GOTHENBURG, Nebraska – The Thirty Mile Irrigation District (TMID) in Dawson County marked two significant milestones in July: the 100th anniversary of the Thirty Mile Canal and Manager Jim Harris’s 50 years of service.

The canal traces its history to 1926, when the first of its water rights was approved. Constructed in 1927, the canal was dedicated on July 13, 1928, with water rights to irrigate 15,000 acres. More than 10,000 people traveled by train to attend the dedication, where the canal was celebrated as a place “Where IRRIGATION Is Turning a LAND OF PROMISE Into A LAND OF PRODUCTION.” The $350,000 project was funded by 121 farmer stockholders without forming an irrigation district or issuing bonds. It was completed 15 months after the first meeting at a cost of less than $25 per acre.

For the past century, the canal has provided a dependable water supply that has supported agricultural producers and strengthened the economy of central Nebraska. Its continued operation has been sustained through generations of local leadership and strategic investments in water delivery and conservation.

The Central Platte Natural Resources District (NRD) and Thirty Mile Canal Company established a partnership in January 2012 to improve irrigation efficiency and strengthen long-term water management. The partnership project totaled approximately $5 million, including Central Platte NRD’s $1.9 million purchase of 50% interest in the organization’s real and personal property and water-delivery system.

Funding from the Platte Basin Habitat Enhancement Program provided $1.8 million, or 60% of the canal rehabilitation costs. The program included funding from Platte Basin NRDs, the Nebraska Environmental Trust and state water-management funds. The rehabilitation modernized the canal through the replacement or installation of eight bridges, eight check structures, nine drop structures, three pipe roadway crossings, two pipe laterals, four additional structures, five flow-measurement devices and structures, and riprap.

In September 2013, the canal company reorganized as the Thirty Mile Irrigation District, becoming a political subdivision of the State of Nebraska. The following year, Central Platte NRD and TMID established the Stream Flow Enhancement Alliance through an interlocal agreement that coordinates the delivery of surface water for irrigation and groundwater recharge. During the non-irrigation season, the partners may divert excess Platte River flows into the canal when water is available. Water that seeps from the canal recharges groundwater that is hydrologically connected to the river, supporting water supplies and contributing return flows to the Platte River.

The partnership has continued to evolve. In 2021, a field office and storage facility were constructed at TMID headquarters near Cozad. The office provides a shared location for Central Platte NRD staff and further strengthens coordination between the organizations. Most recently, updated check structures and six automated Rubicon gates were installed in 2025 to improve water measurement, control and delivery efficiency throughout the canal system.

“Thirty Mile Canal has supported producers and communities for 100 years because generations of people have been willing to invest in its future,” said Lyndon Vogt, General Manager of Central Platte NRD. “Jim Harris’s 50 years of service reflect that same commitment. Together, TMID and Central Platte NRD are honoring that legacy by improving how water is delivered, measured and managed for the next generation.”

During his five decades of service, Harris has performed all aspects of the canal’s daily operations, including ordering water, operating headgates and river gates, monitoring river returns, and coordinating irrigation-water deliveries to customers throughout the district.

As the Thirty Mile Canal begins its second century, TMID remains committed to the purpose that first brought local farmers together a century ago: providing reliable irrigation water while building on a century of innovation, partnership and responsible water stewardship for future generations.