Historical Society to present on history of water in Citrus Heights

Date: May 1, 2026

Workers for the North Fork Ditch Company line up by the North Fork Ditch that ran alongside the North Fork of the American River. The NFD received water from a diversion dam near the town of Auburn and brought it down to Baldwin Reservoir, located by the Northeast corner of Orangevale. The water served gold miners in the 1800s and farmers and ranchers in the first have of the 1900s. The Orangevale, Fair Oaks and Citrus Heights Irrigation Districts all received water from this ditch. Its’ use was discontinued with the construction of Folsom Dam. // Citrus Heights Historical Society — Workers for the North Fork Ditch Company line up by the North Fork Ditch that ran alongside the North Fork of the American River. The Orangevale, Fair Oaks and Citrus Heights Irrigation Districts all received water from this ditch. Its use was discontinued with the construction of Folsom Dam. // Citrus Heights Historical Society

By Sara Beth Williams–
The Citrus Heights Historical Society will be hosting a presentation on the importance of the history of water in the region, before it was officially known as Citrus Heights.

The presentation is scheduled for Thursday, May 7 at 6 p.m. at Citrus Heights City Hall.

Before irrigation became available, the area was and still is an arid desert most of the year, yet has plenty of water year-round. Retired Citrus Heights Water District General Manager Bob Churchill will be presenting, and is slated to explain how the region’s Gold Rush-era canals evolved into the modern system for water distribution we have today.

Jason Aliviar with the California American Water Company and Dan York with the Sacramento Suburban Water District will also be on hand.

The presentation is part of the Citrus Heights Historical Society’s quarterly presentation series. Past presentations made by the Historical Society have included a showing of the documentary, Ted’s Story, a presentation on the origins of San Juan High School, and a presentation on the Roseville Railyard explosions.

The History of Water in Citrus Heights presentation is free and open to the public. Light refreshments will be available. Citrus Heights City Hall is located at 6360 Fountain Square Drive.

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