THE WILD RIVER AND THE GREAT DAM

An extensively researched exploration into the people, the river, and the economics behind the creation of Hoover Dam.

Completed in 1936, Hoover Dam was heralded as a human victory over the wild Colorado River, providing water and electricity for millions, including the residents of Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Phoenix, and other cities. Less than a century later, climate change, combined with increased demands for water, have depleted the once seemingly endless river. Primary sources and quotations from several oral history projects put readers in the boots of some of the more than 20,000 men who worked in dangerous conditions and sweltering heat to complete this feat, made possible by cutting-edge technology and clever engineering. The absorbing chronological narrative follows the construction of the dam, delving into the social, economic, political, and cultural issues that propelled the project forward. Visual aids add immediacy, including maps, construction plans, advertisements, and black-and-white photos showing the vast scope of the project, the powerful white men in charge, the workers and their families, and the devastating environmental consequences. The impacts on Indigenous and Black people are mentioned—for example, exclusion from compensation for land taken, destruction of sites and artifacts, forced labor, and unequal wages and work conditions. The inclusion of many exact measurements provides insight into the enormity of the project but at times overwhelms the narrative.

A fascinating blend of social and environmental history and engineering.