In 1897, California finally passed significant legislation for the creation of public irrigation districts. There were key provisions, before the formation of said district. First, the California State Engineer’s Office had to review if it was feasible. There was a provision where property owners in a proposed district could be excluded from it. The property owner had to justify for the exclusion that they had an ample water supply for irrigation, so they did not desire to included a proposed irrigation district to avoid tax assessments.

During 1916-17 there were prolific proposed irrigation districts in the Honey Lake Valley. In 1916, one such proposed district was the Honey Lake Valley Irrigation District to irrigate the sagebrush lands of eastern Honey Lake Valley.  Its engineer William Wales performed an exhaustive investigation of the area’s water resources is a amazing tale.

It was the Caudle family, residents of Stacy, that would be included in the proposed district and resisted. In their letter of protest dated  July 6. 1916 that  stated bluntly: “Reasons of wishing such lands excluded are, we have spent four thousand dollars for well drilling machines which we will still own and expect to use drilling more wells when he ave all the land under cultivation  that our present wells will irrigate. We have one well pm the highest point of this land that will irrigate 200 acres by using reservoirs constructed. Have three other wells  that will play water for a large part.We also use water from Skededdale Creek for irrigation and can successfully irrigate all this land from this creek when the creek runs. Having spent so much money for well machinery and time and money developing these wells it will be impossible focus to meet payments required by the district.”

Due to some unusual legal technicalities wthe district was never formed.

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