Boulder City Nevada

The Boulder Canyon Project Act, authorized by Congress in 1928, designated funds for the construction of the Hoover Dam. This monumental undertaking affected the interests of seven states and is considered by many to be the most significant American public works project of the 20th century. A project of this scope required thousands of workers, and to meet their needs, the Bureau of Reclamation planned the town of Boulder City, Nevada. Today, the planning of Boulder City is recognized as a significant influence on modern city planning. To a country shaken to its roots by the tumultuous effects of the Great Depression, the Hoover Dam project provided two essentials that were in short supply: work and housing. With the planned community of Boulder City, there was yet another benefit--an oasis in the desert, a city with character and charm. From the hot, barren, cactus-covered land rose green lawns and gardens, workers and their families created a new sense of community, culled from their hard work and the massive dam that was rising before their eyes.

Committee Serial No. 9. Hearing was held in Boulder City, Nev., and considers legislation on changing Boulder City, Nev., from a Federal municipality to a state-operated municipality; on the recreational development of Lake Mead; and on public land problems in southern Nevada.

The original planners of Boulder City, Nevada, did not expect that the community of workers and engineers would outlast the construction of the great Hoover Dam. The subsequent years challenged this assumption, however, as Boulder City continued to grow and thrive even after the dam was completed and the waters of the Colorado River were harnessed. As more families took road trips to visit the dam and other southwestern attractions, Boulder City became a tourism hub. Shops, restaurants, and hotels, including the famous Boulder Dam Hotel, were built, and even more visitors flocked to the nearby Lake Mead National Recreation Area after its establishment in 1964. Elton M. Garrett aptly described the city in the masthead of his newspaper, the Boulder Dam Challenge, in 1936: "Boulder City Carries On With Spirit With Which Boulder Dam Challenged Rio Colorado."

In the depths of the Great Depression, the United States undertook a task so monumental it demanded nearly five thousand people to complete. The Hoover Dam stands as a modern marvel, a testament to America's ingenuity. However, few know the story of the town that built the dam. To house the workers, Secretary of Interior Ray L. Wilbur envisioned a model of city planning, giving birth to Boulder City. Wilbur intended for the city to be temporary, to disappear once the dam was complete, but it didn't work out that way. Local author Paul W. Papa offers a unique look at a town that may have been forged by a dam but took on a life of its own.