Funding for encoding this finding aid was provided through a grant awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Historical Note
The Columbia Basin Project was a vast effort of the United States government, authorized by the Rivers and Harbors Act in 1935 and reauthorized by the Columbia Basin Project Act 1943. The Project aimed at transforming a vast area of dry, unproductive and thinly populated land in to a well-watered, highly productive and compactly populated region. The available materials show that the project started in 1941 with a series of investigations, estimates and research work that lasted into 1948. The participating agencies were: the Bureau of Reclamation, the State College of Washington, and the Bureau of Agricultural Economics.
It was not until the mid-1950s that large-scale settlement in the area began. In step with the development of the Basin area, irrigation and conservation projects were involved.
The records of WSU participation cover the period from 1941 to 1968.
Use of the Collection
Restrictions on Access :
The Collection is open for research use.
Administrative Information
Arrangement :
The records are arranged in nine series held in two separate boxes. Box 1 contains Series One to Five; Box 2 contains Series Six to Nine.
Series One contains records on committee activities, arranged alphabetically. Series Two is general correspondence, arranged chronologically. Series Three contains records on meetings, reports and speeches, in alphabetical order. Series Four is general survey, alphabetically arranged. Series Five is entitled Land Purchase and Repayment, alphabetically arranged. Series Six contains reports in aphabetical order. Series Seven is comprised of investigations, arranged according to the years and issue numbers. Series Eight consists of general studies in alphabetical order. Series Nine contains miscellaneous items.
Acquisition Information :
Records of the Washington State University College of Agriculture's involvement in the Columbia Basin Project were transferred to the Washington State University Libraries in 1974 (Accession Number UA84-34).
Processing Note :
The papers were arranged and described by Ling Jinqi in September, 1987.
Detailed Description of the Collection
1: Committees, Columbia Basin:
Container(s)
Description
Box
Folder
1
1
Advisory Committee on the alloction of construction charges -- Dept. of Interior , 1946-1954
1
2
Bureau of Reclamation - WSU Joint Committee , 1950-1952
