Glen Canyon Dam

On October 15 1956 the first blast occurred and construction began on the Glen Canyon Dam and bridge.  Prior to the bridge being built, the only way to cross the Colorado River was a 200 mile drive.  The main purpose of the dam was to provide water storage for a very thirsty southwest and power generation. 

The bridge itself actually began life in California.  The bridge was built in two sections, and then disassembled and one half was transported to each side of the canyon.  By 1959 the bridge was completed and trucks were able to bring supplies and materials needed to begin constructing the dam and the new town of Page.

The next year concrete placement began and continued night and day for three years.  One bucket of concrete held 24 tons and it took 400,000 buckets to complete the dam.  That equals over 5 million yards of concrete, or enough concrete to build a 4 lane highway from Phoenix, Arizona to Chicago, IL.

In the next, three years the turbines for power generating were installed.  By the time the dam was completed and generating power, 17 workers met their death during the ten years of construction.

On September 22, 1966 the Glen Canyon Dam was dedicated by Lady Bird Johnson.  It took 17 years to completely fill the new lake called Lake Powell.  Named after the explorer that discovered many sites in the area, John Wesley Powell..

Power generated from the Glen Canyon Dam serves a five state grid of Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona.  The power generated can supply 1.5 million users.