WSP05098

• File Number: 8220.200.05.A
• Description: Hoover Dam/Lake Mead/Boulder Canyon Project
• Basin: Colorado Mainstem
• Date: 1/1/1985
• Author: USDOI/BOR
• Title: Hoover Dam
• Water Supply Pro - Doc Type: Publication

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and pipeline constructed in 1949. Tlie
water was taken from the penstocks at
Hoover Dam and pumped to the city. In
1971, additional water became available
through First Stage works of the Robel1
B. Grifljth Water Project (formerly the
SOllthern Ncvad~l Water Projcct). which
pumps water from Lake Mead. In 1982,
Second Stage works of this project also
began delivcring Lake Mead water to
Boulder City. 10 late 1982, the original
system, badly deteriorated, was placed
in a standby mode. The city now receives
its entire water supply from the
Griffith Project.

Did the contractor's employees live in
the !Own during 111e construction period?
Yes. P8I1 of the town was set asidc for
the contnlctor's llse during the construc-
tion period. Service establishments,
dormitories, mess halls, and clubhouses
for the employees' use were also built, as
were rllaintemmce shops for servicing
equipment.

MJaf is the prescll1 status and fonn of
Boulder City:\' governlnent?
Boulder City's role as an isolated con-
struction and operating camp ended with
completion of Hoover Dam in 1935.
Several years later, the Department of
the lnterior began studies for separating
the comlllunity from Federal control. In
1949, Dr. Henry Reining, J r., then pro-
fessor of public administration and
political sciencc at the University of
Southern California, was hired to detcr-
minc how thb could bc accomplished.
His rep0l1 was the basis of an order
issued by the Secrctary of the Interior in
1951 which administratively separated
Boulder City from the Boulder Canyon
Projcct Act.
On September 2, 1958, President
Dwight D. Eisenhower signed the
Boulder City Acr. This legislation
authorized the Bureau of Reclamation to
dispose of those propeI1ies in the com~
munity not required for continuing
Fe<leral activities and permitted the
citizens to establish self-govemmcnt
responsive to local and Statc statutes.

50

At a special election on September 29,
1959, Boulder City residents voted over-
whelmingly to create Nevada's newe..o;;;t
chartered city. The municipality was in-
corporated on October 28, 1959, under
Nevada law, and January 4, 1960, was
established as the date of separation from
the Federal Government. On that date,
thc contract effecting thc transfer was
presented to the Governor of Nevada and
the mayor of Boulder City. The first
mayor of Boulder City was Robert N.
Broadbent who, in 1981, was named
Commissioner of the Bureau of
Reclamation.
The Bureau of Reclamation transferred
owncrship of 33 square miles, or
21,674.23 acres of laod, to the incor-
porated city. A total of 1,021 leased
residential and nonresidential lots, valued
by the Federal Housing Administration at
$2,393,900, was included in this area.
The Federal Government also disposed
of its 179 housing units within the city.
These units, appraised by the FHA at
$1,224,800, were sold to Federal
employces, who wcre priority purchascrs
under the act.
Municipal electric, water, and sewer
systems, municipal buildings, streets,
sidewalks and curbs, parks and
parkways, equipment, and other property
not needed by the Federal Govenmlent
for its operations were also turned over to
the incorporated city. Fedcral investment
in these propertics was approximately
$2,500,000. School buildings and
facilities in Boulder City, with a total in-
vestment of $1 ,552,554, were transferred
to the Clark County School District of
Ncvada.

What is Boulder City's climate?
Boulder City, at an elevation of about
2,500 feet above sea level, experiences
temperatures from 20 to 1100 F. Such
extremes are rare, however. The winters
are usually mild, with a few light frosts.
Although the summers are hot, the ex~
tremely low humidity acts as a compen~
satory factor. The net result is a hot, dry

climate that is not nearly as exhausting
as one with lower temperatures and
higher relative humidity.

All-American Canal System

Is the AI/-American Canal System pan of
the Boulder Canyon Project?
Yes. The Boulder Canyon Project Act of
December 21, 1928, authorized construc-
tion of a main canal from the Colorado
River to the Imperial and Coachella
Valleys in southern California.

Why the name "All~American?
Because the canal is built entirely within
the United States. The old Alamo Canal,
which fonnerly served Imperial Valley,
ran part way through Mexico.

Where is the All-American Canal intake?
At Imperial Dam (a diversion structure)
and the All-American Canal desilting
works, about 18 miles 1l0l1heast of
Yuma, Arizona.

What type of structure is Imperial Dam?
Imperial Dam is a concrete slab-and-
buttress overflow structure that raises the
rivcr water surface about 23 feet. The
headworks structure for the AlJ~American
Canal in California is located at the west
abutment, and the headworks structure
for the Gila Canal in Arizona is on the
cast abutment. The All-American Canal
desilting works are located below the
Califomia head works. The desilling
works consist of three large basins, each
540 feet wide and 770 feet long. The
basins remove the silt picked up by thc
river on its 148~mile joumey from
Parker Dam.

How big is the All-American Canal?
The canal's maximum width is about
232 feet at the water surface and 160
feet at the bottom. Maximum depth is
20.6 feet. Maximum carrying capacity of
the canal is 15,155 cubic feet of water
per second.

How long is the canal?
The canal extends wcst\vard for 80 miles
througb Imperial Valley. The 123-mile-
long Coachella Canal branches off from