Prairie Creek Fish Hatchery, distrikt historik në Shtetet e Bashkuara
The Prairie Creek Fish Hatchery is a historic fish breeding facility in Humboldt County, about 6 miles north of Orick near Highway 101. The site contains original ponds, five water tanks, a pipeline system carrying water to fish rearing areas, and residential and work buildings constructed in the 1930s.
The facility was built in 1936 by the Works Progress Administration, an employment program during the Great Depression. It was part of a state effort to support salmon and trout populations in nearby rivers.
The name refers to Prairie Creek and the hatchery's role in supporting local fishing. The site embodies a time when government work brought families and workers to live together on a shared mission to restore fish populations.
The site sits directly off Highway 101 and is easy to locate using milepost 124.83 north of Orick. Access to the grounds is straightforward, though visitors should exercise caution when exploring the historic structures.
Of over 150 fish hatcheries built in California between the late 1800s and 1900s, Prairie Creek is one of only three that has preserved most of its original structures and equipment. This makes it a rare example of early fish breeding technology and a valuable record of that era's work.
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