A. Description of Existing Dams and Reservoir Areas 



The four reservoir areas studied in this report were: Franklin Falls, in- 

 volving portions of the cities and towns of Franklin. Hill. Bristol, Sanborn- 

 ton, and New Hampton: Blackwater. affecting parts of the towns of Web- 

 ster and Salisbury: Edward MacDowell. including lands in Peterborough, 

 Hancock, Dublin, and Harrisville; and Surry Mountain, containing portions 

 of the town of Surry. The first three areas named are considered part of the 

 Merrimack River Basin. The latter area (Surry Mountain) is part of the 

 Connecticut River Basin. 



Table 1 summarizes some of the main features of these four flood con- 

 trol projects. 



Land use in the reservoir areas was almost entirely agricultural or forest. 

 Dairying was the dominant agricultural enterprise in the four reservoir 

 areas, with poultry and sheep of secondary importance. There were small 

 acreages of orchard, small fruits, vegetables, and potatoes. Much of the 

 land was in forest, including both saw timber and pole size, with about half 

 used for pasture. In the site areas in the towns of Hill and Surry, there 

 were a number of home garden plots associated with urban residences. In 

 general, the land used for agriculture in the Franklin Falls and Surry 

 Mountain reservoir sites was inherently more productive than that in the 

 Blackwater and Edward MacDowell. 



It was expected that acquisition of land for reservoir sites would have a 

 greater impact on some enterprises as compared with others. For example, 

 it was expected that acquisition and removal of buildings would entirely 

 displace the poultry enterprise in the reservoir areas. Orchards and small 

 fruit might be removed if located in the dam, winter pool, or borrow 

 areas, or abandoned because of difficulty in carrying out cultural prac- 



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Blackwater dam, Websler, IN. H. 



6 



