1 00:00:01,120 --> 00:00:03,400 Speaker 1: Welcome to Stuff You Should Know, a production of My 2 00:00:03,600 --> 00:00:13,000 Speaker 1: Heart Radios How Stuff Works. Hey, and welcome to the podcast. 3 00:00:13,080 --> 00:00:17,320 Speaker 1: I'm Josh Clark, Who's Charles Chuck Bryant, And there's Jerry 4 00:00:17,440 --> 00:00:20,319 Speaker 1: Roland over there. And if you put all three of 5 00:00:20,400 --> 00:00:23,520 Speaker 1: us together you get a little something called Stuff you 6 00:00:23,520 --> 00:00:33,560 Speaker 1: Should Know. Oh, Man, Damn, Hoover Damn edition. Have you 7 00:00:33,600 --> 00:00:37,880 Speaker 1: ever been to Hoover Damn? I have been there twice show. 8 00:00:38,120 --> 00:00:44,320 Speaker 1: Yeah I went. Um, I went in Oh the great 9 00:00:44,320 --> 00:00:48,800 Speaker 1: Hoover Damn Tour of it was either or Man, it 10 00:00:48,920 --> 00:00:53,840 Speaker 1: may have been nine. Almost cussed right then? Yeah, I 11 00:00:53,960 --> 00:00:57,480 Speaker 1: heard that. I almost did that the other day to 12 00:00:57,840 --> 00:01:01,400 Speaker 1: getting to a movie crushy. Um. It may have been 13 00:01:01,440 --> 00:01:03,200 Speaker 1: eighty nine or ninety. It was when I went out 14 00:01:03,240 --> 00:01:05,720 Speaker 1: to visit my brother when he lived in l A. 15 00:01:05,800 --> 00:01:08,520 Speaker 1: And we met in Las Vegas, drove down to the 16 00:01:08,520 --> 00:01:11,600 Speaker 1: Hoover dam and then back to l A. The first 17 00:01:11,600 --> 00:01:15,759 Speaker 1: time you guys met, Yeah, it was great. Uh. And 18 00:01:15,800 --> 00:01:18,440 Speaker 1: then I went again in ninety six for sure, ninety 19 00:01:18,480 --> 00:01:24,199 Speaker 1: six and okay, I think both times I took the tour. Uh. 20 00:01:24,240 --> 00:01:27,520 Speaker 1: And it's have you ever been? It's really something else. Yeah, 21 00:01:27,720 --> 00:01:30,480 Speaker 1: for the first time you me and I went about 22 00:01:30,520 --> 00:01:35,840 Speaker 1: a year ago. Um, we drove from uh Scottsdale to 23 00:01:36,000 --> 00:01:38,520 Speaker 1: Vegas and stopped in Hoover Dam on the way and 24 00:01:38,560 --> 00:01:41,920 Speaker 1: it was great, as you do, it was very very cool. Well, 25 00:01:41,920 --> 00:01:45,560 Speaker 1: there's nothing, nothing, nothing nothing. Hoover Damn, Vegas is kind 26 00:01:45,560 --> 00:01:48,160 Speaker 1: of how it goes. Yeah, and you know, we'll get 27 00:01:48,160 --> 00:01:51,520 Speaker 1: to the water levels. But it's uh, it's startling from 28 00:01:51,560 --> 00:01:54,720 Speaker 1: when I was there what it looks like now. Yeah, 29 00:01:54,760 --> 00:01:57,320 Speaker 1: I can imagine like if you had gone any time 30 00:01:57,360 --> 00:02:00,760 Speaker 1: before about two thousand. From what I understand, it's like 31 00:02:00,920 --> 00:02:05,560 Speaker 1: a different, different place. But the damn still there and 32 00:02:05,600 --> 00:02:07,920 Speaker 1: it's still intact and doing really well. You got that 33 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:11,680 Speaker 1: at least, right, it's just the ecological catastrophe that's kind 34 00:02:11,680 --> 00:02:14,200 Speaker 1: of looming that kind of is a downer. That's right. 35 00:02:14,400 --> 00:02:17,440 Speaker 1: And we should give a big shout out to Julia Layton, 36 00:02:18,080 --> 00:02:21,639 Speaker 1: who used to be one of the great great writers 37 00:02:21,760 --> 00:02:23,839 Speaker 1: for how Stuff Works dot com back when we were 38 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:29,359 Speaker 1: uh still associated with that website. I think she might 39 00:02:29,520 --> 00:02:33,640 Speaker 1: still write for him occasionally. Really well, she's great and 40 00:02:33,760 --> 00:02:38,960 Speaker 1: now we are commissioning some articles from her, and boy, 41 00:02:39,040 --> 00:02:42,120 Speaker 1: she's good, Yes she is. So what's her nickname? Chuck 42 00:02:42,200 --> 00:02:46,600 Speaker 1: the lates Julia Layton. Late's no, because that sounds like 43 00:02:46,639 --> 00:02:50,360 Speaker 1: she's not tardy. Oh yeah, that's right. Um, let's just 44 00:02:50,400 --> 00:02:53,440 Speaker 1: call her Dr Layton. Okay, there you go. Although I 45 00:02:53,440 --> 00:02:55,079 Speaker 1: don't think she's a doctor, but she does have her 46 00:02:55,120 --> 00:02:58,160 Speaker 1: masters in writing, that's right, So way better than me. 47 00:02:58,560 --> 00:03:01,680 Speaker 1: She cranks out some good stuff, that's right. So thanks, Julia, 48 00:03:02,080 --> 00:03:05,600 Speaker 1: I'm glad you called that out, Chuck. Well done. So 49 00:03:06,120 --> 00:03:10,520 Speaker 1: let's go back, shall we to a time in the 50 00:03:10,520 --> 00:03:14,400 Speaker 1: the little the little area of the southwestern United States 51 00:03:14,720 --> 00:03:20,160 Speaker 1: where Arizona reaches out to hug Nevada, Nevada. Which way 52 00:03:20,160 --> 00:03:22,320 Speaker 1: are we supposed to say it? Well, we're supposed to 53 00:03:22,360 --> 00:03:25,720 Speaker 1: say Nevada, but we're not from there, so we'll say Nevada, 54 00:03:26,240 --> 00:03:31,080 Speaker 1: right like everybody else, right, Um. And where they almost meet, 55 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:35,080 Speaker 1: there's a little gorge. There's a canyon. Well there's a 56 00:03:35,120 --> 00:03:37,680 Speaker 1: lot of canyons, but there's one in particular, and it's 57 00:03:37,720 --> 00:03:41,000 Speaker 1: called Boulder Canyon. And if you went to Boulder Canyon 58 00:03:41,040 --> 00:03:43,680 Speaker 1: today to find the Hoover Dam, you would be s 59 00:03:43,720 --> 00:03:46,800 Speaker 1: o l because while they're originally going to build the 60 00:03:46,840 --> 00:03:50,080 Speaker 1: Hoover Dam at Boulder Canyon, so much so that the 61 00:03:50,160 --> 00:03:52,240 Speaker 1: name of the project for the first decade or so 62 00:03:52,280 --> 00:03:56,880 Speaker 1: it was called the Boulder Boulder Dam just Bold Boulder once, 63 00:03:56,920 --> 00:04:01,560 Speaker 1: not two Boulders, the Boulder Dam project. Um, they actually 64 00:04:01,600 --> 00:04:04,720 Speaker 1: moved it a little further upstream to a much more 65 00:04:04,760 --> 00:04:07,680 Speaker 1: suitable site called Black Canyon. And if you go visit 66 00:04:07,680 --> 00:04:10,400 Speaker 1: the Hoover Dam today, that's where you're actually going. It's 67 00:04:10,480 --> 00:04:15,760 Speaker 1: Black Canyon where Nevada and Arizona almost meat, that's right. 68 00:04:16,040 --> 00:04:22,080 Speaker 1: And um, this idea was conceived, this concrete gravity arch 69 00:04:22,360 --> 00:04:29,600 Speaker 1: hydro electric dam, hydro electric almost almost high dough electric. 70 00:04:29,640 --> 00:04:35,320 Speaker 1: Excuse me. Uh, this was all conceived because well, for 71 00:04:35,640 --> 00:04:39,760 Speaker 1: three reasons plus a cherry on top. One is that 72 00:04:39,800 --> 00:04:43,760 Speaker 1: the Colorado River had a had a bad habit of 73 00:04:44,040 --> 00:04:47,640 Speaker 1: flooding and causing lots of devastation. Just a nasty boy, 74 00:04:47,800 --> 00:04:51,679 Speaker 1: so too to lasso that that beast. Uh. Number Two, 75 00:04:52,320 --> 00:04:56,159 Speaker 1: to create water in times of drought, as you know, 76 00:04:56,200 --> 00:04:59,600 Speaker 1: creating a big reservoir that would be like mead uh, 77 00:04:59,640 --> 00:05:03,800 Speaker 1: to create energy. I love things that kill all these birds, 78 00:05:03,839 --> 00:05:08,760 Speaker 1: you know, so many dead birds. Uh. And then finally 79 00:05:08,800 --> 00:05:10,840 Speaker 1: the little cherry on top. Those were the three big 80 00:05:10,839 --> 00:05:12,520 Speaker 1: reasons they did it. But the cherry on top. It 81 00:05:12,560 --> 00:05:16,760 Speaker 1: turns out has been like me tourism is huge. Yeah, 82 00:05:16,880 --> 00:05:23,159 Speaker 1: I think like Mead was the first nationally designated recreation area. Yeah. 83 00:05:23,360 --> 00:05:25,840 Speaker 1: It sounds almost Soviet, doesn't it. Like the government's like 84 00:05:25,880 --> 00:05:30,240 Speaker 1: this is where you recreate on this particular designated lake. 85 00:05:30,680 --> 00:05:35,880 Speaker 1: Travel to the fund zone. So um yeah, the first one. 86 00:05:35,920 --> 00:05:39,880 Speaker 1: I think there's like this. This is the nineteen twenties, 87 00:05:39,960 --> 00:05:42,440 Speaker 1: I think when the project is really starting to gain 88 00:05:42,560 --> 00:05:46,400 Speaker 1: steam and the guy who was this Secretary of Commerce 89 00:05:46,400 --> 00:05:49,320 Speaker 1: at the time, who Herbert Hoover, who would very soon 90 00:05:49,440 --> 00:05:51,760 Speaker 1: be the President of the United States, who would very 91 00:05:51,760 --> 00:05:54,600 Speaker 1: shortly after that be like the most hated man in America. 