When Kevin Haggerty drives around the farms south of Bozeman, he sees more than just the dense development and traffic.

He sees the area where his mother was born in a cabin, fields his ancestors farmed, and the fences of neighbors his family has lived alongside for generations.

He also sees the intricate irrigation system he has taken the mantle of protecting.

Haggerty is the secretary of the Middle Creek Ditch Company, for which he is paid $300 a year.

“For the last four years it's been a pretty full-time job,” he said.

Driving around south Bozeman in his pickup, Haggerty, a well-driller by trade, points out a culvert here or a pipe there. They convey water from Hyalite Creek to his fields and others who own water rights from the ditch.

The Middle Creek Ditch Company was incorporat

See Full Page