The Hoover Dam is a breathtaking place to visit, and is a must for anyone road-tripping around the West Coast of the USA. The Dam is an incredible feat of engineering, and everyone should visit the architectural wonder at least once in their life time. Transfer car has compiled a list of fun facts so you can wow your travel companions with impressive trivia about the dam. Prepare to get wise!
1. The Hoover Dam was initially called the Boulder Dam, because it was originally going to be built in Boulder Canyon. However, Geologists decided it would be better to be built in Black Canyon, where it is now located. The name stuck, and it was called the Boulder Dam until 1947.
2. The purpose of the Hoover Dam was to try and end the Great Depression. President Hoover started many public projects to increase jobs and try and provide much needed economic stimulus, the Hoover Dam project was one of the biggest.
3. When the Dam was finally finished and opened in 1935, over 12000 people attended the opening ceremony! That’s a lot of people at one party!
4. The dam only became The Hoover Dam in 1947, when President Roosevelt controversially renamed it after former President Herbert Hoover.
5. The Dam is astounding architecturally and from an engineering perspective. President Hoover was an engineer, and was very involved in the plans and designs for the Dam. The concrete wonder is an arch gravity dam, so every section of the dam is stable regardless of what is happening to other sections, and the curve faces upstream so water is forced to the sides, compressing the dam.
6. The Hoover Dam is one of the largest producers of Hydroelectric power in the world, and can create enough energy to power 1 million homes! That’s a lot of lights!
7. The biggest part of Lake Mead, Boulder Basin, is right next to the Hoover Dam. Lake Mead has lots of great water sports, like boating and fishing.
8. If you stand on the Hoover Dam and look over the lake, you can see a lot of white rings around the edge of the lake. The ‘white bathtub rings’ are created from the falling water levels of Lake Mead.
9. 96 people died during construction, but that was out of 21000 workers! That is a lot of people to work on one dam!
10. The Hoover Dam is a movie star, featured in Hitchcock’s film Saboteur, and also in the film Superman where it bursts dramatically (not in real life, they built a miniature version to show all the destruction!)
That is a lot of awesomeness all found in one spot! It is such an amazing creation to see, everyone should make the journey there. An epic road trip is the best way to get there, and Transfercar has your back. Check out our latest deals on car and campervan relocations to get yourself to the Hoover Dam and beyond cheaply!