92 00:05:55,480 --> 00:05:57,680 Speaker 1: Hoover was like, this is a great idea. There's like 93 00:05:57,720 --> 00:06:02,320 Speaker 1: this whole spot of land down in the Lower United States, 94 00:06:02,800 --> 00:06:05,520 Speaker 1: and it just wants to be so much more than 95 00:06:05,560 --> 00:06:08,000 Speaker 1: it than it is. It wants to be cropland, it 96 00:06:08,040 --> 00:06:10,760 Speaker 1: wants to be cattle pasture. It wants to be a 97 00:06:10,760 --> 00:06:13,839 Speaker 1: big old city like l A or Vegas. They're just 98 00:06:13,920 --> 00:06:17,039 Speaker 1: waiting to pop, but they really are having trouble with 99 00:06:17,160 --> 00:06:20,120 Speaker 1: water and with flooding. Like it's it's weird. It's like 100 00:06:20,120 --> 00:06:23,000 Speaker 1: the Colorado River would be like not enough, sorry, and 101 00:06:23,000 --> 00:06:25,919 Speaker 1: then up too much, way more than you ever wanted. 102 00:06:26,279 --> 00:06:28,960 Speaker 1: And because of this kind of mercurial nature of it, 103 00:06:29,200 --> 00:06:31,799 Speaker 1: there was just not a lot that could be done 104 00:06:31,800 --> 00:06:34,680 Speaker 1: with the Southwest unless you figured out a way to 105 00:06:34,880 --> 00:06:38,559 Speaker 1: tame that that river. And you know, like you were saying, 106 00:06:38,600 --> 00:06:41,120 Speaker 1: that's what the Hoover dam was originally intended to do, 107 00:06:41,320 --> 00:06:43,800 Speaker 1: and that's definitely what it did. I mean, just to 108 00:06:44,200 --> 00:06:46,920 Speaker 1: kind of let the cat out of the bag early. Um, 109 00:06:47,040 --> 00:06:50,600 Speaker 1: it was successful as far as damn projects go. Yeah, 110 00:06:50,680 --> 00:06:53,040 Speaker 1: And just to clear something up when you just said 111 00:06:53,080 --> 00:06:56,600 Speaker 1: Herbert Hoover said big cities like l A and Vegas, 112 00:06:57,200 --> 00:07:02,200 Speaker 1: he had a crystal ball on Vegas because Vegas was 113 00:07:02,839 --> 00:07:07,640 Speaker 1: cowtown back then. Yeah, population five thousand at around ninety. Yeah, 114 00:07:07,720 --> 00:07:10,720 Speaker 1: Vegas didn't people didn't want to go there until gambling 115 00:07:10,760 --> 00:07:14,320 Speaker 1: started happening. They did have gambling. They had gambling, they 116 00:07:14,360 --> 00:07:18,160 Speaker 1: had prostitution, they had yes, they had drinking. I guess 117 00:07:18,200 --> 00:07:23,800 Speaker 1: casinos thanks to h what's his name, Buggsy. Yeah, Bugsy 118 00:07:23,880 --> 00:07:25,800 Speaker 1: was one of the first, wouldn't he. I think so 119 00:07:26,560 --> 00:07:29,880 Speaker 1: he wasn't the first, was he? I mean I saw 120 00:07:29,920 --> 00:07:33,120 Speaker 1: that movie and if I remember correctly, Warren Beatty built 121 00:07:33,200 --> 00:07:36,400 Speaker 1: that Flamingo casino and hotel, and that was kind of 122 00:07:36,440 --> 00:07:40,840 Speaker 1: the first major casino. If I'm not mistaken, that sounds 123 00:07:40,840 --> 00:07:43,280 Speaker 1: like a guy who deserves his own episode of stuff. 124 00:07:43,320 --> 00:07:46,800 Speaker 1: You should know who Bugsy or or Warren Beatty. But 125 00:07:47,000 --> 00:07:51,160 Speaker 1: Bugsy okay, Warren Beatty maybe gets the short stuff. So, 126 00:07:51,400 --> 00:07:56,320 Speaker 1: uh the cup man, what a cut burn. It's better 127 00:07:56,360 --> 00:08:00,600 Speaker 1: than just ignoring his existence and something's uh. So the 128 00:08:00,600 --> 00:08:04,360 Speaker 1: Colorado River, like we said, um, it's the seventh longest 129 00:08:04,360 --> 00:08:08,760 Speaker 1: in the US, about close to fift miles of total flow, 130 00:08:09,720 --> 00:08:14,720 Speaker 1: and I believe that it distributes water that the river 131 00:08:14,800 --> 00:08:20,320 Speaker 1: itself and then its tributaries to about million people. Of 132 00:08:20,360 --> 00:08:24,520 Speaker 1: the crops in the US and of the livestock drink 133 00:08:24,560 --> 00:08:29,200 Speaker 1: its water in the United States. It does now. So 134 00:08:29,280 --> 00:08:32,480 Speaker 1: before this, before the Hoover Dam project, when the Colorado 135 00:08:32,559 --> 00:08:35,320 Speaker 1: just did whatever the Colorado wanted to do. It's not 136 00:08:35,400 --> 00:08:39,079 Speaker 1: like the people of the Southwest had had not tried 137 00:08:39,120 --> 00:08:44,160 Speaker 1: to tame it before. They had extensive irrigation canals and 138 00:08:44,320 --> 00:08:48,000 Speaker 1: ditches and dikes and earthworks and everything they could think 139 00:08:48,040 --> 00:08:50,920 Speaker 1: of to keep the river going this way or that 140 00:08:50,960 --> 00:08:53,840 Speaker 1: way and to keep it from flooding, and none of 141 00:08:53,840 --> 00:08:55,800 Speaker 1: it worked. I mean it would work some like yes, 142 00:08:55,840 --> 00:08:58,040 Speaker 1: an irrigation canal would work and you could here get 143 00:08:58,040 --> 00:09:01,360 Speaker 1: your crops. But eventually the river was gonna flood and 144 00:09:01,440 --> 00:09:04,320 Speaker 1: because you had diverted the river towards your crop land, 145 00:09:04,520 --> 00:09:07,760 Speaker 1: when it flooded, it flooded that irrigation ditch, and it 146 00:09:07,800 --> 00:09:10,480 Speaker 1: flooded your crop land to which was a real problem 147 00:09:10,720 --> 00:09:14,360 Speaker 1: for you because it would when eventually it would recede um, 148 00:09:14,440 --> 00:09:16,600 Speaker 1: you might have a lot more dirt than you're used to, 149 00:09:16,920 --> 00:09:19,760 Speaker 1: probably pretty fertile dirt, but your crops would be gone. 150 00:09:20,200 --> 00:09:22,480 Speaker 1: Maybe some of your cows got carried away, you might 151 00:09:22,480 --> 00:09:25,000 Speaker 1: have lost your ten gallon hat. It's not a good 152 00:09:25,120 --> 00:09:27,800 Speaker 1: deal when your crop land gets flooded. And so this 153 00:09:27,880 --> 00:09:29,960 Speaker 1: was kind of what was going on when they were 154 00:09:29,960 --> 00:09:32,680 Speaker 1: trying to tame the Colorado. It was just way too 155 00:09:32,679 --> 00:09:35,720 Speaker 1: big of a project for you know, a handful of 156 00:09:36,000 --> 00:09:40,160 Speaker 1: even large scale farmers to take on, which was one 157 00:09:40,160 --> 00:09:43,240 Speaker 1: reason why the federal government stepped in because at the 158 00:09:43,280 --> 00:09:46,280 Speaker 1: time there was really no entity that could take on 159 00:09:46,320 --> 00:09:48,880 Speaker 1: a project like this, And even then there were a 160 00:09:48,960 --> 00:09:51,559 Speaker 1: lot of questions like I'm not even sure the U. S. 161 00:09:51,640 --> 00:09:55,400 Speaker 1: Government can handle this kind of thing. And the government said, oh, well, watch, 162 00:09:55,640 --> 00:10:01,720 Speaker 1: watch and learn suckers. Yeah. So it's when uh US 163 00:10:01,760 --> 00:10:04,760 Speaker 1: Bureau of