Cooperative Irrigation

As more settlers kept taking homesteads, it became harder to put water on adjoining land. Neighbors joined together to enlarge the ditches for common use, thus began the development of cooperative effort in irrigation.

One of the first was the Keller Ditch, dug in 1864. It began at the south bank of the Boise River and ran in a general westerly direction from the area now known as Caldwell.

John Anderson and James Sims (partners on a ranch) along with John Levander and others diverted 1,000 inches of water into a slough by constructing brush dams across the river channel.

It was later enlarged to carry 4,000 inches of water. The problem of diverting water was not great because of the rapid river fall.

When the water was low they went to the head of the ditch, cut a tree, falling it diagonally across the river channel, and anchoring the top upstream so as to divert the water to the head of the ditch. Willow, straw, and rocks completed the dam. If in the next year the high water took it out, the process was repeated.

William Seibenberg, in 1865, built the canal named for him. Located on the north side of the Boise River it carried 300 inches of water.

Before a headgate was built, the water was diverted from the river by brush piled across the river channel.

Tom Johnston was secretary-treasurer of the Pioneer-Dixie Ditch Company after land owners of the area changed the name of Keller Ditch to Pioneer-Dixie and formed a new company.

Between 1864 and 1878 about 1,000 acres of ground received water from the Keller Ditch.