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THE IKRIGATION AGE. 



SHOSHONE, IDAHO. 



A Coming Western City. 



BY H. A. THOMAS. 



It is indeed gratifying to the inhabitants of Shoshone to 

 note the past and present growth and industrial progress, and 

 to anticipate the great things that the future holds in store 

 and must inevitably yield. Founding an opinion upon the 

 natural and necessary consequences of the peopling and de- 

 veloping of the vast reclaimed area with which we are sur- 

 rounded, and which is directly tributary, it may with safety 

 and conservatism be predicted that Shoshone is approaching a 

 very prosperous epoch. 



While the construction of spacious reservoirs, the build- 

 ing of great canals, the harnessing of mighty torrents for 

 power, the extension of railroads, the building of homes, the 

 improvement of lands and the birth of cities is in evidence on 

 every hand, we can but realize that there are yet latent re- 

 sources which, when discovered and diverted to man's con- 

 venience, will place Southern Idaho in the foremost rank of 

 the land of opportunity in the Northwest. 



Shoshone has reason to be grateful that her founders 

 established her in the exact geographical and commercial 

 center of the most promising section of this great reclaimed 

 empire. There are directly tributary to Shoshone, 150,000 acres 

 of irrigated lands, of which 50,000 will be open to settlement 

 under the Carey Act, within one mile of the eastern limits 

 of this city, during the next few months. When the projects 

 now under construction are completed, Lincoln county, of 

 which Shoshone is the oldest and the largest city, and also 

 the capital, will have an area of not less than 700,000 acres 

 of reclaimed soil, which is not surpassed in richness by the 

 literal compost heap. Shoshone is also within easy access of 

 the many great waterfalls of the Snake, the Big and Little 

 Wood Rivers, from which electricity representing many hun- 

 dred thousand horsepower will be generated. There is also a 

 prospect of this city becoming a railroad center of no little 

 importance. It has already the distinction of being the junc- 

 tion city of the main line of the Oregon Short Line Railway, 

 and the Ketchum-Hailey branch, and hence the entrepot for 

 the smaller towns of this county and for the rich agricul- 

 tural and mining districts of Elaine and Custer counties, and 

 surveys have been completed and the construction assured 

 of an extension of the Twin Falls & Wells, Nevada line from 

 the former point to this place, and from here on to the well 

 known cereal producing acres of the prodigious Camas Prairie 

 country. It is believed that the contemplated terminus of this 

 railway will be at the city of Boise. There are at present six 

 daily passenger trains into and through Shoshone, four of 

 which are trans-continental. A freight division has recently 

 been established here and the company is now preparing to 

 reinstate the machine shops, for which there are an excellent 

 set of buildings, including a twenty-four stall lava rock 

 round house, already in waiting. The name of Shoshone is 

 familiar to all of the stock yard men, and the wool buyers 

 of the East, owing to its having been the center for many 

 years of one of the grestest , grazing regions of the North- 

 west. There are more sheep raised and wool shipped from 

 this point than any one point on the main line, and with the 

 reclaiming "of the vast amount of land near Shoshone, unex- 

 celled facilities will be afforded for winter feeding of all 

 kinds of livestock. The exceedingly mild climate of this sec- 

 tion, together with other numerous advantages, has been re- 

 sponsible for the millions of dollars that have been realized 

 from the sheep industry in the vicinity of Shoshone. 



The adaptability of the soil and climate to the culture and 

 growth of clover, alfalfa and other forage plants, will afford 

 unexcelled opportunities for the poultry man and the dairy 

 industry, as statistics show that over ninety percent of the 

 eggs and butter consumed in the state are imported from 

 states east of the Rockies. 



The recent severe storm which has been such a menace 

 to states east and north, has proven beyond doubt the ad- 

 vantages of Southern Idaho, for while, during the past week 

 not less than fifteen inches of snow has fallen, the sheep men 

 have not even attempted to get their herds to winter quarters, 

 but are unconcernedly staying within their winter range, hav- 

 ing been taught by past experience that the warm rains which 

 are now falling will soon reduce the snow and start the nutri- 

 tious bunch grass for spring grazing. The newcomers are 

 also elated at the prospects of the condition of the soil and 

 of good crops as a result of the amount of precipitation. Up 

 to the present time the mercury has not reached a point 

 below zero. 



No unoccupied buildings, whether for business or resi- 

 dence purposes, although a number are being planned now, 

 are to be found in Shoshone. A demand exists for more 

 cottages and other buildings, and store rooms and offices are 

 at a premium. The rapid increase in population is responsi- 

 ble for these conditions, as almost daily persons are forced 

 to leave because of their inability to secure suitable quarters 

 in which to engage in business. Much real estate remains to 

 be had in desirable localities, and at reasonable figures. The 

 citizens of Shoshone are progressive and industrious and may 

 well take pride in the fact that the business transacted by 

 their city is equal to that of many places several times its 

 size. 



WEISER AND THE WEISER VALLEY, IDAHO. 



The Home of the Big Red Apple The Great Orchard 

 Section of the Gem State. 



Out in Idaho, the Gem State of the Union, on the 

 banks of the great Snake river, the fifth largest stream 

 in the United States, where the Weiser discharges its 

 waters into the Snake, from whence they are discharged 

 into the great Columbia and thence into the calm Pacific, 

 nestling in one of the most productive and fertile valleys 

 of the entire western country, is Weiser, the bustling lit- 

 tle city of beautiful homes, splendid^ schools, fine churches 

 of every denomination, "surrounded by thousands of acres 

 of the most fertile \a.nd to be found anywhere, a land to 

 which nature has been most generous, providing produc- 

 tive soil, and unlimited water supply and a climate unex- 

 celled. The thermometer seldom goes down to the zero 

 mark in this favored land. While other sections have 

 been wrestling with storms and zero weather, the Weiser 

 valley has been basking in sunshine. The thermometer 

 this winter has not gone below ten above zero. 



Weiser valley is the home of the big red apple. No 

 other section is so favored as this for the raising of ap- 

 ples. Other fruits, such as peaches, pears, prunes, grapes, 

 strawberries and small fruits of all kinds, do well, but it 

 seems peculiarly adapted to apple raising. During last 

 season more than 125 cars of apples alone was shipped 

 from the Weiser railroad station to eastern markets, and 

 double that number will be shipped this year. 



From 1,000 to 1,200 acres of apple orchards will be set 

 out this year. The varieties which seem best suited to 

 this section are Rome Beauties, Winesaps and Jonathans, 

 although other varieties do well. For the man looking for 

 a home in the west where he can engage in the raising of 

 fruit, no section can offer better inducements. Plenty of 

 water for irrigation, land that is cheap at the price, finest 

 climate in the country, all combine to make the Weiser 

 Valley an ideal place for home. 



Weiser is on the main line of the Oregon Short Line 

 railroad, a little city of 4,000 inhabitants, with all the 

 modern conveniences of an eastern city of 20,000. If you 

 desire any information concerning Weiser or the Weiser 

 valley, address the Secretary of the Weiser Commiercial 

 Club, Weiser, Idaho, who will gladly give all the infor- 

 mation desired. 



SHOSHONE LAND7COMPANY 



SHOSHONE. IDAHO ~ 



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