Reclamation said, all right, I think we can 164 00:10:04,800 --> 00:10:08,160 Speaker 1: build a dam of all dams. Um, we're gonna make 165 00:10:08,200 --> 00:10:11,000 Speaker 1: it a gravity arch design. I think that can handle 166 00:10:11,040 --> 00:10:15,040 Speaker 1: the Colorado River. And we're gonna have tunnels and turbines 167 00:10:15,640 --> 00:10:19,280 Speaker 1: and towers, and we're gonna prevent flooding, and we're gonna 168 00:10:19,400 --> 00:10:22,319 Speaker 1: deliver water to people. And the best news is we're 169 00:10:22,320 --> 00:10:25,920 Speaker 1: going to create well, all that's great news, but more 170 00:10:26,000 --> 00:10:28,720 Speaker 1: great news is we're going to create energy for a 171 00:10:28,760 --> 00:10:31,400 Speaker 1: ton of people, such that this thing will even pay 172 00:10:31,440 --> 00:10:35,640 Speaker 1: for itself in fifty years time. And like you said, 173 00:10:35,679 --> 00:10:38,199 Speaker 1: a lot of people, I mean, this was and a 174 00:10:38,240 --> 00:10:41,720 Speaker 1: lot of people are like, I don't Even engineers were saying, 175 00:10:41,760 --> 00:10:45,120 Speaker 1: I don't know if this is possible, right, And so 176 00:10:45,240 --> 00:10:48,640 Speaker 1: not only were people incredulous that it was even possible, 177 00:10:49,000 --> 00:10:53,240 Speaker 1: there's some seven states that draw water from the Colorado River, 178 00:10:53,400 --> 00:10:55,959 Speaker 1: which is a pretty long river. It goes it starts 179 00:10:56,320 --> 00:10:59,080 Speaker 1: in the Rocky Mountains, that's where it's fed by snow 180 00:10:59,120 --> 00:11:01,560 Speaker 1: melt up there, and then it goes all the way 181 00:11:01,600 --> 00:11:05,120 Speaker 1: down to Mexico and so seven states lay claim on water. 182 00:11:05,160 --> 00:11:08,240 Speaker 1: They need water from the Colorado River to live, to 183 00:11:08,320 --> 00:11:12,080 Speaker 1: irriget their crops, to feed their livestock. It's the kind 184 00:11:12,120 --> 00:11:15,120 Speaker 1: of like the main artery for life in in the Southwest, 185 00:11:15,240 --> 00:11:18,520 Speaker 1: or one of them. And when they found out that 186 00:11:18,640 --> 00:11:21,040 Speaker 1: people in the seven States found out the US government 187 00:11:21,120 --> 00:11:24,240 Speaker 1: was was wanting to damn and control the river, they 188 00:11:24,280 --> 00:11:27,600 Speaker 1: got really worried that really this was just a project 189 00:11:27,640 --> 00:11:31,400 Speaker 1: to divert all that beautiful water over to California. Because 190 00:11:31,440 --> 00:11:34,720 Speaker 1: California had it going on by the late twenties, you know, 191 00:11:34,760 --> 00:11:38,800 Speaker 1: the early mid twenties already thanks to Los Angeles, thanks 192 00:11:38,760 --> 00:11:41,400 Speaker 1: to well, thanks to Los Angeles, UM. But it had 193 00:11:41,440 --> 00:11:43,439 Speaker 1: a lot of potential, and it was growing San Francisco 194 00:11:43,480 --> 00:11:47,280 Speaker 1: to it was it. It was growing in between those two, 195 00:11:47,600 --> 00:11:50,640 Speaker 1: those two cities. And so the people in like New 196 00:11:50,679 --> 00:11:54,320 Speaker 1: Mexico and Colorado and Arizona and Nevada were really worried 197 00:11:54,360 --> 00:11:56,880 Speaker 1: that this was really just the federal government stepping in 198 00:11:56,960 --> 00:11:59,200 Speaker 1: and saying, thanks a lot, we're gonna take this water 199 00:11:59,240 --> 00:12:02,839 Speaker 1: and send it off to California, and um. Herbert Hoover 200 00:12:02,960 --> 00:12:05,520 Speaker 1: actually intervened and said no, no no, no, how about this. 201 00:12:05,600 --> 00:12:08,640 Speaker 1: Before we even get this project underway, we will broker 202 00:12:08,800 --> 00:12:12,319 Speaker 1: a deal for how the water from the Colorado River 203 00:12:12,400 --> 00:12:15,880 Speaker 1: gets distributed. And I'm Herbert Hoover. I'm going to be 204 00:12:15,960 --> 00:12:17,640 Speaker 1: the most hated man in the world. So I'm going 205 00:12:17,640 --> 00:12:22,679 Speaker 1: to actually purposely inflate the the capacity that this reservoir 206 00:12:22,720 --> 00:12:25,520 Speaker 1: will hold so that no one feels like they're they're 207 00:12:25,520 --> 00:12:28,560 Speaker 1: going to get left out. And everybody ended up signing on. 208 00:12:28,720 --> 00:12:32,240 Speaker 1: So that was technically step negative one or maybe step 209 00:12:32,360 --> 00:12:38,000 Speaker 1: zero before the plan was even fully adopted by the government. Yeah, 210 00:12:38,080 --> 00:12:42,200 Speaker 1: and it was called the Colorado River Compact. And again 211 00:12:42,240 --> 00:12:44,360 Speaker 1: it was just to make I think the only ones 212 00:12:44,400 --> 00:12:46,160 Speaker 1: you left out were Utah and Wyoming and then the 213 00:12:46,200 --> 00:12:52,439 Speaker 1: other five. Um. And they said, all right, the way 214 00:12:52,480 --> 00:12:55,320 Speaker 1: you a portion, it looks good to us. California is like, 215 00:12:55,640 --> 00:12:57,040 Speaker 1: we all know that we're really going to get the 216 00:12:57,040 --> 00:12:59,920 Speaker 1: most water, right, and it was like, totally don't worry about. 217 00:13:00,000 --> 00:13:02,800 Speaker 1: Everyone's gonna hate me soon and many people will hate 218 00:13:02,840 --> 00:13:07,199 Speaker 1: California one day too. Um. And so Congress said, this 219 00:13:07,240 --> 00:13:10,679 Speaker 1: looks great, let's push forward. Uh, despite the fact, I 220 00:13:10,720 --> 00:13:13,040 Speaker 1: don't think we mentioned yet that the private sector. Of course, 221 00:13:13,640 --> 00:13:15,240 Speaker 1: I mean, if you think the private sector and the 222 00:13:15,280 --> 00:13:18,360 Speaker 1: government have been it's like a newish thing that they're 223 00:13:18,480 --> 00:13:22,240 Speaker 1: arguing over stuff like this. Think again, because since the 224 00:13:22,320 --> 00:13:25,839 Speaker 1: dawn of time in the United States, the government and 225 00:13:25,920 --> 00:13:30,480 Speaker 1: the private sector have squabbled, and so obviously private power 226 00:13:30,520 --> 00:13:34,560 Speaker 1: companies and and water companies and just everybody was like, geez, 227 00:13:34,800 --> 00:13:36,680 Speaker 1: I don't like the sounds of this, like the government's 228 00:13:36,720 --> 00:13:41,679 Speaker 1: gonna start getting into the electricity business. Um. But regardless, 229 00:13:41,679 --> 00:13:45,400 Speaker 1: they had no choice. Congress approved the Boulder Dam project, 230 00:13:46,000 --> 00:13:49,440 Speaker 1: like you said, that later moved to Black Canyon, and 231 00:13:49,760 --> 00:13:52,880 Speaker 1: for many, many years it was kind of bounced back 232 00:13:52,880 --> 00:13:57,720 Speaker 1: and forth between Boulder Dam and then Hoover Dam. Uh. 233 00:13:57,760 --> 00:14:00,600 Speaker 1: They officially called it Hoover Dam in nineteen thirty one, 234 00:14:00,960 --> 00:14:05,319 Speaker 1: but like you said, four times, Hoover people didn't like 235 00:14:05,400 --> 00:14:07,600 Speaker 1: him when he left office, so they went, let's call 236 00:14:07,640 --> 00:14:10,679 Speaker 1: it the Boulder Dam again. And then it took a 237 00:14:10,720 --> 00:14:14,600 Speaker 1: congressional resolution in nineteen seven to finally bring it back 238 00:14:15,000 --> 00:14:18,640 Speaker 1: and give Hoover his due right. The reason why people 239 00:14:18,679 --> 00:14:21,920 Speaker 1: hated Hoover, especially right after he left office, like he 240 00:14:22,120 --> 00:14:25,400 Speaker 1: was a super conservative president. He believed that the federal 241 00:14:25,440 --> 00:14:29,120 Speaker 1: government should intervene in business and in personal affairs as 242 00:14:29,200 --> 00:14:33,280 Speaker 1: little as possible. So in the grips the worst parts 243 00:14:33,320 --> 00:14:36,880 