Carlsbad's Historic Concrete Flume: Engineering Marvel
Carlsbad, NM was originally the town of Eddy . There was a spring in Eddy that was thought to have healing powers similar to those of a spring in Karlsbad, Austria. In 1899, the town voted to rename Eddy to Carlsbad, NM in hopes they could build a large resort with healing waters of the spring and attract visitors from around the world.
This vision didn’t play out, but Carlsbad does have a large farming community which is reliant on a water source. The area’s primary crops are alfalfa, cotton, chile, and pecans.
In order to provide much needed water to the farmers in the area, a flume was created in 1880 using wood (which was cheap and abundant at the time). In 1903, there was a flood that demolished the wooden flume and a year later, a concrete flume was erected in its place. At the time, this was the largest concrete structure in the world! Over 120 years later, the flume is still in use today, providing much needed water to nearby farmers for irrigation.
