The League of the Southwest was a 1919 alliance formed among

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

s in the basin of the

Colorado River The Colorado River ( es, Río Colorado) is one of the principal rivers (along with the Rio Grande) in the Southwestern United States and northern Mexico. The river drains an expansive, arid drainage basin, watershed that encompasses parts of ...

with the intention of promoting development, in particular

irrigation Irrigation (also referred to as watering) is the practice of applying controlled amounts of water to land to help grow Crop, crops, Landscape plant, landscape plants, and Lawn, lawns. Irrigation has been a key aspect of agriculture for over 5,00 ...

of cropland for

agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...

, along the river. In 1921, two years later, the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

authorized the states to negotiate an agreement for allocation of the river water, leading to the 1922

Colorado River Compact The Colorado River Compact is a 1922 agreement among the seven southwest U.S. states that fall within the Colorado River drainage basin. The pact governs the allocation of the river's water rights. The agreement, originally proposed by attorney ...

. The League of the Southwest, the brainchild of San Diego promoter Arnold Kruckman, launched its developmental program for the Southwestern states with a gala convention at the Hotel del Coronado in San Diego in November, 1917. The fourth meeting (Denver) of the League, now a single-issue organization dedicated to the development of the Colorado River, was the occasion for Colorado lawyer Delph Carpenter's proposal that the Colorado River states create a compact or interstate treaty under Article I Section 10 of the U.S. Constitution

External links

Central Arizona Project timeline
{{US-hist-stub History of the Southwestern United States Colorado River