In 1909, the Standish Water Company incorporated with ambitious plans to initially reclaim 4,000 acres of sagebrush lands on the east side of Honey Lake, just south of Amedee. Their water supply—Honey Lake. Not only they intended to construct a pumping plant, they did.
October 4, 1910, a beautiful Lassen County fall day, set the mood for the inauguration of the pumping plant. Early in the morning the crowd began arriving and by noon all parts of Honey Lake Valley represented. The Standish brass band, with their flag-draped wagon, added to the gala appearance of the occasion.
At one o’clock the whistle blew from the engine house of the plant. The crowd of spectators assembled on the banks of the wide canal awaiting the momentous event. The forthcoming water burst from the pipes to fill the canal and send the precious liquid through the parched soil. The historic event signaled a turning point in the reclamation work of Lassen County. The visitors were then invited to inspect the engine house and tour the lands and eleven miles of canals completed to date.
In the Company’s first year 1,000 acres had been planted with sugar beets, with a successful harvest. The following year was a success, too. This changed in 1913, in one of those bureaucratic snafus. The Standish Water Company sold water to individuals who were homesteading on federal lands. Once those individuals met the government’s requirements they could acquire the land for a nominal fee. Disputes occurred, usually from neighbors. In this particular instant, Thomas Philbin contested John Ramsey’s request for a final proof for his 160 acre homestead. The United States Government Land Office (GLO) investigated Philbin’s claim, which they dismissed. However, when it was learned Ramsey’s source of water supply was Honey Lake, it raised a concern. The government forced the operation to shut down, until theState of California corrected its vague rules on appropriation of water from lake with no outlet. The Standish Water Company never recovered and in 1915 sold to Rosendal Minster.