Speaker 1: of the Great Depression, the greatest economic recession that's ever 244 00:14:36,960 --> 00:14:41,600 Speaker 1: hit the world, he was literally vetoing bills that would 245 00:14:41,600 --> 00:14:46,000 Speaker 1: give federal assistance to Americans. So he was very much 246 00:14:46,040 --> 00:14:48,760 Speaker 1: hated and reviled by the average person and just about 247 00:14:48,760 --> 00:14:52,720 Speaker 1: everybody when he when he was soundly defeated by FDR, 248 00:14:53,320 --> 00:14:59,920 Speaker 1: I think in nineteen thirty two. That sounded so uneasy 249 00:15:00,320 --> 00:15:08,040 Speaker 1: in nineteen thirty ish to election. So obviously, if you're 250 00:15:08,040 --> 00:15:11,680 Speaker 1: gonna undertake a project in award contracts to two companies 251 00:15:11,720 --> 00:15:14,400 Speaker 1: to build this thing, there's probably not one company that 252 00:15:14,480 --> 00:15:17,640 Speaker 1: can tackle something like this that has all the different 253 00:15:17,800 --> 00:15:21,160 Speaker 1: UH skills necessary to build something like the Hoover Dam. 254 00:15:21,320 --> 00:15:26,200 Speaker 1: So UH six actually companies, six big big construction firms 255 00:15:26,240 --> 00:15:30,560 Speaker 1: got together and UH formed what was called, wait for it, 256 00:15:31,600 --> 00:15:35,720 Speaker 1: the six Companies right in nineteen thirty one, and they 257 00:15:35,720 --> 00:15:40,320 Speaker 1: served as the kind of UH mega construction firm that 258 00:15:40,440 --> 00:15:45,200 Speaker 1: undertook this huge, huge project. Yeah, they bid the project 259 00:15:45,240 --> 00:15:49,640 Speaker 1: out at like forty eight point eight million dollars um, 260 00:15:49,680 --> 00:15:52,080 Speaker 1: which is so funny to think about now, Like it's 261 00:15:52,120 --> 00:15:54,600 Speaker 1: a little money for something like this. Yeah, even when 262 00:15:54,600 --> 00:15:57,880 Speaker 1: you adjust for inflation, it's still a surprisingly low amount. 263 00:15:57,920 --> 00:16:00,360 Speaker 1: It comes out to about eight hundred million dollars. And 264 00:16:00,400 --> 00:16:02,960 Speaker 1: it's like the federal government today spends billion dollars like 265 00:16:03,000 --> 00:16:06,400 Speaker 1: it's nothing. This is like a huge deal that the 266 00:16:06,400 --> 00:16:09,640 Speaker 1: federal government government was spending the equivalent of today's eight 267 00:16:09,760 --> 00:16:12,880 Speaker 1: hundred million dollars. But one reason why they went with 268 00:16:12,920 --> 00:16:16,560 Speaker 1: the six companies consortium is because the Bureau of Reclamation 269 00:16:16,760 --> 00:16:20,760 Speaker 1: this is the department that oversaw the project. Um, they 270 00:16:20,800 --> 00:16:25,760 Speaker 1: had calculated the costs themselves, and the six companies bid 271 00:16:25,800 --> 00:16:29,120 Speaker 1: was only about twenty four thousand dollars more than the 272 00:16:29,160 --> 00:16:32,680 Speaker 1: six company or than the Bureau of Reclamation had estimated 273 00:16:32,680 --> 00:16:38,000 Speaker 1: the project would cost about twenty four grand over right, 274 00:16:38,080 --> 00:16:40,040 Speaker 1: So they were like, all right, if you want to 275 00:16:40,080 --> 00:16:44,720 Speaker 1: build this whole project for dollars have added UM. And 276 00:16:44,760 --> 00:16:48,480 Speaker 1: I mean obviously they were six legitimate major construction companies 277 00:16:48,520 --> 00:16:51,360 Speaker 1: and then all of them combined together form one super 278 00:16:51,400 --> 00:16:54,840 Speaker 1: construction company. UM. So they seem to be pretty comfortable 279 00:16:54,880 --> 00:16:58,080 Speaker 1: with this consortium. And from everything I can tell, unless 280 00:16:58,080 --> 00:17:02,120 Speaker 1: you're a workers rights kind of person, um, this this company. 281 00:17:02,160 --> 00:17:05,000 Speaker 1: Their faith in this consortium was well placed because they 282 00:17:05,040 --> 00:17:11,600 Speaker 1: did a pretty good job, saving maybe one major mistake, um, 283 00:17:11,640 --> 00:17:14,200 Speaker 1: which we'll get too later. It was it's a pretty 284 00:17:14,240 --> 00:17:18,480 Speaker 1: good government construction project if you ask me, public private, 285 00:17:18,520 --> 00:17:21,560 Speaker 1: all right, UM, I feel like we should take a 286 00:17:21,560 --> 00:17:26,080 Speaker 1: break now and come back and talk about, uh, infrastructure 287 00:17:26,440 --> 00:17:41,919 Speaker 1: right for this. All right, So we're back and uh 288 00:17:42,080 --> 00:17:43,680 Speaker 1: it will take a couple of years. Obviously, you're not 289 00:17:43,680 --> 00:17:46,399 Speaker 1: going to dive into a project like this right away 290 00:17:46,480 --> 00:17:50,000 Speaker 1: because you can't back then because of where it was located. 291 00:17:50,560 --> 00:17:55,199 Speaker 1: And if you think about it, um, like part of 292 00:17:55,240 --> 00:17:57,960 Speaker 1: the problem with this project from the beginning was its 293 00:17:58,000 --> 00:18:02,479 Speaker 1: location and how isolated the Southwest was from other like 294 00:18:02,680 --> 00:18:05,000 Speaker 1: major parts of the U S at the time. And 295 00:18:05,040 --> 00:18:07,080 Speaker 1: so they were like, wait a minute, we're not close 296 00:18:07,119 --> 00:18:10,720 Speaker 1: to anything Like Vegas only is the closest place and 297 00:18:10,760 --> 00:18:13,520 Speaker 1: it has five thousand people. That doesn't really help us much. 298 00:18:13,520 --> 00:18:17,320 Speaker 1: It's like, you know, miles away. So here's what we're 299 00:18:17,359 --> 00:18:19,680 Speaker 1: gonna have to do. Um, we're gonna have to build 300 00:18:19,680 --> 00:18:23,960 Speaker 1: a town that's really close by for all of our 301 00:18:24,240 --> 00:18:27,240 Speaker 1: employees and our workers to live. And so they did 302 00:18:27,280 --> 00:18:32,320 Speaker 1: just that. I think this was about six miles away. 303 00:18:32,680 --> 00:18:37,680 Speaker 1: They literally constructed a city called Boulder, city, UM west 304 00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:41,640 Speaker 1: of the damn site. It had seven fifty eight cottages 305 00:18:41,720 --> 00:18:44,600 Speaker 1: if you were married and worked or had a family 306 00:18:44,680 --> 00:18:48,239 Speaker 1: or whatever. It had nine dormitories for single men. I 307 00:18:48,240 --> 00:18:52,400 Speaker 1: imagine that was a wild scene. Uh. They had a hospital, 308 00:18:52,440 --> 00:18:55,520 Speaker 1: they had a department store, they had laundry, they had 309 00:18:55,560 --> 00:18:58,120 Speaker 1: a school, they had a post office, they had uh 310 00:18:58,240 --> 00:19:01,800 Speaker 1: liquor stills and and that's real illegal by the way. 311 00:19:01,880 --> 00:19:06,359 Speaker 1: Sure of course this depression or prohibition, UM, but they 312 00:19:06,400 --> 00:19:10,720 Speaker 1: needed their booze, like, let's be honest. Uh. And this 313 00:19:10,880 --> 00:19:14,320 Speaker 1: this city actually remained under government control until nineteen fifty nine, 314 00:19:15,000 --> 00:19:18,320 Speaker 1: when uh it got its own incorporation, which is kind 315 00:19:18,320 --> 00:19:22,800 Speaker 1: of crazy. Yeah, the the the Hoover Damn was dedicated, 316 00:19:22,840 --> 00:19:28,320 Speaker 1: like the project was done basically UM by nineteen thirty eight, Um, 317 00:19:28,440 --> 00:19:31,159 Speaker 1: nineteen thirty nine. I think they're still working on outbuildings 318 00:19:31,200 --> 00:19:33,720 Speaker 1: and stuff for a little while. But for twenty years 319 00:19:33,760 --> 00:19:37,240 Speaker 1: after a lot of the people who had UM built 320 00:19:37,280 --> 00:19:40,080 Speaker 1: the damn were like, I really like this Bowlder City town. 321 00:19:40,320 --> 00:19:42,560 Speaker 1: I'm gonna stay here. And