The Nevada County Historical Society is loaded with many of the most knowledgeable people in the area about the history of the area pre-goldrush to current times. Dom Lindars is one of those members and his particular expertise is the history of water in the Nevada City area. One project of his, is a 900 page book on the subject. He explains the importance of water to any sort of mining activity.

Lindars says when you explore the water systems of today and yesterday you can still find remnants of the original pipes that were extensions of the ditches that were dug into the ground.

Water was so important, In many cases, the people who controlled the water were making more money than those that mined the gold.

The power of flowing water also became valuable for future industry once the gold rush subsided. PG and E began building hydroelectric facilities and NID took control of the water transportation system. Lindar’s book, The Ditches of Nevada City, includes stories, images, and hand drawn as well as computer generated maps on the topic. Dom has been a guest on KNCO several times over the last month or so, but tonight he will be the keynote speaker at the Nevada County Historical Society Speaker Night at Sierra Presbyterian Church on Ridge Road.

If you cannot attend, Lindars has also created a website, nevadacityhistory.com which has a wealth of information.
Speaker Night begins at 7:00 sharp at the church across Ridge Road from Cashins Field housing complex.