Hoover Dam

Hoover Dam
Hoover Dam
	Hoover Dam by Ansel Adams, 1941
Official name	Hoover Dam
Location	Clark County, Nevada / Mohave County, Arizona, U.S.
Purpose	Power, flood control, water storage, regulation, recreation
Status	Operational
Construction began	1931
Opening date	1936; (88 years ago)
Construction cost	$49 million (1931 budget); ($NaN in 2019 dollars)
Owner(s)	United States Government
Operator(s)	U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
Dam and spillways
Type of dam	Concrete gravity-arch
Impounds	Colorado River
Height	726.4 ft (221.4 m)
Length	1,244 ft (379 m)
Elevation at crest	1,232 ft (376 m)
Width (crest)	45 ft (14 m)
Width (base)	660 ft (200 m)
Dam volume	3,250,000 cu yd (2,480,000 m3)
Spillway type	2 controlled Drum-Gate, Side channel
Spillway capacity	400,000 cu ft/s (11,000 m3/s)
Reservoir
Creates	Lake Mead
Total capacity	28,537,000 acre·ft (35.200 km3)
Active capacity	15,853,000 acre·ft (19.554 km3)
Inactive capacity	10,024,000 acre·ft (12.364 km3)
Catchment area	167,800 sq mi (435,000 km2)
Surface area	247 sq mi (640 km2)
Maximum length	112 mi (180 km)
Maximum water depth	590 ft (180 m)
Normal elevation	1,219 ft (372 m)
Power Station
Operator(s)	U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
Commission date	1936–1960
Hydraulic head	590 ft (180 m) (Max)
Turbines	13× 130 MW; 2× 127 MW; 1× 68.5 MW; 1× 61.5 MW Francis-type; 2× 2.4 MW Pelton-type
Installed capacity	2,080 MW
Capacity factor	23%
Annual generation	4.2 TWh (15 PJ)
	Website; Bureau of Reclamation: Lower Colorado Region - Hoover Dam
	Hoover Dam
	U.S. National Register of Historic Places
	U.S. National Historic Landmark
Nearest city:	Boulder City, Nevada
Coordinates:	36°0′56″N 114°44′16″W / 36.01556°N 114.73778°WCoordinates: 36°0′56″N 114°44′16″W / 36.01556°N 114.73778°W
Built:	1933
Architect:	Six Companies, Inc. (structural), Gordon Kaufmann (exteriors)
Architectural style:	Art Deco
Governing body:	Bureau of Reclamation
MPS:	Vehicular Bridges in Arizona MPS (AD)
NRHP Reference#:	81000382
Significant dates
Added to NRHP:	April 8, 1981
Designated NHL:	August 20, 1985

The Hoover Dam is a large dam on the Colorado River. It is on the border of the states of Arizona and Nevada. The reservoir it made is called Lake Mead. The dam is named after the former US President Herbert Hoover. At first it was called "Boulder Dam", but the name was changed to honor Hoover, who was president when the idea of building the dam started.

Hoover Dam Media

River view of the future dam site, c. 1904
Sketch of the proposed dam site and reservoir, c. 1921
Hoover Dam architectural plans
Workers on a "Jumbo Rig"; used for drilling the Hoover Dam's tunnels
"Apache Indians employed as high-scalers on the construction of Hoover Dam." – NARA
General Superintendent Frank Crowe (right) with Bureau of Reclamation engineer Walker Young in 1935
Overview of dam mechanisms; diversion tunnels shown
Columns of Hoover Dam being filled with concrete, February 1934 (looking upstream from the Nevada rim)
The upstream face of Hoover Dam slowly disappears as Lake Mead fills, May 1935 (looking downstream from the Arizona rim)