one of the reasons why 322 00:19:42,600 --> 00:19:45,679 Speaker 1: you would stay there is because like the government ran 323 00:19:45,800 --> 00:19:48,800 Speaker 1: the town. There were no elected officials. There was an 324 00:19:48,880 --> 00:19:55,359 Speaker 1: appointed Bureau of Reclamation, um department, uh like administrator that 325 00:19:55,440 --> 00:19:57,720 Speaker 1: was like the de facto mayor of the town. And 326 00:19:57,800 --> 00:19:59,840 Speaker 1: like if there was something wrong with your house, You're 327 00:19:59,840 --> 00:20:03,800 Speaker 1: of Reclamation workers would come fix it, like your sink 328 00:20:04,400 --> 00:20:06,960 Speaker 1: or paint your house or whatever. You didn't have to 329 00:20:07,000 --> 00:20:10,000 Speaker 1: do anything because the government this is like federal land. 330 00:20:10,440 --> 00:20:14,240 Speaker 1: And finally in nineteen what'd you say, the government was like, 331 00:20:14,280 --> 00:20:17,840 Speaker 1: all right, freeloaders, you can paint your own houses from 332 00:20:17,880 --> 00:20:20,399 Speaker 1: now on. This is your place. And they incorporated it 333 00:20:20,440 --> 00:20:23,040 Speaker 1: into a city in nineteen sixty, I guess, yeah, And 334 00:20:23,080 --> 00:20:26,040 Speaker 1: it's uh still one of two cities in Nevada that 335 00:20:26,240 --> 00:20:29,520 Speaker 1: say no gambling here, which is pretty unique. You know. 336 00:20:29,640 --> 00:20:31,639 Speaker 1: At the at the height of this project to Chuck 337 00:20:31,720 --> 00:20:34,720 Speaker 1: Bowlder City, which hadn't existed just a couple of years before. 338 00:20:34,880 --> 00:20:36,840 Speaker 1: Like it wasn't like they took over an existing city 339 00:20:36,840 --> 00:20:39,359 Speaker 1: and built it up. There was nothing there before and 340 00:20:39,400 --> 00:20:42,240 Speaker 1: they built a city from scratch. Um it was. It 341 00:20:42,280 --> 00:20:45,600 Speaker 1: had the biggest population in Nevada at the time. Yeah, 342 00:20:45,680 --> 00:20:48,879 Speaker 1: more than Vegas. Yeah, by by a few hundred people, 343 00:20:48,920 --> 00:20:51,919 Speaker 1: I believe. All right, so they built I mean this 344 00:20:52,000 --> 00:20:54,080 Speaker 1: is keep in mind again, this before they can even 345 00:20:54,119 --> 00:20:56,880 Speaker 1: get started on this dam. They say, we gotta build 346 00:20:56,880 --> 00:21:01,040 Speaker 1: a city. We gotta build um seven miles of highway, 347 00:21:01,080 --> 00:21:04,480 Speaker 1: we gotta build twenty three miles of railway, we got 348 00:21:04,520 --> 00:21:08,200 Speaker 1: to build um bring in like two miles of power lines, 349 00:21:08,920 --> 00:21:12,640 Speaker 1: and we have to bring in cableways spanning this canyon. 350 00:21:13,160 --> 00:21:16,840 Speaker 1: And it's just all this massive amounts of infrastructure to 351 00:21:17,359 --> 00:21:20,520 Speaker 1: tackle this project where they were gonna be paying dudes 352 00:21:21,640 --> 00:21:25,159 Speaker 1: fifty cents to a dollar an hour, which is between 353 00:21:25,200 --> 00:21:28,840 Speaker 1: eight bucks and twenty bucks an hour in today dollars. Right, 354 00:21:29,640 --> 00:21:34,240 Speaker 1: what's ironic is the harder and the more dangerous your 355 00:21:34,320 --> 00:21:38,359 Speaker 1: job typically the less you were paid, kind of like 356 00:21:38,600 --> 00:21:42,760 Speaker 1: today kind of. Yeah, there was there is a group 357 00:21:42,840 --> 00:21:45,360 Speaker 1: called the muckers, and they were the ones who had 358 00:21:45,400 --> 00:21:48,240 Speaker 1: to like get the stone in the sludge and all 359 00:21:48,240 --> 00:21:51,760 Speaker 1: that stuff out of the canyon bottom. And um, they 360 00:21:51,800 --> 00:21:54,480 Speaker 1: got paid the least even though they were the most 361 00:21:54,640 --> 00:21:58,720 Speaker 1: um exposed to like falling rocks and falling items, and 362 00:21:58,760 --> 00:22:03,280 Speaker 1: apparently like falling stuff was a real danger on this project. Yeah, 363 00:22:03,320 --> 00:22:05,600 Speaker 1: well we'll get to that later, but a lot of 364 00:22:05,680 --> 00:22:09,920 Speaker 1: noggins suffered. Um, So then the other thing that they 365 00:22:10,000 --> 00:22:12,040 Speaker 1: had to do, they're like all right, we got the 366 00:22:12,080 --> 00:22:14,320 Speaker 1: city built, we got all these highways, We've got all 367 00:22:14,359 --> 00:22:16,399 Speaker 1: this stuff, We've got all these people. We got a 368 00:22:16,400 --> 00:22:19,520 Speaker 1: good plan. They're like, we need to do something with 369 00:22:19,520 --> 00:22:22,840 Speaker 1: this river because you can't. You can't just start stacking 370 00:22:22,920 --> 00:22:27,440 Speaker 1: rocks and divert the Colorado River. So they literally had 371 00:22:27,440 --> 00:22:30,919 Speaker 1: to come up with a plan to reroute the Colorado 372 00:22:31,000 --> 00:22:34,520 Speaker 1: River while they built this thing. I hadn't thought about that. 373 00:22:34,640 --> 00:22:36,960 Speaker 1: I'm sure you knew about it two times over from 374 00:22:37,000 --> 00:22:41,359 Speaker 1: your double visits and the tour. Now, did you just 375 00:22:41,440 --> 00:22:44,480 Speaker 1: drive across it? No, we walked around. We didn't take 376 00:22:44,480 --> 00:22:47,320 Speaker 1: one of these sexual like tours, tours like it was 377 00:22:47,359 --> 00:22:51,200 Speaker 1: seventeen bucks, right, Like, I'm sure I know as much 378 00:22:51,200 --> 00:22:54,520 Speaker 1: as this guy. Um, but no, No, I mean like 379 00:22:54,560 --> 00:22:56,000 Speaker 1: we took out the whole thing and we were there 380 00:22:56,000 --> 00:22:57,639 Speaker 1: for a couple of hours or anything. But it was 381 00:22:57,640 --> 00:22:59,359 Speaker 1: self guided to her, How about that got you? No, 382 00:22:59,440 --> 00:23:01,359 Speaker 1: that's great, but it had never occurred to me. And 383 00:23:01,400 --> 00:23:03,439 Speaker 1: I didn't learn on this self guided tour that we 384 00:23:03,560 --> 00:23:06,600 Speaker 1: just made up ourselves. Um, that that that you would 385 00:23:06,640 --> 00:23:08,600 Speaker 1: have to divert the river, that the river was still 386 00:23:08,680 --> 00:23:13,960 Speaker 1: going through um Black Canyon at the time. Um, and 387 00:23:14,200 --> 00:23:16,720 Speaker 1: you just couldn't build a damn there while the river 388 00:23:16,840 --> 00:23:19,159 Speaker 1: was trying to get through there. There's a lot of 389 00:23:19,160 --> 00:23:23,080 Speaker 1: stuff you could do so to to divert the river. Um, 390 00:23:23,200 --> 00:23:25,879 Speaker 1: they did some really ingenious stuff. And if you step 391 00:23:25,880 --> 00:23:28,760 Speaker 1: back and look at it from like the eyes of 392 00:23:28,800 --> 00:23:32,400 Speaker 1: a like like a child, it's really just too three 393 00:23:32,440 --> 00:23:36,280 Speaker 1: four steps and building this damn if you really look 394 00:23:36,320 --> 00:23:39,480 Speaker 1: at a super high level or super I guess childlike again, 395 00:23:39,800 --> 00:23:43,359 Speaker 1: um in all of them make total sense. But just 396 00:23:43,440 --> 00:23:46,520 Speaker 1: the audacity of saying, yeah, we can do that, Yeah, 397 00:23:46,600 --> 00:23:49,720 Speaker 1: add that extra step on before we get started. It's 398 00:23:49,800 --> 00:23:51,920 Speaker 1: it really kind of goes to the heart of like, 399 00:23:52,000 --> 00:23:56,200 Speaker 1: just what an amazing civil engineering project this was. So 400 00:23:56,800 --> 00:23:58,800 Speaker 1: like with any damn, if you want to divert that water, 401 00:23:58,880 --> 00:24:01,600 Speaker 1: you're gonna have to go up straight a certain amount, 402 00:24:01,720 --> 00:24:04,280 Speaker 1: and they have very smart engineers that figure out exactly 403 00:24:04,280 --> 00:24:07,399 Speaker 1: where to do this. And in this case