Spud Island
Aerial image of an island.
USGS aerial imagery of Spud Island in the San Joaquin River, with McDonald Island to its west, Hog Island to its east, and Rindge Tract past Hog Island.
Spud Island is located in Sacramento-San Joaquin River Delta
Spud Island
Spud Island
Spud Island is located in California
Spud Island
Spud Island
Spud Island is located in the United States
Spud Island
Spud Island
Geography
LocationNorthern California
Coordinates38°00′27″N 121°27′26″W / 38.00750°N 121.45722°W / 38.00750; -121.45722 (Spud Island)[1]
Adjacent toSacramento–San Joaquin River Delta
Highest elevation13 ft (4 m)[1]
Administration
United States
State California
CountySan Joaquin

Spud Island is a small island of the San Joaquin River, located in the Sacramento–San Joaquin River Delta in northern California. It was once used to farm onions; while it is no longer used for agriculture, it remains inhabited. In the late 20th century it was the site of a county park, which offered camping, fishing and swimming amenities free of charge.

Geography

Spud Island's coordinates are 38°00′27″N 121°27′26″W / 38.00750°N 121.45722°W / 38.00750; -121.45722 (Spud Island),[1] and the United States Geological Survey (USGS) measured its elevation as 13 ft (4.0 m) in 1981.[1] It is in the San Joaquin River in San Joaquin County, California, at a point where McDonald Island lies to the west of the river and Rindge Tract to the east.[2] Spud Island was separated from the nearby Hog Island by the dredging of the Hog Island Cut.[3]

History

Islands in the location currently constituting Spud Island and Hog Island are shown on maps as early as the 1900s.[4] However, the orientation of the islands was different, and they were separated by the Deadman Reach segment of the San Joaquin River (which ran north to south).[4]

A 1923 survey by the California Department of Water Rights gave the area of Spud Island as 100 acres (40 ha), with 70 acres (28 ha) devoted to the cultivation of onions.[5] The city of Stockton purchased Spud Island from the Rindge Land & Navigation Company in 1928 for a sum of $15,000 (equivalent to $256,000 in 2022).[6]

In June 1931, Hog and Spud Islands were mentioned in an engineering report on dredging in the Delta; the Hog Island Cut was being dredged to separate them, and levees were in the process of being constructed on both sides of the new cut with clamshell dredgers.[7] The winning bids for the two contracts on Spud Island were made by the Franks Contracting Company, of San Francisco, and California Delta Farms Incorporated, of Stockton.[8] The excavation of the cut, and the construction of the levees, involved moving over one million cu yd (760,000 m3) of dirt;[9] by November, it was 85% complete.[10] By 1939, the islands appeared on a USGS map in their current orientation, divided by the Hog Island Cut running from southeast to northwest.[11] Spud Island was once used for agriculture; after the 1940s, however, it would begin to sit "basically untouched".[3] In 1952, USGS maps show Spud Island as having large amounts of marsh and submerged land.[2]

By 1974, the entirety of Spud Island (with an area given as 60 acres (24 ha)) was owned by the Port of Stockton, and parts of the island had been used for disposal of dredging spoils; a report from the United States Army Corps of Engineers noted that 20 acres (8.1 ha) was "grass-shrub land" at the northern tip, and the remainder was marsh.[12] In 1986, residents of Spud Island were receiving mail through the United States Postal Service, from one of 68 mail carriers in the United States who delivered by boat.[13] In 1997, a boat ran aground on Spud Island, killing one person and injuring another.[14]

Recreation

Since the decline of agriculture on the island, various entities have attempted to make Spud Island available for use as a recreation area, with varying degrees of success.[3] In 1974, the Port of Stockton was leasing South Spud Island to San Joaquin County, who made it available for public use. The site was furnished with picnic tables, trash containers, and one barbecue area, but no toilets.[12] In that same year, the Fremont Argus quoted a Coast Guard Auxiliary serviceman as saying that there was a "good swimming beach", overnight camping, and "pretty good catfishing" on Spud Island (which, as a county park, was free to use).[15] In 1981, the California Department of Boating and Waterways was cited as giving "high priority" to the development of Spud Island as a recreational area for boaters.[16] In 2007, the owners of Hog and Spud Islands were attempting to open them to the public for recreational use.[3]

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Spud Island
  2. 1 2 United States Geological Survey (1952). "Terminous Quadrangle, California" (Map). United States Department of the Interior Geological Survey. 1:24000.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Breitler, Alex (4 April 2007). "Hog/Spud Island 'very close' to becoming a recreation destination". Stockton Record.
  4. 1 2 Marshall, R.B.; Gerdine, T.G.; Jenkins, B.A.; Nelson, C.L. (1910). Topography, State of California: Headreach Quadrangle (Map). 1:31680. United States Geological Survey. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  5. ↑ California Division of Water Rights (September 2, 1923). "Hydrographic Investigation of San Joaquin River, May, 1923". California State Printing Office, F.J. Smith, Superintendent – via Google Books.
  6. ↑ "Legals". Stockton Independent. 29 December 1928. p. 10.
  7. ↑ "Stockton channel project is now 31 percent complete". Contra Costa Gazette. 10 June 1931. p. 6.
  8. ↑ "U.S. Engineer Opens Bids Here For Stockton Channel Improvement". The Sacramento Bee. 27 August 1930. p. 22.
  9. ↑ "Stockton Deep Water Port Work Near Half-Way Mark". Oakland Tribune. 6 September 1931.
  10. ↑ "Stockton Deep Water Port Half Completed". Oakland Tribune. 8 November 1931. p. 35.
  11. ↑ Topography, State of California: Lodi Quadrangle (Map). 1:62500. United States Geological Survey. 1939. Retrieved 3 September 2021.
  12. 1 2 United States Army Corps of Engineers (July 1974). "Environmental Working Paper, Port of Stockton to Point Edith: San Francisco Bay to Stockton, California (John F. Baldwin and Stockton Ship Channels)" – via Google Books.
  13. ↑ "Mail". The San Francisco Examiner. 1 June 1986. p. 25.
  14. ↑ "No ID on victim". The Modesto Bee. 25 May 1997. p. 16.
  15. ↑ "The Delta". Fremont Argus. 8 September 1974. p. 110.
  16. ↑ "New board chairman raps San Joaquin County parks". The Modesto Bee. 9 January 1981. p. 13.
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