THE STONY CREEK WATER WARS
Glenn County - Tehama County - Colusa County , California.
(c) 2009, Mike Barkley
Affidavit of John Johansen

[A transcription of the document on file in the Angle Archives

Important because these affidavits were the first sworn response to Reclamation's suit, and Judge Van Fleet's ignoring them, as in not even reading them before issuing his injunction, set the tone for the rest of the litigation, as in the Court was there to support the government, not justice or equity.

In straight text without elaborate formatting. Any editorial comments by me are contained within brackets, "[]", which you may delete easily after downloading the "page source" to your own editing software if your browser allows source downloading. ]

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No. 30 Equity

IN THE NORTHERN [sic] DISTRICT
COURT OF THE UNITED STATES
IN AND FOR THE NORTHERN
DIVISION OF THE NORTHERN
DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA.

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THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
PLAINTIFF
vs.
H.C. ANGLE, et al.
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AFFIDAVIT OF JOHN JOHANSEN

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FILED
At ____ o'clock and ____ Min ____ M
JUN 11 1918
Walter B. Maling, Clerk
By /s/ Thomas J. Franklin
Deputy Clerk - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

CLAUDE F. PURKITT
Attorney for Defendnat [sic]
[end of cover]

IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF THE UNITED STATES
IN AND FOR THE NORTHERN DIVISION OF
THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA

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THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA,

PLAINTIFF,

vs.

H.C. ANGLE, A.M. ANDERSON, A.C. BAYLEY, L. BEDFORD, JOHN BEDFORD, R.E. BLEVINS, I.L. FEIGHTNER, W.W. GATLIFF, IRA GREEN, AUG. GOLLNICK, JAMES HARMON, REUBEN HARTMAN, VOLNEY HAYTON, C.A. HINELINE, CHAS. JAEGER, JOHN JOHANSEN [sic], JOHN JOHANSEN [sic], JR., J.E. KNIGHT, J.F. MALLON, G.W. MARKHAM, PRESTON MORRIS, WM. NIESEN, JAMES O'BRIEN, S.A. RALSTON, RAY SHIVELY, E.E. SMITH, JOHN H. SOETH, GEO. SOETH, FRED STRAWN, A.J. TRIPLETT, FRANK TROXEL, F.W. TROXEL, LLOYD TROXEL, I.E. TRUE, J. VAN SCYOC, A.P. WAKEFIELD,

DEFENDANTS.

AFFIDAVIT OF JOHN
JOHANSEN,
ON HEARING PRELIMINARY
INJUNCTION AND APPOINT-
MENT AND AUTHORIZATON OF
WATER COMMISSIONER DURING
PENDENCY OF CAUSE.

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STATE OF CALIFORNIA )
COUNTY OF GLENN ) SS

John Johansen being first duly sworn deposes and says the [sic] he is one of the defendnats [sic] in the above entitled action. That affiant was served with a copy of the complaint and order setting dovn for hearing Plaintiff’s petition and preliminary injunction, the fifth day of June 1918, and that affiant is the owner of one thousand fifty acres, situate in the County of Glenn, State of California, Sections 15, 10, 4 and 3, Township 19 North Range 6 West M.D.B. & M. That all of said land is riparian to and lies along Stony Creek, and said Stony Creek runs through said land and part of said land lies on each side of said Creek.

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That affiant has been living on said land since May in the year 1882, that on the 8th day of March 1886 this affiant appropriated under and persuant to the laws of the State of California, to the extent of one thousand inches of the water of Big Stony. At the time of said appropriation said affiant posted a notice of appropriation of said one thousand inches of water in Big Stony Creek, a copy of said notice of appropriation is hereto attached and marked Exhibit "A" and is hereby referred to and made a part hereof as though fully set out at length here. That immediately after the posting of said notice affiant had said notice recorded in Book A miscellaneous records page 130 Records of Colusa County, the County in which said land was situated, and immediately after said notice was posted affiant commenced to and did construct a ditch and did immediately appropriate and put to beneficial use seven or eight hundred inches of water appropriated. That affiant has constantly and continuously each season since affiant appropriated said water used said water on his land and has continuously and constantly made his beneficial use therof for the purpose of irrigating his crops and is now using said water. During all of said time affiant has irrigated approximately 65 acres under said ditch, that all of said land is so situate as to contain, that [garbled] all of the water appropriated as aforesaid when same is used on said land and after the same is used immediately finds its way back to the channel of Big Stony Creek. That the character of land irrigated is of a sandy, gravely nature and susceptible to irrigation, but unless irrigation is continued during the season and summer season said land will immediately dry out and any crops standing or growing on said land would immediately die. The land is shallow and underlaid with bed-rock. The surface of the bed-rock varies

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from the waters edge of the Creek to no depth back to ten feet of soil. That all of the bed-rock slopes towawd the Creek and because of the gravely nature of the land the irrigation water used on the land immediately percolates through the land and finds its way back to the main channel of big Stony Creek

