Beneath Blue Mesa-The Gunnison River Valley before Blue Mesa Reservoir

Join local historian David Primus for his popular presentation on Blue Mesa Reservoir.
Blue Mesa Reservoir was created by the construction of Blue Mesa Dam, a 390-foot tall earthen fill dam constructed on the Gunnison by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation in 1966 for the generation of hydroelectric power. Managed as part of the Curecanti National Recreation Area, a unit of the National Park Service, Blue Mesa Reservoir is the largest lake trout and Kokanee salmon fishery in Colorado.
For over half a century, Sapinero served as a crossroads of traffic—cattle, railroaders, freighters, and resort-goers. The town controlled the entrance to the Black Canyon and two surrounding mesas—Blue Mesa to the south and east and Black Mesa to the north and west. After being inundated by the waters behind Blue Mesa Dam, the community of Sapinero moved uphill on the south side of the reservoir.
The Friends of the Library will be hosting an Ice Cream social at 6pm- before the presentation at 7pm.