they built 404 00:24:07,520 --> 00:24:10,399 Speaker 1: uh Coffer dams, which is a very common thing to 405 00:24:10,440 --> 00:24:12,880 Speaker 1: do when you want to build a damn downstream. It's 406 00:24:12,880 --> 00:24:15,080 Speaker 1: basically sort of like a big hole in the river 407 00:24:15,920 --> 00:24:20,080 Speaker 1: that uh the water would just flow into these. So 408 00:24:20,560 --> 00:24:24,480 Speaker 1: the water instead of going downstream, dumps into these Coffer Dams, 409 00:24:25,080 --> 00:24:29,040 Speaker 1: and then it funnels that water into these four tunnels, 410 00:24:29,400 --> 00:24:32,240 Speaker 1: two on each side of the canyon under the canyon, 411 00:24:32,560 --> 00:24:36,680 Speaker 1: instead of between them, diverting everything around to then rejoin 412 00:24:37,560 --> 00:24:40,320 Speaker 1: uh the other you know, those those tunnels rejoin each 413 00:24:40,359 --> 00:24:44,520 Speaker 1: other as the Colorado River once again downstream, right. And 414 00:24:44,760 --> 00:24:46,639 Speaker 1: I think the Coffer Dam is actually kind of like 415 00:24:46,680 --> 00:24:50,280 Speaker 1: a like an earthworks, like a wall inside the water. 416 00:24:50,920 --> 00:24:54,360 Speaker 1: Yeah you will, you pump the water out, you kind 417 00:24:54,359 --> 00:24:57,040 Speaker 1: of make it a hole. But yeah, so so this 418 00:24:57,280 --> 00:25:00,320 Speaker 1: these tunnels that they diverted this too, Chuck, where it 419 00:25:00,400 --> 00:25:05,560 Speaker 1: combined four miles four miles of tunnel, so each each 420 00:25:05,600 --> 00:25:07,399 Speaker 1: tunnel was about a mile because there are four of 421 00:25:07,440 --> 00:25:12,440 Speaker 1: them through the canyon rock which was granite. And they 422 00:25:12,680 --> 00:25:17,320 Speaker 1: dug out these tunnels as and built the Coffer Dam 423 00:25:17,400 --> 00:25:19,960 Speaker 1: just to start the whole thing, not as part of 424 00:25:19,960 --> 00:25:22,400 Speaker 1: the larger project, but this is like to to just 425 00:25:22,480 --> 00:25:24,440 Speaker 1: to get started. That was the first thing they had 426 00:25:24,480 --> 00:25:26,840 Speaker 1: to do. Yeah, there were fifty ft in diameter, like 427 00:25:26,880 --> 00:25:29,720 Speaker 1: these were not small tunnels. They had to be lined 428 00:25:29,760 --> 00:25:33,639 Speaker 1: with three feet of concrete to hold up. And I 429 00:25:33,680 --> 00:25:36,879 Speaker 1: think the water was was racing through those at a 430 00:25:36,960 --> 00:25:40,760 Speaker 1: rate of two hundred thousand cubic feet per second. So 431 00:25:41,080 --> 00:25:46,440 Speaker 1: it's amazing. That's a hundred and thirty six um Olympic 432 00:25:46,520 --> 00:25:49,359 Speaker 1: sized pools per minute passing through there. Yeah, I mean 433 00:25:49,400 --> 00:25:52,840 Speaker 1: this would be remarkable today, dude. Yeah, you know for sure. 434 00:25:53,080 --> 00:25:55,959 Speaker 1: And as we'll see those those things are still in operation, 435 00:25:56,240 --> 00:25:59,560 Speaker 1: although they use them differently now. Um, but yeah, that 436 00:25:59,680 --> 00:26:03,240 Speaker 1: that's that's just a ton of water. And and they said, yep, success, 437 00:26:03,280 --> 00:26:07,160 Speaker 1: it worked. We diverted um this water down further downstream 438 00:26:07,160 --> 00:26:10,720 Speaker 1: because you know, the tunnels ended below the damn project 439 00:26:10,760 --> 00:26:13,800 Speaker 1: site and then all of a sudden, the Colorado River 440 00:26:14,040 --> 00:26:16,800 Speaker 1: had been diverted around the dam and now they could 441 00:26:16,840 --> 00:26:20,560 Speaker 1: get started, right, And so they're like, all right, we 442 00:26:20,600 --> 00:26:22,960 Speaker 1: feel like we could just quit now because what we 443 00:26:23,000 --> 00:26:26,000 Speaker 1: did was pretty awesome. But we don't have a damn yet. 444 00:26:26,600 --> 00:26:29,120 Speaker 1: So in this huge canyon, we need, uh, if we're 445 00:26:29,119 --> 00:26:31,639 Speaker 1: gonna build a dam, we need to make these walls 446 00:26:31,680 --> 00:26:34,919 Speaker 1: smooth because they were you know, it was a canyon. 447 00:26:34,960 --> 00:26:38,040 Speaker 1: It was just jagged rock and you can't just fill 448 00:26:38,080 --> 00:26:41,000 Speaker 1: in a bunch of concrete against this jagged rock. They 449 00:26:41,000 --> 00:26:44,440 Speaker 1: have these abutments that are gonna secure this huge concrete 450 00:26:44,440 --> 00:26:47,520 Speaker 1: slab to the canyon walls. So they had to smooth 451 00:26:47,560 --> 00:26:51,639 Speaker 1: these things out, and that was done by I mean, 452 00:26:51,680 --> 00:26:53,600 Speaker 1: I want to say the most dangerous job, but it's 453 00:26:53,680 --> 00:26:57,400 Speaker 1: kind of hard to pick. But the high scale ers 454 00:26:57,440 --> 00:27:01,080 Speaker 1: are definitely up there as far as danger goes. If 455 00:27:01,119 --> 00:27:03,800 Speaker 1: you go to the Hoover Dam site today, there's a 456 00:27:03,840 --> 00:27:06,520 Speaker 1: statue of a high scaler. It's a guy like on 457 00:27:06,560 --> 00:27:08,880 Speaker 1: a rope with like a toolbag hanging from me. He's 458 00:27:08,920 --> 00:27:12,280 Speaker 1: like scaling down the side of the uh, the canyon wall. 459 00:27:12,600 --> 00:27:15,720 Speaker 1: And that's exactly what they did. Because if you're trying 460 00:27:15,760 --> 00:27:18,359 Speaker 1: to clear the canyon walls and you're talking, you know, 461 00:27:18,440 --> 00:27:21,679 Speaker 1: your seven hundred feet up between the bottom of the 462 00:27:21,720 --> 00:27:24,119 Speaker 1: canyon and the canyon rim, You've got a lot of 463 00:27:24,200 --> 00:27:26,560 Speaker 1: rock that you're trying to get out of there. Um, 464 00:27:26,600 --> 00:27:29,520 Speaker 1: it's not easy. You can't just you know, hit it 465 00:27:29,560 --> 00:27:32,720 Speaker 1: with a pole and priyate loose. You get to blast 466 00:27:32,760 --> 00:27:38,040 Speaker 1: it loose, actually sure, but to no avail. They spent 467 00:27:38,080 --> 00:27:41,439 Speaker 1: a good year and a half trying that and nothing happened. Um, 468 00:27:41,480 --> 00:27:45,400 Speaker 1: but the uh I'm totally joking about that, by the way, Um, Okay, 469 00:27:46,119 --> 00:27:48,480 Speaker 1: to to blast it the chuck, you have to drill 470 00:27:48,560 --> 00:27:51,200 Speaker 1: a hole and then put the dynamite in and then 471 00:27:51,240 --> 00:27:54,680 Speaker 1: blast it. But if you're trying to drill a wholesomewhere, 472 00:27:54,800 --> 00:27:58,280 Speaker 1: you know, halfway between the canyon ridge and the canyon bottom, 473 00:27:58,400 --> 00:28:00,400 Speaker 1: you have to have a guy on a rope who 474 00:28:00,480 --> 00:28:05,080 Speaker 1: is willing to swing down there, have a jackhammer four 475 00:28:05,119 --> 00:28:08,760 Speaker 1: pound jackhammer lowered to him, and then it drill a 476 00:28:08,800 --> 00:28:11,960 Speaker 1: hole with a jackhammer suspended from the edge of the 477 00:28:12,000 --> 00:28:15,679 Speaker 1: canyon um into the into the mid air um and 478 00:28:15,720 --> 00:28:18,640 Speaker 1: then pack it full of dynamite. Light it, get out 479 00:28:18,640 --> 00:28:22,120 Speaker 1: of the way, let the blast happen, and then come 480 00:28:22,119 --> 00:28:24,679 Speaker 1: back and then use a pole to private rocks loose. 481 00:28:25,040 --> 00:28:26,679 Speaker 1: That's what these guys had to do. And if you 482 00:28:26,720 --> 00:28:30,359 Speaker 1: want to know how Jackhammers work, everybody, let me tell you. 483 00:28:30,560 --> 00:28:34,520 Speaker 1: We have maybe our best episode ever in eleven years. 