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.11' ,''f). <>I "W. '" 0') l!"; oc ',' " -, Hoover Dam Arlz.ona I Nevada 1-, <:" J History For millions of years thE" Colorado River has left its mark on the land. Since the river was formed, it has been hard at work cutting great chasms such as the Grand Canyon as it carved its 1,400-mlle course from Colorado's Rocky Mountains to the Gulf of California. Early settlers along the Colorado tried to alter the river's impact on the land by diverting its waters for irrigation. But each year the Colorado, fed by melting snows in the spring and early summer, flooded low-lying lands along its route, destroying lives, crops, and property. In late summer and early fall, the river offen dried to 0 trickle, too low to divert. Without water, crops and livestock withered and died. The cycle of either too much or too little water limited the river's usefulness. To protect the low-lying volleys from flooding, and to assure a stable, year-round water supply, the river hod to be tamed. A disastrous flood in California's Imperial Volley, which occurred when the river changed its course in 1905, provided additional incentive for its control and regulation. The flood occurred when early spring flash floods bolstered 0 normally high spring runoff. These high flows washed away small earth dams which had been constructed in a temporary channel cut for the purpose of diverting water from the river to the Imperial Conal. This conal ran through Mexico on its way to the Imperial Volley. As the heavy flows deepened the channel, the river changed course and began flowing into the Imperial Valley and the Salton Sea. The river flowed into the valley for 16 months before it was returned to its original course. In that time, it destroyed homes and crops; heavily damaged highways, railroads, and irrigation works; and increased the size of the Salton Sea from 22 to 500 square miles. The Salton Sea now measures 360 square miles and has 110 miles of shoreline. Before the river could be harnessed, its waters hod to be equitably divided among the seven states it serves. In January of 1922, representatives of these states met to seek agreement on their respective rights to the river's waters. Herbert Hoover, then Secretary of Commerce, presided successfully over the negotiations which resulted in the Colorado River Compact, signed in November 1922. This agreement divided use of the water between the Upper and Lower Colorado River Basins. It also paved the way for construction of works to control, regulate, and use the river. Six years later, in 1928, Congress passed the Boulder Canyon Project Act, authorizing construction of Hoover Dam and the AII.American Conal System, which carries water to thirsty lands in California and Arizona.