Construction of the Hoover Dam- in pictures

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Often called one of the marvels of engineering, the Hoover Dam is a sight to behold. This massive concrete dam is located in the Black Canyon of the Colorado River and was constructed between 1931 and 1936. The construction of the Hoover Dam was an engineering feat and took meticulous planning.

Let us take a look at the construction of the Hoover Dam- in pictures

1) A group of people are inspecting the proposed site of the dam in the Black Canyon.

A picture of An inspection party near the proposed site of the dam in the Black Canyon on the Colorado River (1928)

2) A surveyor surveying the site during the construction of the Hoover Dam.

A picture of a surveyor surveying the site during the construction of the Hoover Dam.
(C: CORBIS)

3) A dynamite is detonated in the Black Canyon to make room for the dam.

A picture of the detonation of the dam
(C: CORBIS)

4) The ‘high-scalers’ hammering anything loose. Additionally, the falling rocks were dangerous hence these men covered their hats with tar and left them out to dry; essentially creating the first hard hats.

A picture of the high scalers
(C: CORBIS)

5) The construction of the Hoover Dam required a special steel bucket machine that would transport concrete deep within the tunnels.

A picture of a special steel bucket machine
(C: CORBIS)

6) One steel bucket essentially holds 18 tons of concrete.

A picture of a steel bucket
(C: CORBIS)

7) Here the workers are pouring the arch formwork in place.

A picture of the workers are pouring the arch formwork in place-construction of the Hoover Dam

9) The movable cars which transported workers to their stations.

A picture of the movable cars

10) One of the unique equipment used for the construction of the Hoover Dam was the ‘drill rig’. Here workers are posing with the ‘jumbo rig’. The rig allowed multiple drillers to work together.

A picture of the jumbo rig

11) The concrete used for the construction of the Hoover Dam required a good formwork. The tall formwork below was used for the diversion tunnel inlet structure.

12) Officials are riding in one of the penstock pipes.

A picture of people stsnfing on penstock pipe-construction of the Hoover Dam
(C: Bureau of Reclamation)

13) Construction workers posing with their equipment.

A picture of construction workers posing with their equipment

14) A picture of one of the concrete mix plants present at the site. The Hoover dam’s construction required almost 3 million cubic meters of concrete.

A picture of a concrete mix plant

15) A picture of ‘high scalers’, scaling down the walls of the canyon.

A picture of the high scalers duting the construction of the Hoover Dam
(C: CORBIS)

16) An aerial view of the dam’s structure.

An aerial view of the dams structure during the construction of the Hoover Dam

17) The construction of the dam taking place at night.

A picture of the construction of the Hoover Dam at night

18) Another aerial view of the construction of the Hoover Dam.

A picture of the aerial view of the construction of the Hoover Dam.

19) People standing on one of the 2 million-pound hydroelectric generators for the dam at the General Electric factory in Schenectady, New York.

A picture of people standing on one of the 2 million-pound hydroelectric generators for the dam=construction of the Hoover Dam

20) A picture of one of the four intake towers of the dam.

21) The upstream face of the dam.

22) United States President Franklin D Roosevelt commemorates the completion of the construction of the Hoover Dam.

A picture of Franklin D Roosevelt at the inaugration of the dam
(C: CORBIS)

23) A photo of the fully constructed and functioning Hoover Dam, 1940.

A picture of the fully constructed and functioning Hoover Dam, 1940.

Enjoyed the above article? You may also enjoy Hiroshima before and after the atomic bombing- in pictures

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