Despite the sweltering heat on June 13, 1908, a reported crowd of over 1,000 people gathered for the dedication of Granite Reef Diversion Dam, located below the confluence of the Salt and Verde rivers.
A warm dedication
Governer Kibbey, a former territorial district court judge and co-author of the Articles of Incorporation of the Salt River Valley Water Users’ Association, led the dedication ceremonies.
With the dam finished in 1908, it became the first dam constructed as part of the Salt River Project, as Theodore Roosevelt Dam would not be completed for another three years. This concrete dam serves as the diversion point for water to flow into the Arizona and South canals, which then feed into the canals of the northside and southside systems.
