Stevens Creek Reservoir
Encyclopedia
Stevens Creek Reservoir is a reservoir
located in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains
near Cupertino, California
.
Stevens Creek Dam, which impounds the lake, was approved for construction by voters in 1934 and completed in 1935. The dam's height was raised 10 feet (3 m) in 1985, to its present height. The Santa Clara Valley Water District
owns the dam.
Originally named Arroyo de San José Cupertino, Stevens Creek flows into the reservoir and out of the dam to San Francisco Bay
. Stevens Creek and the reservoir are named after Captain Elijah Stephens
who led the first wagon train
across the Sierra Nevada in 1844 and settled in Cupertino.
The reservoir is located in Stevens Creek County Park, with the Picchetti Ranch Open Space Preserve adjacent to its east on The Montebello Ridge also known as Black Mountain
.
Reservoir
A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...
located in the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains
Santa Cruz Mountains
The Santa Cruz Mountains, part of the Pacific Coast Ranges, are a mountain range in central California, United States. They form a ridge along the San Francisco Peninsula, south of San Francisco, separating the Pacific Ocean from San Francisco Bay and the Santa Clara Valley, and continuing south,...
near Cupertino, California
Cupertino, California
Cupertino is an affluent suburban city in Santa Clara County, California in the U.S., directly west of San Jose on the western edge of the Santa Clara Valley with portions extending into the foothills of the Santa Cruz Mountains. The population was 58,302 at the time of the 2010 census. Forbes...
.
Stevens Creek Dam, which impounds the lake, was approved for construction by voters in 1934 and completed in 1935. The dam's height was raised 10 feet (3 m) in 1985, to its present height. The Santa Clara Valley Water District
Santa Clara Valley Water District
The Santa Clara Valley Water District provides stream stewardship, wholesale water supply and flood protection for Santa Clara County, California, in the southern San Francisco Bay Area. The district encompasses all of the county’s and serves the area’s 15 cities, 1.7 million residents and more...
owns the dam.
Originally named Arroyo de San José Cupertino, Stevens Creek flows into the reservoir and out of the dam to San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay
San Francisco Bay is a shallow, productive estuary through which water draining from approximately forty percent of California, flowing in the Sacramento and San Joaquin rivers from the Sierra Nevada mountains, enters the Pacific Ocean...
. Stevens Creek and the reservoir are named after Captain Elijah Stephens
Elijah Stephens
Elijah Stephens was a blacksmith and trapper who was born in South Carolina. He then moved to Cupertino, California, in 1848. Stevens Creek is supposedly named after him.-References:...
who led the first wagon train
Wagon train
A wagon train is a group of wagons traveling together. In the American West, individuals traveling across the plains in covered wagons banded together for mutual assistance, as is reflected in numerous films and television programs about the region, such as Audie Murphy's Tumbleweed and Ward Bond...
across the Sierra Nevada in 1844 and settled in Cupertino.
The reservoir is located in Stevens Creek County Park, with the Picchetti Ranch Open Space Preserve adjacent to its east on The Montebello Ridge also known as Black Mountain
Black Mountain (near Los Altos, California)
Black Mountain is a summit on Monte Bello Ridge in the Santa Cruz Mountains of west Santa Clara County, California, south of Los Altos and west of Cupertino. It is located on the border between Rancho San Antonio Open Space Preserve and Monte Bello Open Space Preserve, with the summit located in...
.