"One of the most important inventions was irrigation, a system of supplying cultivated land with water." The Kingfisher History Encyclopedia 1999 |
Irrigation has been around for thousands of years, for as long as people have been growing crops. Early Egyptians used large basins of water from the Nile River to flood and irrigate their fields. The Mesopotamians utilized large basins of water and canals from the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. Armenians used underground tunnels to convey water from springs in the foothills to their crops. These methods were often inefficient and caused crop damage. Through the centuries farmers used these ancient ways of irrigation or depended on the unpredictable rains. This included farmers who would eventually settle the American Midwest. Called the Great American Desert by many, this farmland required a lot of water. Irrigation needed a change. It needed...a revolution. |