484 00:28:34,760 --> 00:28:37,879 Speaker 1: Jack It was the worst one we've ever done. Like 485 00:28:37,920 --> 00:28:40,280 Speaker 1: there's no question, Like the sun ha ha, you know 486 00:28:40,440 --> 00:28:44,520 Speaker 1: it was terrible. Jackhammers was actually bad. At least the 487 00:28:44,600 --> 00:28:49,040 Speaker 1: son's an interesting thing, right A right, good point. Um, 488 00:28:49,080 --> 00:28:52,560 Speaker 1: All right, so they're they're blasting these things out. These dudes, uh, 489 00:28:52,760 --> 00:28:55,000 Speaker 1: believe it or not, did not even have hard hats 490 00:28:55,080 --> 00:28:58,880 Speaker 1: at the time. They were not supplied with hard hats. No. 491 00:28:59,120 --> 00:29:01,840 Speaker 1: That's one big criticis some of the six six Companies 492 00:29:01,880 --> 00:29:05,600 Speaker 1: consortium that they did not care about workers, right. So 493 00:29:05,600 --> 00:29:08,640 Speaker 1: there was a strike that happened in and the guy 494 00:29:08,720 --> 00:29:11,680 Speaker 1: running the show for the six companies name was Frank Crow. 495 00:29:11,880 --> 00:29:15,640 Speaker 1: They called him hurry up Crow. Um, he fired everybody. 496 00:29:15,880 --> 00:29:18,320 Speaker 1: He just fired everybody and brought in new workers. They 497 00:29:18,320 --> 00:29:20,600 Speaker 1: didn't get hard hats until they basically said, we're not 498 00:29:20,600 --> 00:29:22,800 Speaker 1: gonna work anymore unless you give us hard hats. They 499 00:29:22,840 --> 00:29:26,320 Speaker 1: had to make their own hard hats by taking soft hats, 500 00:29:26,600 --> 00:29:29,520 Speaker 1: which I guess it's just a hat, and then putting 501 00:29:29,560 --> 00:29:32,360 Speaker 1: it in like coal tar and letting it like molten 502 00:29:32,440 --> 00:29:34,880 Speaker 1: coal tar, and then letting it cool, and all of 503 00:29:34,920 --> 00:29:36,960 Speaker 1: a sudden you had like a homemade hard hat. And 504 00:29:37,000 --> 00:29:39,000 Speaker 1: then finally the company is just like, all right, you're 505 00:29:39,040 --> 00:29:41,240 Speaker 1: making us look bad. We'll we'll get some actual ones. 506 00:29:41,320 --> 00:29:43,800 Speaker 1: But it took like a little while before they had 507 00:29:43,840 --> 00:29:47,040 Speaker 1: any any actual hard hats on site. Yeah, those homemade 508 00:29:47,040 --> 00:29:50,360 Speaker 1: ones are called hard boiled hats, and they really actually 509 00:29:50,360 --> 00:29:52,520 Speaker 1: worked that. Um. I know that thing you sent said 510 00:29:52,560 --> 00:29:56,160 Speaker 1: that some of the rocks falling on these hard boiled hats. 511 00:29:56,600 --> 00:29:58,719 Speaker 1: Their their head would be fine, but it would be 512 00:29:58,760 --> 00:30:03,400 Speaker 1: such force that would actually break their jaw. So these 513 00:30:03,440 --> 00:30:06,280 Speaker 1: they worked, these hard bowl hats actually worked, um, but 514 00:30:06,360 --> 00:30:09,240 Speaker 1: I imagine they wanted the real thing. You'd be like 515 00:30:10,240 --> 00:30:14,200 Speaker 1: if I don't think though, And they would do tricks 516 00:30:14,240 --> 00:30:16,920 Speaker 1: and stuff like in their downtime they would you know, 517 00:30:17,120 --> 00:30:19,120 Speaker 1: a lot of these people were I mean not a lot, 518 00:30:19,160 --> 00:30:21,640 Speaker 1: but some of them were like circus workers, right, and 519 00:30:21,720 --> 00:30:24,360 Speaker 1: people like former military that could do this kind of thing. 520 00:30:24,880 --> 00:30:29,440 Speaker 1: And apparently between working they would fly around and do little, 521 00:30:30,080 --> 00:30:34,680 Speaker 1: uh high wire tricks and stuff basically, and Native Americans too, 522 00:30:34,720 --> 00:30:37,200 Speaker 1: And you always hear about when the skyscrapers were built, 523 00:30:37,200 --> 00:30:38,720 Speaker 1: they'd be like, yeah, we just hired a bunch of 524 00:30:38,760 --> 00:30:42,160 Speaker 1: Native Americans and they'll run all over steel beams as 525 00:30:42,240 --> 00:30:44,840 Speaker 1: much as you please without any fear. And I've always 526 00:30:44,880 --> 00:30:47,760 Speaker 1: wondered why that's the case, and is it is it? 527 00:30:47,760 --> 00:30:50,840 Speaker 1: It's got to just be some sweeping generalization that Native 528 00:30:50,840 --> 00:30:54,000 Speaker 1: Americans aren't afraid of heights, obviously, but like, are there 529 00:30:54,040 --> 00:30:57,920 Speaker 1: specific tribes that were exposed to things like cliff walls 530 00:30:57,960 --> 00:31:01,000 Speaker 1: for generations and generations and that they became used to 531 00:31:01,000 --> 00:31:03,320 Speaker 1: these dizzy heights so that it wasn't a big deal. 532 00:31:03,600 --> 00:31:06,280 Speaker 1: And those are the same tribes that you know made 533 00:31:06,280 --> 00:31:08,680 Speaker 1: their way out to New York to build the skyscrapers too. 534 00:31:09,640 --> 00:31:11,240 Speaker 1: We gotta get to the bottom of that one. Or 535 00:31:11,280 --> 00:31:14,360 Speaker 1: maybe they were just tough and not scared of anything. 536 00:31:14,880 --> 00:31:19,360 Speaker 1: They just didn't let on. But there we have to. 537 00:31:19,440 --> 00:31:21,600 Speaker 1: We have to tell this once, the story of Burrel 538 00:31:21,640 --> 00:31:24,920 Speaker 1: Our Rutledge, though, man like like, I almost faint just 539 00:31:24,920 --> 00:31:28,040 Speaker 1: just reading about it. I'm sure because you don't love heights. No, 540 00:31:28,200 --> 00:31:30,160 Speaker 1: I don't love heights. So let's just go over this 541 00:31:30,200 --> 00:31:32,800 Speaker 1: one more time. If you were in the canyon rim 542 00:31:32,880 --> 00:31:36,960 Speaker 1: of the the Boulder Damn Hoover Dam project at the time, 543 00:31:37,400 --> 00:31:41,239 Speaker 1: you were more than seven feet above the bottom of 544 00:31:41,240 --> 00:31:43,960 Speaker 1: the canyon, which for all intents and purposes, is straight down. 545 00:31:44,440 --> 00:31:48,240 Speaker 1: That's like a sixty story building. Basically, it's a really 546 00:31:48,760 --> 00:31:51,160 Speaker 1: really big height and you can sense it, man, when 547 00:31:51,200 --> 00:31:53,840 Speaker 1: you're there, and Hoover Dam, if you haven't been, go 548 00:31:54,080 --> 00:31:57,680 Speaker 1: it's totally worth the trip for sure, um, especially if 549 00:31:57,720 --> 00:32:02,040 Speaker 1: you're in Las Vegas. Um. But there was a guy 550 00:32:02,200 --> 00:32:04,800 Speaker 1: named Burl Rutledge who was one of the engineers for 551 00:32:04,800 --> 00:32:07,840 Speaker 1: the Bureau of Reclamation, and I guess he lost his 552 00:32:07,840 --> 00:32:12,480 Speaker 1: footing or something and he fell off off the canyon 553 00:32:12,560 --> 00:32:15,320 Speaker 1: rim on his way down to the canyon bottom a 554 00:32:15,360 --> 00:32:20,120 Speaker 1: sixty story building below him, that's right. And then thankfully, 555 00:32:20,920 --> 00:32:24,760 Speaker 1: um he either had a a former circus worker or 556 00:32:24,800 --> 00:32:29,600 Speaker 1: somebody who was just very brave named Oliver Cowen about 557 00:32:29,600 --> 00:32:32,280 Speaker 1: below apparently heard this, I guess it calls a bit 558 00:32:32,280 --> 00:32:35,800 Speaker 1: of a commotion and swung himself out. He's hanging in 559 00:32:35,840 --> 00:32:38,200 Speaker 1: a it's called abortion seat that's like sort of like 560 00:32:38,240 --> 00:32:42,360 Speaker 1: a little sling seat. He rushes over as fast as 561 00:32:42,360 --> 00:32:45,760 Speaker 1: he can go, swinging out and grabs this guy's leg 562 00:32:45,840 --> 00:32:48,840 Speaker 1: as he's sliding down the canyon wall. And then another 563 00:32:48,920 --> 00:32:53,080 Speaker 1: high scaler named Arnold Parks then swings over, you know, 564 00:32:53,160 --> 00:32:55,280 Speaker 1: helps him pin his body to the wall, and they 565 00:32:55,320 --> 00:32:57,920 Speaker 1: held him there until they could drop a line and 566 00:32:57,960 --> 00:33:02,600 Speaker 1: pull him up. If I were Rutledge, I would have 567 00:33:02,640 --> 