December 19, 2018

On Dec. 21, 1928, 90 years ago this Friday, United States President  Calvin Coolidge signed the Boulder Canyon Project Act that authorized the building of the Hoover Dam. The dam, which was named for Coolidge’s successor as president, Herbert Hoover, is one of the highest concrete dams in the world. It stands in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River on the Arizona-Nevada border. The Boulder Canyon Project included the construction of a hydroelectric power plant, a reservoir, and later the Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge. The Boulder Canyon Project supplies water and electric power for much of the Pacific Southwest.

The Boulder Canyon Project Act of 1928 authorized the construction of Hoover Dam, one of the world’s highest concrete dams. The Mike O’Callaghan-Pat Tillman Memorial Bridge spans the canyon just south of the dam. Credit: U.S. Department of Transportation

Hoover Dam stands about 25 miles (40 kilometers) southeast of Las Vegas, Nevada. Hundreds of thousands of people visit the dam each year. The dam is 726 feet (221 meters) high and 1,244 feet (379 meters) long. Elevators descend the equivalent of 44 stories into the dam. But they still do not reach its base. The concrete base is 660 feet (200 meters) thick. It contains enough concrete to pave a two-lane highway from New York City to San Francisco. Water falling through the huge turbines of the dam generates electric power. The power is sold to industries and to cities in the Pacific Southwest. The power plant has a capacity of about 2 million kilowatts.

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The Boulder Canyon Project Act of 1928 authorized the building of the Hoover Dam. The first page of the act is shown here. Credit: National Archives

Lake Mead, the dam reservoir, is one of the world’s largest artificially created bodies of water. It is about 115 miles (185 kilometers) long and 589 feet (180 meters) deep. The reservoir stores approximately 28 million acre-feet (35 billion cubic meters) of water. Water from Lake Mead can irrigate about 1 million acres (400,000 hectares) of farmland in the three-state area. The reservoir also supplies water for cities in southern California.

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This map shows the location of Lake Mead, a large artificial lake on the Arizona-Nevada border. The lake was created by the completion of Hoover Dam on the Colorado River. Credit: WORLD BOOK map

The need for a dam on the Colorado River was apparent in the early 1900′s. Floods were causing much damage in the Palo Verde Valley and in the Imperial Valley. Extensive levees were built. But crops died when the river ran too low to meet the area’s irrigation needs. In 1928, Congress approved the Boulder Canyon Project. The Bureau of Reclamation designed the dam and supervised its construction. The entire project cost about $385 million. The dam itself cost about $165 million. Hoover Dam was completed in 1935.

November 17, 2016

You have probably heard of Air Force One, the aircraft that carries the president of the United States. You have also probably seen the presidential state car, an armored limousine called Cadillac One, or “the Beast.” But did you know that there was once a presidential yacht? That’s right, the president was once furnished with a luxury boat—Sequoia—for personal and official use.

The former presidential yacht Sequoia travels down the Potomac River near Washington D.C., in 2003. Credit: U.S. Navy

President Herbert Hoover first used Sequoia in the 1920’s, but he turned it over to the Department of Commerce for use as a decoy to catch bootleggers during Prohibition. After the end of Prohibition in 1933, the U.S. Navy commissioned USS (United States Ship) Sequoia as the official presidential yacht. Under President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Sequoia soon returned to civilian status, and the commander-in-chief opted for USS Potomac, a sleeker U.S. Coast Guard cutter, as his presidential yacht.

Sequoia was relegated to the secretary of the Navy for a while, but presidents (who often came with their own yachts) continued to use the craft. Harry S. Truman enjoyed fishing from Sequoia in the Potomac River. Dwight D. Eisenhower lent the boat to Queen Elizabeth II during her first official state visit in 1957. Presidents Kennedy, Johnson, Nixon, and Ford all enjoyed Sequoia for their personal use—including numerous parties—as well as for top-level meetings.

In 1977, as the United States was suffering through difficult economic times, President Jimmy Carter thought it best to discontinue use of Sequoia. He had the vessel sold as a symbolic cutback in federal spending, but Sequoia had occasional returns to duty under Presidents Ronald Reagan and George Herbert Walker Bush.

In recent years, Sequoia has fallen into disrepair, languishing in a Virginia dry dock. But just a few days ago, on Nov. 14, 2016, a Delaware judge approved the sale of the craft, clearing the way for its complete rehabilitation. With any luck, Sequoia will soon once again be sea worthy and ready for a history-filled visit.

Presidential vehicles currently in use include an armored bus known as Ground Force One, or “Stagecoach.” Military helicopters that carry the president variously earn the titles Army One, Coast Guard One, Marine One, or Navy One. Any civilian aircraft that carries the president is called Executive One.