Facts
- Hoover Dam is 726 feet high and 1,244 feet long.
- It's was one of the largest man-made structures in the world at the time of its construction, and one of the world’s largest producers of hydroelectric power.
- The highest concrete dam in the Western hemisphere. It weighs over 6.6 billion tons, about 18 empire state buildings.
- Million and a half gallons of water flow through every second enough to fill 15 swimming pools.
- Spanning from the Colorado River in Black Canyon between Arizona and Nevada, some 30 miles southeast of Las Vegas, Nevada.
- When water levels are low you can sometime see ST. Thomas, Nevada.
- The damming of the Colorado river created Lake Mead which forced communities to evacuate.T
- The ruins of St. Thomas, Nevada are sometimes visible when water levels are low .
- Mead it the largest reservoir in the u.s. it is more than 50 feet deep and holds a total of 10 trillion gallons of water enough to flood the entire state of New York.
- The purpose of the dam was to provide flood control, irrigation, drinking water, and electricity .
- 8.5 pounds of dynamite blasted the foundation for the dam.
- 50,000 machines and tools were used. 6 million tons of concrete were poured enough to pave a highway from San Francisco to new York City.
- The dam was finished in less than five years, two years ahead of schedule and well under budget.
- The total cost was $49 million nearly billion in today's money.
- The average temperature during construction was 119.9°F
- There are 17 generators in the hoover power plant they weigh more than four jumbo jets and can supply electricity to 100,000 households each that's enough to power 4 billion kilowatts of electricity a year.
- In Nevada, Arizona, and California more than 20 million rely on its power.
- Nearly 100 million people tour the dam each year.
Would you like to go to the Hoover Dam ?
Then go to one of these websites vegas.com or hooverdamtourcompany.com