Historical Conditions of the Creek

The history of Putah Creek would not be complete without ample mention of flood and drought, the emigrant farming families which settled Putah region, and how early settlers changed the creek to make settlement possible.

This section discusses some of the human-led events which changed the creek. The Native American history of Putah Creek can be found here. 

The Creek was historically a very "flashy" system--one whose flow could change over night during a large storm. The tendancy for Putah Creek to overflow her banks in a large storm made the flat, fertile farmland from Winters and east an ideal place to grow wheat...unless the flows were so large that farms were wiped out...or unless the rains and flood waters never came and left the region and its wheat crops parched. In other words: Putah Creek and her flow was unpredictable at best, and destructive at worst. The creek had a vast riparian (stream-side) forest which extended miles in either direction, and its substrate was gravel and cobble. The riparian forest was dominated by alder, willow, and cottonwood close to the creek, and oaks including valley, coast and interior live oak farther out from the live channel. As the creek meandered its way to "Davisville" it entered a vast expanse of tule and "swamp." 

Much of what we now think of now as Putah Creek bears little resemblance to the geography and hydrology of the creek prior to the 1870s.

As farmers moved to the area after the gold rush, much of the stream side forest was cleared for farming.  

The upper Putah Creek Watershed, all 576-square miles of it, receives over 90% of the precipitation which falls in the watershed. The water is collected behind Monticello Dam in Lake Berryessa, one of the largest reservoirs in California. 

The Putah Creek watershed receives a substantial amount of rain every year, most of which is now contained behind Monticello Dam in Lake Berryessa. The upper Putah Creek watershed encompasses 576 square miles of rugged terrain.