The Mill Creek Zanja, also known as the Zankey, is a historic

irrigation canal An acequia () or séquia () is a community-operated watercourse used in Spain and former Spanish colonization of America, Spanish colonies in the Americas for irrigation. Particularly in Spain, the Andes, northern Mexico, and the modern-day A ...

, or ''zanja'', in Redlands,

California California is a state in the Western United States, located along the Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the most populous U.S. state and the 3rd largest by area. It is also the m ...

. The Serrano people dug the canal in 1819 to provide water from Mill Creek for their farms east of the city. The ''zanja'' also provided water for the

San Bernardino de Sena Estancia The San Bernardino de Sena Estancia (also known as the San Bernardino Rancho or Asistencia) was a ranch outpost of Mission San Gabriel Arcángel in what is now in Redlands, California, United States. It was built to graze cattle, and for Indian ...

mission outpost, which was built near the canal to access its water. The canal's water became a highly desirable resource in the area; it fueled a local agricultural boom and was the subject of several legal disputes over water rights in the 1800s. The City of Redlands covered the western half of the ''zanja'' in the 1920s. . The ''zanja'' was designated a

California Historical Landmark A California Historical Landmark (CHL) is a building, structure, site, or place in California that has been determined to have statewide historical landmark significance. Criteria Historical significance is determined by meeting at least one of ...

in 1932, named a Historic Civil Engineering Landmark in 1972 and placed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic ...

in 1977. The canal now carries drainage water and storm runoff out of the city; it is the oldest irrigation canal in California which is still in use and the oldest civil engineering project in

Southern California Southern California (commonly shortened to SoCal) is a geographic and cultural region that generally comprises the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. It includes the Los Angeles metropolitan area, the second most populous urban a ...

. The city, along with several other local groups, is building a trail and greenway alongside the canal.

References

National Register of Historic Places in San Bernardino County, California Irrigation canals History of Redlands, California History of San Bernardino County, California Historic districts on the National Register of Historic Places in California Infrastructure completed in 1819 Canals on the National Register of Historic Places in California Canals in California Transportation buildings and structures in San Bernardino County, California California Historical Landmarks {{SanBernardinoCountyCA-NRHP-stub