That on September 20, 1904 affiant herein purchased from one Claus Lorenz 160 [acres? in the?] East half North-east quarter, the East [garbled] half of the South East quarter of Section 15, which strip of land lies on the East side of said Stony Creek, situate in the South-west quarter of the South-east quarter of Section 10 all in township l9 [garbled] North range 6 West M.D.B. & M. That while the said Claus Lorenz was the owner of said land, last above described, he did on the 9th day of May 1887, under and persuant [sic] to the laws of the State of California, claim and file a water right at a point near the South-west corner of the South-east quarter of the South-east quarter of section 15, said township and range, to the extent of 600 inches, and which was thereafter recorded in the office of the County Recorder, recorded in Book A miscellaneous Records page 134, Records of Colusa County, California. Said notice of appropriation of copy of which is hereto attached and marked Exhibit "B" and is hereby referred to as though fully set out at length herein. That said Lorenz did immediately after appropriating said water actually used said water upon said land and said water has continued every year to be used upon said land and to a various extent on about 20 or 25 acres of said land. That in addition to the appropriation and use of said water by affiant and his predecessor as herein set forth, all of said land joins and is riparian to the main channel of Big Stony Creek. That said land is now growing and producing crops thereon and are contiuaously in need of water and that after the water is taken off of said crops. for any considerable period of time, for more than three days said crops would immediately wither up and suffer and

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be lost to affiant because of the gravely nature of the land.

Affiant further states that during all the years be has used said ditch he has maintained a flume on said portion of his ditch and that said flume has always been the same size and carries no more water now than it dld before Plaintiff constructed its reservoir or approriated the water mentioned in Plaintiff’s Complaint. That affiant has lived on said Stony Creek since the year 1882, now past 36 years and that at no time during the summer during all of said period has the main channel of said Stony Creek ever been dry and that this defendant during all these years and whenever he irrigated was always able to take from said creek sufficient water to irrigate his said land and still leave water in the main channel passing by his said land.

Affiant further states thnt he is familiar with said Creek from a point known as Winslow on up to a point opposite to Stonyford, and at no time during the period that affiant has lived on said Creek has said Creek ever gone dry and has always had sufficient water there to supply the users of water on said Creek.

Affiant further states that if this Honorable Court permits said Injunction to issue, or Water Commissioner to be appointed and affiant denied the use of water upon his land after [garbled] he has been using it will cause him a great immediate and irreparable damage and his crops will become withered and dry up and his alfalfa will likey [sic] permanently die.

WHEREFORE affiant prays that said preliminary Injunction be not granted and that no Commissioner be appointed by this Honorable Court to supervise or superintend said water for the reason that the appointment of the Commissioner would be an expense, a portion of which expense ultimate [sic] would be required by affiant and to that amount would work an injustice, a hardship and damage to the defendant.

/s/ John Johannsen

Subscribed and sworn to before )
me this 9th day of June 1918. )

/s/ Elma Knock

Notary public in and for the Conty of Glenn, State of
California.

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Exhibit "A" John Johansen

NOTICE

To Whom it may concern, that the undersigned John Johansen intends to appropriate the waters of Bigh [sic] Stony Creek at the point of this posted notice and the intended diversion being a point on the left bank and the west side of said Creek, near or about twenty rods north of the south line of S.W. 1/4 of S.E. 1/4 Sec. 10 Township 19 North range 6 West County of Colusa, State of California, being his own land, and as provided by Sec. 1410 to 1422 of Civil Code of California.

First: That he claims the waters there flowing to the extent of one thonsand inches.

Second: That it is for the purpese of irrigating his lands in Sections 10, 4 and 3 of above named Township County and State.

Third: That he intends to divert this water by a flume 30 by 33 inches and ditch five feet at the bottom and seven feet on top, sufficiently deep to carry the water.

Dated March 8th 1886 John Johannsen

The undersigned certify, that they were present and assisted in putting up the copy of the foregoing Notice on a post erected at the point of diveraion of water

Dated March 8th 1886
John Johannsen
Mr,.E.L. Robinett
Peter Grimm

Filed for record at the request of Julius Weyand, March 111 [sic] 1886 at 37 min. past 3 o’clock. W.H. Mites, County Recorder, by S.M. Bishop, Deputy

Eecorded the 19th day of March 1886
in Book A Miscellaneous Records,
page 130 Records of Colusa County
W.,H. Metes Recorder, by
B. M. Bishop Deputy

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Exhibit "B" John Johansen

NOTICE OF WATER LOCATION

CLAUS LORENZ )
to )
WHOM IT MAY CONCERN.)

Dated May 9, 1887
Filed. May 27, 1887.
Recorded in Book "A" of
Miscellaneous Records,
page 134 Records of Colusa
County.

Recites:

Notice is hereby given to all Whom it may Conoern: That I, Claus Lorenz of the County of Colusa, State of California, having declared my intention to become a citizen as required by the naturalization law of the United States, being over the age of twenty-one years, claims the water then flowing in Stony Creek, Colusa County, California, at a point on said Creek near the Southwest corner of the Southeast quarter of the Southeast quarter of Section l6, Township 19 north Range 6 West in said Colusa County, to the extent of six hundred inches, measured under a four inch pressure. That the purpose for which I claim said water is for irrigation, and the place for intended use is the East half of the Northeast quarter, and the East half of the Southeast quarter of Section 15 in Township 19 North range 6 West in said County of Colusa, State of California. That the means by which I intend to divert said water is a ditch of the size of four feet wide by two feet deep.

Witness my hand thls 9th day of May 1887.

Claus Lorenz

[stationery imprinted:]
CLAUDE F. PURKITT
ATTORNEY AT LAW
WILLOWS, CALIFORNIA

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--Mike Barkley, 161 N. Sheridan Ave. #1, Manteca, CA 95336 (H) 209/823-4817
mjbarkl@inreach.com