Director's Portal Log In
Shareholder's Portal Log In

About the Canal

Who We Are

For over 130 years, our mission at the Gage Canal Company is supplying water to our stockholders, which in part contributes to their ‘growing’ success in the agriculture and greenbelt of our community – Riverside. Since its inception by founder Matthew Gage, the water continues to flow 21 miles from San Bernardino to Riverside. Portions of the canal and the landscape have certainly changed in the passing years. There are new businesses and opportunities ‘cropping’ up in the form of nurseries contributing to our economy, all the while the vision remains the same; provide irrigation water to the Gage Canal stockholders.

During the 1880s, the birth of the Gage Canal, Matthew Gage worked earnestly to acquire the correct water and property rights for the construction of his waterway. Other businessmen grew jealous of Gage, as they saw the value of irrigating the Southern Californian land themselves. For a majority of Matthew Gage’s life he was involved in tedious and burdensome lawsuits, proving his legitimacy as an entrepreneur. Eventually Gage succeeded, and thanks to his great achievements Riverside became the heart of the Gage Canal system and its ‘growing’ opportunities. Numerous tourists came to Riverside for the pleasant climate and flourishing citrus belt. With Riverside acclaimed as the “Home of the Navel Orange”, plenty of visitors made the city their permanent home, eager to join the popular citrus trade. Some of these families are still growers and stockholders today, and the legacy of Riverside’s ‘growing’ agriculture lives on.