Dov Kovlenov

The photographic collection of Dov Kovlenov, includes documentation of drainage and irrigation projects, in which he was personally involved, from the 1920's until the 1960's. There are photographs of the drying of the swamps in Kabara (1921-1939 and 1960-1965); construction of the water pool in Rosh Pina (1926); stabilization of the Jordan River near Moshav Beit Yosef (1942); diversion of flood waters from Nahal Asluj (Revivim) to use for irrigation in Mitzpe Revivim (1944-1947); draining of the Hula swamp (1951-1957); planning the Kishon Lake (1954); the water plant in the Ta'anach region (1956); and the water drainage in Emek Hefer (1960). The collection also includes documentation of random water utilization during different time periods in the history of the Land of Israel, which he saw during his travels around Israel. Dov Kovlenov was born in 1897 in the town of Tatarsk, Mstislavl district, in the Mohilev district of Russia (today Belarus). His father was an observant Jew who did not participate in 'worldly business'. The livelihood of the family, which numbered 7 children, was the sole responsibility of his mother. She ran a small grocery store and traded in linen, which she bought from the farmers and sold to merchants in the big city. At the age of 6 he entered the 'cheder' and studied there for 4 years. As he grew up he continued studying gemara with his father. As a boy he chose to study secular subjects and at the age of 15 he entered the gymnasia in Mstislavl, which he completed with honors. He was drafted into the Russian army in WWI. After the Communist Revolution, when Jews were allowed to be officers, he became a junior officer. After the war he decided to come to Israel. The idea most likely formed in his head during the summer of 1917 when he first encountered Yosef Trumpeldor. Kovlenov decided to learn a trade in the field of agriculture, so that he would be useful in Israel. He was accepted to study agricultural hydro-technology at the Petrovic Agricultural Academy in Moscow, which was reserved only for members of the aristocracy and studied in the Department of Drainage. His main subjects were irrigation, drying and utilizing water power. During his studies he was a member of the He - Chaluts movement. He excelled in his studies and his final thesis was exhibited at an agricultural exhibition in Moscow in 1924. Kovlenov was able to come to Israel in 1924 because he received a 'certificate' from the Gdeud Ha'avoda, a socialist Zionist work group in Mandate Palestine. In his pocket, when he arrived, was the money from the book he wrote with his teacher, Prof. Kostikov, "The Secrets of Drainage". He joined the Gedud Ha'avoda upon arrival and was a member until it was dismantled. One week after his arrival he started working for The Palestine Jewish Colonization Association, commonly known by its Yiddish acronym PICA. At first he worked in measurement, but shortly was transferred to the office in Zichron Yaakov to work as a technical advisor. In this capacity, he worked on repairing the dam on the Shoni Springs near Binyamina, advising the Dead Sea Salt Company about the infiltration of fresh water into the evaporation ponds, and solved the problems of water supply to Givat Ada and Rosh Pina. He returned to Zichron Yaakov from Rosh Pina in 1926 and in 1927 became the Director of the Kabara Swamp Drainage Project that lasted until 1936. At this time he married Chana Weizman. In PICA he worked as a water engineer dealing with the drainage and supply of water to the Shomron region and the PICA settlements in the Galilee. Part of his responsibilities working in PICA was planning the water supply to the following settlements: Atlit, Pardes Chana, Binyamina, Ma'ayan Tzvi, Ayelet Hashachar, Kfar Giladi and Kinneret, and the establishment of the water facility in Emek Yavniel. During his work at PICA, Dov Kovlenov prepared the plan for draining the Hula Valley. He did this on his own initiative, without any help and without being asked. In 1942, when the involvement of PICA in the planning of the drainage facilities and water supply ended, he was 'loaned out' to the Jewish Agency. His first project was to strengthen the banks of the Jordan River by the Water Institute in Moshav Beit Yosef in the Jordan Valley, thus saving the Institute from collapse. During the years 1944-1947 he was responsible for planning and building the facility to divert the flood waters from Nahal Revivim to the storage pools at Mitzpe Revivim. In 1946 Kovlenov was appointed Chief Engineer in the Water Department of the Jewish Agency. In this position he was responsible for the establishment of many water facilities throughout the country, primarily in the North. The main ones were in: Ta'anach, Tzippori, Kfar Kish, Gazit and Emek Hitin. In addition he built reservoirs in Ta'anach, Dishon and Farood. In his capacity as the Chief Engineer at the Jewish Agency he was also an active member of the Planning Committee for the National Water Plant, the Higher Committee for Drainage, and the Committee for the Review of Regional Water Plans in the Ministry of Agriculture. At the same time, he also worked on preparing the implementation plans for draining the Hula swamps, and planned and supervised the water supply plants in the Hula Valley, the Banias plant and the Hatzbani plant. Dov Kovlenov passed away in 1975. He was buried in the cemetery on Kibbutz Ma'agan Michael, that overlooks the fields that were once the Kabara swamps. His tombstone reads, "The Water Man. A Pioneer for his Whole Life". For more information on the drainage of the Kabara swamps and the use of rain waters to irrigate the fields of Kibbutz Revivim, you can read the attached document. This photo collection was given to the archives at Yad Ben-Zvi by Tamar Lipsker-Lederberg, who also provided access to her grandfather's and mother's (Ruth Lipsker- the daughter of Dov Kovlenov) manuscripts. Read more