Don Juan de Oñate: Pioneering Irrigation in 1598 and Shaping the American Southwest

The wealthy Mexican Don Juan de Onate established a colony on the west bank of the Rio Grande (New Mexico) in 1598 and dug five Spanish irrigation ditches in what is now the Untied States.

In 1598, the conquistador Don Juan de Oñate introduced irrigation to the American Southwest. He led a caravan to the west bank of the Rio Grande and established a colony for the Spanish crown 👑.

Oñate chose a headquarters roughly 50 kilometers north of present-day Santa Fe. Water was so essential that he ordered the construction of acequias  🌊 - irrigation ditches and dams - even before the town’s houses, public buildings and churches were finished.

His methods are now viewed as highly controversial. 😮 Don Juan employed monks, army engineers, and retired civil servants 👷‍♂️👥. The fields and gardens of the new colony flourished with jalapeño peppers 🌶️, blue corn 🌽, squash 🍆, lettuce 🥬, and other vegetables 🥦🥕.

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©Jose Cisneros