convert|5|mi|km long, and convert|2|mi|km wide. The surface elevation of the water is about convert|8300|ft|m above sea level. The dam and reservoir can hold almost convert|70000|acre feet of water.

To help finance the dam, Springer sold some water rights from Eagle Nest Lake to local farmers and ranchers. These original rights are known as "vested rights". In 1951, the State of New Mexico adjudicated the watershed of the Cimarron River. This adjudication confirmed Springer's original permit which gave him the right to store surplus and flood water in the Eagle Nest Lake. There were many other court cases, and one of them ended up in the New Mexico State Supreme Court in 1990.

The water rights from Eagle Nest Lake have been purchased by local towns including Raton and
Springer. The villages of Angel Fire and Eagle Nest also get their water from the lake. In 2002, the State of New Mexico bought the lake, and it is now operated by the New Mexico Interstate Stream Commission (ISC). After New Mexico bought the lake, various water users approached Governor Bill Richardson in hopes of mediation to end the litigation over water rights.

Governor Richardson and the local governing bodies signed the Eagle Nest Water Rights Settlement on June 2, 2006. [ [http://www.ose.state.nm.us/isc_canadian_eagle_nest_reservoir.html] ] This settlement specifies that all users share in water shortages. The sharing arrangement is based on the amount of water in the lake on June 1 of each year. All users will be treated equally, including the so-called "Tier-Two" users who make bulk water purchases. The agreement can be viewed on the web. [ [http://www.ose.state.nm.us/PDF/ISC/BasinsPrograms/Canadian/eagle_nest_agreement.pdf] ]

References