Louisiana-Rio Grande Canal Company Irrigation System
Also known as: Hidalgo County Irrigation District No. 2
Why it's listed
Water for farming in the Lower Rio Grande Valley once depended on lifting it over the high banks of the river. This irrigation system near Hidalgo did that through two steam-powered pumphouses and a canal network built by the Louisiana-Rio Grande Canal Company, chartered in 1910. The first-lift pumphouse stands beside the Rio Grande. Its core dates to 1910, with major additions in 1911 and 1912 and later room units in 1948 and 1952. The 1912 section has a Mission Revival facade, and boilers, steam engines and pumps from 1911 to 1912 remain in place. A second-lift pumphouse near McAllen boosted water above a natural ridge, and the canals carried it to farmland. The canals run above ground and in concrete pipe, and their main alignment is largely unchanged. The system turned ranch land into irrigated orchards and truck gardens. Its period of significance runs from about 1904 to 1949, when a freeze destroyed most of the valley's citrus trees.
Significance in brief: The system turned dry ranch land into irrigated orchards and truck gardens in the Lower Rio Grande Valley in the 1910s and 1920s. The first-lift pumphouse keeps its 1911-1912 boilers, steam engines and centrifugal pumps. The canal alignments remain largely as built, and the period of significance ends with the 1949 freeze that destroyed most of the valley's citrus trees.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 95001284, listed November 8, 1995. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | S. 2nd St. at River Levee, Hidalgo |
|---|---|
| County | Hidalgo County |
| Listed | November 8, 1995 |
| Reference number | 95001284 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca. 1904-1949 |
| Architect / builder | Louisiana-Rio Grande Canal Company; engineer E.B. Gore supervised design and construction, with W.H. McGrath selecting sites and overseeing the pumping stations |
| Architectural style | Late 19th & 20th Century Revivals: Mission/Spanish Colonial Revival |
| Areas of significance | Agriculture, Engineering, Social History, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | The form lists current function as irrigation and also as vacant/not in use. The first-lift pumphouse was sold to the City of Hidalgo in 1993 for conversion to a museum. The second-lift pumphouse interior is empty of historic machinery. |
| Acreage | 3135 |
| Coordinates | 26.19198, -98.17005 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For an income-producing building, listing (individually or as a contributing building in a district) is the gateway to the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit on qualified rehabilitation costs, often stackable with state credits. Work claiming the credit must follow the Secretary of the Interior's Standards and be approved in advance.
Listing does not restrict a private owner acting without federal money or permits; where federal funding or licensing is involved, Section 106 review applies.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 95001284.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikidata Q34730601
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.