On
October 15, 1956, the first blast occurred and the construction of Glen Canyon
Dam was officially underway. Before that date, the site was virtually
inaccessible and construction crews were forced to drive 200 miles to cross from
one side of the Glen Canyon to the other.
Glen Canyon Dam was engineered and
constructed as part of the Colorado River Storage Project. The main purpose of
the dam was to provide water storage for the thirsty southwest, and secondly, to
generate power for growing communities. Colorado River reservoirs provide
irrigation waters for an estimated 25% of the nation's food.
The remote location where Glen
Canyon Dam stands today was selected by a group of Bureau of Reclamation
engineers and geologists working from 1946 to 1948, some of whom returned to
visit Lake Powell in later years. The site met several criteria: the area
forming the basin would contain an immense amount of water; the canyon walls and
bedrock foundation were strong and stable enough to safely support the high dam;
and a large source of good rock and sand was available at nearby Wahweap Creek.
Glen Canyon Bridge was actually
constructed in California, disassembled and half of the bridge was transported
to each side of the canyon. By 1959, Glen Canyon Bridge was completed permitting
trucks to deliver equipment and materials for the dam and the new town of Page,
Arizona.
The next year concrete placement
began and continued night and day until the final bucket was dumped three years
later. A bucket held 24 tons of damp concrete and it took over 400,000 of them
to build the dam. Over five million cubic yards of concrete make up the dam and
power plant—which is equal to building a four-lane highway stretching from
Phoenix, Arizona to Chicago, Illinois. Construction began on the 710-foot-tall
dam with blocks of concrete 7.5 feet high.
Next, turbines and generators were
installed from 1963 to 1966. In the end, 17 workers met their death during the
10 years of construction.
Glen Canyon Dam was dedicated by
Ladybird Johnson on September 22, 1966. It took 17 years for Lake Powell to
completely fill for the first time. At full pool—3700 feet above sea
level—the lake would be 560 feet deep at the face of the dam.
The plant generates more than 1.3
million kilowatts of electricity with each of the generators 40-ton steel shafts
turning at 150 rpm, generating nearly 200,000 horsepower. With all eight
generators operating at full output, over 15 million gallons of water pass
through the power plant's penstocks each minute. The electricity is up graded on
a transformer deck from 13,800 volts to 230,000 and 345,000 volts for
transmission to distant markets.
Power from Glen Canyon Dam serves a
five-state grid of Wyoming, Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Arizona. The
electricity produced can provide enough energy to serve the needs of
approximately 1.5 million users. The dam will be usable for an estimated 300 to
500 years and has already generated $1.5 billion in revenues.
Families are encouraged to
participate in one of the many free tours offered daily. Knowledgeable guides
take groups of 25 on a one-hour tour of the concrete monolith during regular
visitor hours at the Carl Hayden Visitor Center overlooking the dam. No bags of
any kind are permitted. To reserve a tour, you must visit the tour reservation
desk at the visitor center. You will also enjoy the ranger programs, historic
displays, slide shows and Glen Canyon Natural History Association bookstore and
information center on the premises.
Welcome
to Page-Lake Powell
