Hoover Dam

Imagine a giant, curved wall of smooth gray concrete, tucked between tall, reddish-brown canyon walls. The bright desert sun shines down on me, making the huge, sparkling blue lake I hold back look like it’s filled with diamonds. I am very strong, very tall, and I have a very important job to do here in the desert between Nevada and Arizona. Do you know who I am. I am the Hoover Dam.

I was built because the Colorado River was a bit of a wild thing. Sometimes it would flood and cause trouble for the farms and towns nearby. Other times, it would be almost dry, and people wouldn't have enough water. So, people had a big idea to tame the river. During a time called the Great Depression, when many people needed jobs, thousands of hardworking workers came to the desert. In 1931, they began the huge job of building me. It was very hot and very hard work, but everyone worked together. They knew they were building something that would help so many people. On September 30th, 1935, a very important person, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, came to celebrate and said I was officially open.

I have two main jobs, and I am very proud of both of them. First, by holding back the river, I created a giant lake called Lake Mead. This lake saves water so that farms can grow food and cities can have water to drink, even when it doesn't rain much. My second job is making electricity. Deep inside me, water rushes through giant tunnels and spins huge wheels called turbines. They spin like giant pinwheels and create power that travels through wires to light up homes, schools, and hospitals in cities far away. For a while, people called me the Boulder Dam, but my name was officially changed on April 30th, 1947, to honor President Herbert Hoover, who helped plan the project.

Today, millions of people from all over the world visit me every year. They walk across my top and look way down at the river below. They are amazed by how big and strong I am. I love seeing their happy faces and hearing them say, “Wow.”. I stand here as a reminder that when people work together on big, bold ideas, they can achieve amazing things that help everyone and make the world a better, brighter place.