Prehistoric Irrigation in the Salt River Valley, Arizona

1968/10/01 by Frank Midvale · 1 voice
Agricultural and Biological Sciences · Environmental Science · Social Sciences · #American Environmental and Regional History #Archaeology and Natural History #Botany, Ecology, and Taxonomy Studies

paper · doi:10.1080/00231940.1968.11757710

openalex publication_date 1968/10/01 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/29

Abstract

Prehistoric irrigation in the Salt River Valley is described. Information about the re-use of prehistoric canals and their gradual obliteration since the settlement of the Phoenix area in historic times is presented. A classification for the identification of canal remains is outlined. Finally, the prehistoric canal complex in the vicinity of Mesa is discussed in detail. The map accompanying this article gives the location of more than 315 miles of prehistoric irrigation canals.

Discussions

• In this vintage 1968 Kiva article, Frank Midvale mapped 315+ miles of Hohokam canals in the Salt River Valley—expanding our understanding of the scale of prehistoric irrigation. doi.org/10.1080/0023. [bsky, 2 points, 0 comments]

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