CRMWD’s History
In the mid-1940s, Julian (J.B.) Thomas, chief engineer of the newly formed Texas Electric Service Company in Big Spring, realized that quality water was critical for the ongoing growth of West Texas. A reservoir on the Colorado River was identified as the best solution to meet this essential regional need. Big Spring, Odessa and eventually Snyder banded together, and the Colorado River Municipal Water District (CRMWD) was born to complete this and other water-providing projects.
Thanks to the West Texas oil boom, CRMWD rapidly repaid its initial $10 million debt, and in the nearly seven decades since its creation, the District has supplied the region with reliable water during some of the state’s driest decades. Today it continues to provide over 600,000 West Texans with the water they need to live and grow.