The Hoover Dam

Hoover Dam
INTRODUCTION
Without the Hoover Dam, many more people would have been jobless during the hard times of the Depression which would have hindered many people needs for inexpensive power and water. While the construction of the Hoover Dam was ongoing, many workers looked to it as a representation of every American’s contribution to a better life. The Hoover Dam caused the once deserted towns in the West to flourish into booming metropolises. The construction of the Hoover Dam helped to excel economic activity and the growing population in the West in spite of environmental problems.
History of the Hoover Dam. The History behind the Boulder Dam, presently known as the Hoover Dam is extremely extensive and includes multiple variables
that caused the construction and its purpose for people.
During this time in the West, starting farmers need irrigation and a supply of water to turn deserts into farmlands in order to stimulate the growing population (Lusted 13). In addition, a Dam could control Colorado River during times of flooding or in cases of low amounts of water (Lusted 13). The construction of this Dam would include a massive reservoir to control silt levels which were present in the river so they would sink to the bottom of lake beds instead of allowing it to clog down river irrigation canals (Lusted 14). Another productive feature of the dam would be to supply electrical power by installing hydroelectric generators which was seen as a way to recover the initial cost of the dam (Lusted 14). Finally, there was a national court case held to decide how much water Arizona, Nevada, and California would receive which concluded in each state reviewing 7.5 million acre feet of water (Lusted 14). To start off geologists mapped river currents, geographical location, rock type and chiseled out a little more of the canyon and after two years it was determined that the dam was to be built at Black Canyon, Colorado (Lusted 19). Next blueprints were created, then a prototype was built out of rubber and plastics and was tested in laboratories by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation (Lusted 21). From these experiments scientists and engineers concluded that the dam would be engineered to be curved and arched along with an enormous triangular cross section which would be located at the base to combat the water pressure (Lusted 20). Firstly, diversion tunnels were drilled to drain the river beds so engineers and laborers could excavate the site all the way to bedrock for a stable foundation (Lusted 43). During the construction of these tunnels, other men worked as high scalers which mined away old and worn rock along the canyon’s wall to create a sturdy wall for the dam (Lusted 51). Next a series of cofferdams were built up stream to force water down the diversion tunnels (Lusted 53). In order to transport concrete to the foundation, a cable line and car was built (Lusted 64). To create the foundation and to build upward wooden forms were constructed in shapes and filled with concrete and once all these dried intake towers were inserted in the reservoir to prevent silt from entering the hydroelectric generators (Lusted 77). After two more years of cleaning up hazards the Hoover Dam was opened to the public on March 1, 1936 (Lusted 92).

Specifications of the Hoover Dam. Many engineering and architectural milestones were surpassed along the construction of the Hoover Dam which lead it to becoming one of the 20th century modern engineering wonders of the world.
During 1905 and 1907 the Colorado River flooded the Imperial Valley in California causing significant damage (Lusted 8). In 1918, Arthur Powell Davis of the Bureau of Reclamation proposes an idea for a large dam in Boulder Canyon (Lusted 8). After nine years of debate the Boulder Canyon act was passed by President Calvin Coolidge (Lusted 8). The layer of concrete is poured onto the Boulder Dam and President Franklin Roosevelt dedicates the structure in 1935 (Lusted 9). Internal hydroelectric generators are constructed inside the dam throughout 1936 (Lusted 9). In 1939 the Boulder dam went down as the largest hydroelectric structure in the world until 1949 (Lusted 9). Finally in 1947 Congress agreed to rename the dam to the Hoover Dam in honor of President Herbert Hoover (Lusted 9). When finished the Hoover Dam towered at 726.4 feet tall from its foundation to the roadway atop the dam (Bureau of Reclamation). The construction of the Hoover Dam used about 4,360,000 cubic yards of concrete which puts the dam at about 6,600,000 tons (Bureau of Reclamation). When completed, workers had excavated 5,500,000 cubic yards of rock and silt (Bureau of Reclamation). During times of low employment, like during the Great Depression about 21,000 total workers labored on the dam, while
about 3,500 on average worked each day (Bureau of Reclamation).
Effects of the Hoover Dam.
Now that the dam was finished, people in the West were living in great conditions with everyday necessities like fresh drinking water, and exceedingly cheap electricity but what they did not know was the dreadful effects on which the dam had on the surrounding environment. The completion of the Hoover Dam acted as a catalyst in transforming the Southwest United States in a modern society (Discovering U.S. History 2003). The irrigation canals from the dam turned Imperial Valley, California into one of the most fertile agricultural region on the world (Discovering U.S. History 2003). In addition, the water supplied by the dam allowed the Los Angeles area to flourish during the spring of 1941 (Discovering U.S. History 2003). During this time World War Two had begun and without the power of this dam the war would have been extremely rigorous without the industrialization of cities (Discovering U.S. History 2003). With Lake Mead being the largest water reservoir during this time helped sustain enough water for Las Vegas’s population boon (Discovering U.S. History 2003). Most importantly the Hoover Dam protected the Western population by controlling a huge flood on June 6, 1983. (Discovering U.S. History 2003). While people obtain inexpensive necessities from the dma the reservoir of Lake Mead is slowly transforming into a new salt lake (Discovering U.S. History 2003). Sadly enough after the construction of the Hoover Dam the Bureau of Reclamation in 1977 warned that the supply of water needed for civilians would not be met by the capabilities of the Colorado River alone (Lusted 98). Lastly, after the opening of the Hoover Dam, Lake Mead had already been acquiring about 127,000 acre-feet of silt each year which would disrupt the ecosystem in that area. (Lusted 98).
CONCLUSION
The construction of the Hoover Dam helped to excel economic activity and the growing population in the West in spite of environmental problems.
The history and purpose behind the dam put the needs of the people who inhabited the West before the oncoming environmental problems. While designing the dam, chief engineers took the environmental risks into consideration and designed the dam around the concept of eliminating as many possible. Once finished and opened to the public many tourists visited the site to admire the hard work and beautiful views the Hoover Dam has to offer of the wild West. Thought provoking statement; Imagine where the U.S. civilizations in the west would be without the construction of the Hoover Dam, which acted as a catalyst toward their
developments.