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Hoover Dam

Description: Hoover Dam (36°0′56″N, 114°44′16″W), also known as Boulder Dam, is a concrete gravity-arch dam ... more

Hoover Dam ... in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River, on the border between the U.S. states of Arizona and Nevada. The dam, located 48 km (30 miles) southeast of Las Vegas, is named after Herbert Hoover, who played an instrumental role in its construction, first as Secretary of Commerce and then later as President of the United States. Construction began in 1931 and was completed in 1936, over two years ahead of schedule. The dam and the power plant are operated by the Bureau of Reclamation of the U.S. Department of the Interior. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1981, Hoover Dam was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1985.

Newest Review: ... been diverted all the silt had to be removed so that work could start on solid bedrock. Work was slow to begin with and as the dam was built with concrete which heats up once it is mixed it was estimated that it would take 125 years for the concrete to cool down. Not only that because it would take such a long time it would set at different times causing the concrete to become fragile and ... more

... it cause the dam to be weak and it would break up. A new idea to cool the concrete was to put pipe work through the concrete that would carry cold water from the Colorado River and then icy cold water cooled at a cooling plant which would speed up the ...more

Read Reviews for Hoover Dam

Hoover Dam: I Dam well will and you dam well will too. (1856 words)
by - written on 15/09/09 (Very useful, 142 readings)
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Hoover Dam. Where is it. The Hoover Dam can be found about 30 miles South East from Las Vegas on the borders of Nevada and Arizona at Black Canyon. Why build a Dam. Every year the great Colorado River used to flood the plains of a number of Western states causing havoc, death and destruction. At one time there was one area that looked like an inland sea after some devastating rains which added to the normal flooding of the plains. The Colorado River begins its journey of over 1,400 miles from the Rocky Mountains caused by the melting snow. It passes through seven States including Wyoming, Utah Colorado, Nevada, ... Read the complete review

It's Better Than Their Vaccum Cleaners (487 words)
by - written on 19/06/08 (Very useful, 99 readings)
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Ok, let's get the dam jokes out of the way. We took the dam tour and took all the dam pictures we liked. That's out of the way now. The Hoover Dam was and still is a remarkable feat of engineering. Built at breakneck speed in the 1930s to tap the awesome power of the Colorado river. It was even completed ahead of schedule but at a great cost in terms of lives lost, 112 in total. It is located about 30 miles from Las Vegas. Since 9/11 it is not possible to take luggage over the dam, for this reason a large diversion must be taken to cross the Colorado river. A bridge is currently being built by the dam to overcome this and get ... Read the complete review

Hoover Dam: Best Dam Outing From Las Vegas (3778 words)
by - written on 30/04/06 (Very useful, 1288 readings)
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When visiting Las Vegas there are a few things you should do, apart from loosing all your spending money in the casinos. Trust me, you will loose, the casinos will win in the end, they are designed that way. Everyone, when in the area, should try and do one of two trips, of course both would be best: visit Grand Canyon – that big hole in the ground will leave you breathless – as well as take time out to see one of the 7 engineering wonders of the world, the one and only Hoover Dam. If you are pushed for time, Hoover Dam is the better option as it is only about 30 miles outside Las Vegas compared to the Grand Canyon with approx 280 miles (but doable in half a ... Read the complete review

Quite some engineering feat! (513 words)
by - written on 27/10/03 (Very useful, 169 readings)
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We went to see the Hoover Dam on the second day of our holiday. We drove from Vegas and it was a very easy and straightforward drive. Parking was pretty easy as there was a large multi story car park just before the dam itself. We arrived early so there were plenty of spaces, but when we left the car park was near full, so it pays to get there early. You can do one of two things. You can just wander around the site, into the gift shops, café, museum and across the actual dam for free, or you can go on the tour. We chose the tour, after all, we had come all the way from the UK and would probably never come baker here again. There are several types of ... Read the complete review

Express Review on Hoover Dam
by - written on 16/03/03
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Careful wet cement! (it's still drying!) - Advantages: Fascinating & HUGE, Break from Vegas, Hard hat tour fun - Disadvantages: Can get very busy, Summer Heat - phew!, Eat elsewhere