Historic American Engineering Record: Highline Canal, South Side of the Salt River, Tempe and Phoenix, Maricopa County, Arizona

Together, Historic American Engineering Records (HAER) Nos. AZ-22 and AZ-23 present a written historical summary and relevant historical documentation about the construction and use of the Western Canal and the Highline Canal, which are waterways that serve Mesa, Chandler, Tempe, and parts of south Phoenix, Arizona on the south side of the Salt River. HAER No. AZ-22 (see https://core.tdar.org/document/393529) presents a narrative history of both canals and their infrastructure features. It also includes photographs, drawings, and maps of the Western Canal. This report, HAER No. AZ-23, contains photographs, drawings, and maps of the Highline Canal.

In the early 1900's, the farmers and residents who lived along the southern and eastern slopes of the Salt River (South) Mountains were in need of a water delivery system. In 1910, the Reclamation Survey attempted to buy portions of the Tempe Canal to drain waterlogged fields in south Tempe and to deliver water to other parts of the southeast Salt River Valley. When Reclamation was not able to purchase those canals and obtain the water, the Highline Canal Construction Company formed to build and mange a canal that would deliver water to agricultural interests and residents in the vicinity of the Salt River (South) Mountains. From 1912 to 1914, the company constructed the Highline Pump and Canal, which wraps around the base of the South Mountains.

The Highline Canal and the parallel Western Canal continue to supply water to the southeastern portions of the Salt River Valley, and are long-standing features on the landscape. The canal right-of-ways have also been transformed into recreational spaces, which include bike and pedestrian trails and canal-side parks.