00:33:04,200 Speaker 1: been like, like, just let me go, let me go. 568 00:33:04,280 --> 00:33:08,480 Speaker 1: I can't stand this. I'm so scared. They're like, Josh, 569 00:33:08,480 --> 00:33:11,960 Speaker 1: we've really got you. You know. You're like it's all over. 570 00:33:12,520 --> 00:33:15,320 Speaker 1: I'm never going to be the same again. Well, that's 571 00:33:15,320 --> 00:33:17,920 Speaker 1: probably true. You would just moved to the to the 572 00:33:17,920 --> 00:33:21,800 Speaker 1: lowest place in the continuous contiguous United States. I can't 573 00:33:21,840 --> 00:33:24,920 Speaker 1: imagine what the rest of Burl Rutledge's day was after that, 574 00:33:25,320 --> 00:33:27,320 Speaker 1: but it was good. I bet he drank a lot. 575 00:33:28,200 --> 00:33:31,239 Speaker 1: I hope it was a good day. But yeah, So 576 00:33:31,320 --> 00:33:34,760 Speaker 1: that happened like that, like the thing that everyone's imagination 577 00:33:34,960 --> 00:33:36,680 Speaker 1: thinks of when you think of a bunch of people 578 00:33:36,680 --> 00:33:40,760 Speaker 1: doing construction work on a canyon. Ledge, that happened, and 579 00:33:40,800 --> 00:33:43,600 Speaker 1: it actually panned out pretty well for Burl Rutledge at least. 580 00:33:43,920 --> 00:33:46,640 Speaker 1: All right, man, I think it's time for a message break, agreed, 581 00:33:58,720 --> 00:34:02,280 Speaker 1: all right? So do are dying? Though? Um? I saw 582 00:34:02,320 --> 00:34:05,240 Speaker 1: anywhere between like ninety three to ninety six to a 583 00:34:05,320 --> 00:34:09,919 Speaker 1: hundred people died total in the whole project, which, all 584 00:34:10,000 --> 00:34:12,360 Speaker 1: things being equal, for what they were doing, isn't that 585 00:34:12,440 --> 00:34:15,640 Speaker 1: high of a number. Um A hundred lives is a 586 00:34:15,640 --> 00:34:18,839 Speaker 1: lot though to be lost on a specific engineering project. Yeah, 587 00:34:18,880 --> 00:34:21,359 Speaker 1: I saw as high as a hundred and twelve. And 588 00:34:21,400 --> 00:34:25,520 Speaker 1: the six companies, again, they weren't exactly known for having 589 00:34:25,560 --> 00:34:28,520 Speaker 1: like the loosest pockets. If you file the some sort 590 00:34:28,520 --> 00:34:31,640 Speaker 1: of health claim against them for you know, an injury 591 00:34:31,719 --> 00:34:35,440 Speaker 1: or an illness sustained working on the job, there was Um. 592 00:34:35,480 --> 00:34:39,800 Speaker 1: I think like thirty six forty two people associated with 593 00:34:39,840 --> 00:34:42,919 Speaker 1: the project died of pneumonia. But I think the Las 594 00:34:43,040 --> 00:34:47,360 Speaker 1: Vegas Star did an investigation either years later at the 595 00:34:47,400 --> 00:34:50,200 Speaker 1: time and said there were basically no deaths back at 596 00:34:50,200 --> 00:34:52,919 Speaker 1: Boulder City of pneumonia. If there was pneumonia, it would 597 00:34:52,920 --> 00:34:56,000 Speaker 1: have been going around Boulder City. And we think that 598 00:34:56,040 --> 00:34:59,319 Speaker 1: really pneumonia is just a code word from the six 599 00:34:59,360 --> 00:35:04,000 Speaker 1: companies or carbon monoxide poison because the six companies wanted 600 00:35:04,040 --> 00:35:05,880 Speaker 1: to cover it up so they didn't didn't have to 601 00:35:05,920 --> 00:35:08,960 Speaker 1: pay out any you know, money to the family because 602 00:35:09,000 --> 00:35:12,959 Speaker 1: they accidentally killed the dad with carbon monoxide poisoning because 603 00:35:13,160 --> 00:35:16,480 Speaker 1: he was working all day alongside like a diesel engine 604 00:35:16,480 --> 00:35:20,000 Speaker 1: in one of these you know, mile long tunnels. Yeah, 605 00:35:20,200 --> 00:35:23,040 Speaker 1: so that was the kind of stuff that they endured. Um. 606 00:35:23,160 --> 00:35:26,520 Speaker 1: Heat stroke killed a lot of people too. Oh yeah, 607 00:35:26,560 --> 00:35:29,520 Speaker 1: in the summer of nine three alone, apparently about three 608 00:35:29,640 --> 00:35:33,080 Speaker 1: people per week. We're dying a pete stroke because dude 609 00:35:33,160 --> 00:35:37,719 Speaker 1: in in the sun in these tunnels in particular, apparently 610 00:35:37,719 --> 00:35:40,279 Speaker 1: would get up to a hundred and forty degrees fahrenheit, 611 00:35:40,920 --> 00:35:44,239 Speaker 1: which is some ungodly amount and celsius too, and then 612 00:35:44,640 --> 00:35:47,680 Speaker 1: in the shade. On the worst days, it would get 613 00:35:47,719 --> 00:35:50,000 Speaker 1: to like a hundred and twenty degrees in the shade. 614 00:35:50,040 --> 00:35:52,799 Speaker 1: It's a dry heat though. Sure it's not the heat, 615 00:35:52,840 --> 00:35:55,880 Speaker 1: it's the humidity unless it's a hundred and twenty and 616 00:35:55,880 --> 00:35:58,320 Speaker 1: then it doesn't matter. Yeah, And one of the common 617 00:35:58,560 --> 00:36:02,920 Speaker 1: um urban legends is that there are dead bodies um 618 00:36:02,960 --> 00:36:06,040 Speaker 1: in the concrete of Hoover Damn. That is not true, 619 00:36:06,239 --> 00:36:10,360 Speaker 1: and I love how Julia put it. Common decency aside. 620 00:36:10,400 --> 00:36:13,719 Speaker 1: She says it would have compromised the structural integrity. So 621 00:36:13,840 --> 00:36:17,040 Speaker 1: they they had to fish these bodies out, because if 622 00:36:17,160 --> 00:36:19,920 Speaker 1: you were a body in concrete, you're gonna decompose eventually, 623 00:36:20,280 --> 00:36:23,160 Speaker 1: and that's gonna leave bubbles and introduce gas into the concrete, 624 00:36:23,480 --> 00:36:25,560 Speaker 1: and that's going to weaken the structure. So they had 625 00:36:25,600 --> 00:36:28,239 Speaker 1: to fish all these bodies out and even still well 626 00:36:28,280 --> 00:36:31,000 Speaker 1: we'll talk about the concrete next, but just just to 627 00:36:31,239 --> 00:36:33,920 Speaker 1: kind of lay the foundation for this point, feel forgive 628 00:36:33,960 --> 00:36:38,000 Speaker 1: the punt you when they when they poured a bucket's 629 00:36:38,040 --> 00:36:41,600 Speaker 1: worth of concrete to build the damn face there the 630 00:36:41,680 --> 00:36:46,480 Speaker 1: damn itself, I guess um the dam was so enormous 631 00:36:46,520 --> 00:36:49,880 Speaker 1: that the whole bucket only raised the level of concrete 632 00:36:49,920 --> 00:36:52,520 Speaker 1: by like two to six inches, depending on the block 633 00:36:52,560 --> 00:36:55,080 Speaker 1: they were pouring. So if you fell into the concrete, 634 00:36:55,560 --> 00:36:58,320 Speaker 1: you were you fell into two inches of concrete basically, 635 00:36:58,760 --> 00:37:00,520 Speaker 1: So you were you were you were going to get 636 00:37:00,560 --> 00:37:03,040 Speaker 1: lost in the concrete or anything like that. And then 637 00:37:03,080 --> 00:37:06,120 Speaker 1: on top of that, yet they even if they did 638 00:37:06,120 --> 00:37:09,839 Speaker 1: not care about whether you spent eternity entombed, they would 639 00:37:09,840 --> 00:37:11,919 Speaker 1: be like, well, you're not gonna You're not gonna screw 640 00:37:12,000 --> 00:37:15,400 Speaker 1: with the integrity of our damn So, yes, there's no 641 00:37:15,480 --> 00:37:18,359 Speaker 1: dead bodies in there, no dead bodies. So so let's 642 00:37:18,400 --> 00:37:21,880 Speaker 1: talk about the concrete, shall we, real quick? Yeah? Um, 643 00:37:21,920 --> 00:37:25,080 Speaker 1: So at this point, the walls are clean and smooth. 644 00:37:25,120 --> 00:37:28,640 Speaker 1: They've got these abutments in place, which, by the way, 645 00:37:28,680 --> 00:37:33,040 Speaker 1: if I may, okay, So I looked all over for 646 00:37:33,200 --> 00:37:35,480 Speaker 1: the abutments, and all I ever saw was it's the 647 00:37:35,680 --> 00:37:37,560 Speaker 1: it's the walls of the canyon, the rock walls of 648 00:37:37,600 --> 00:37:41,279 Speaker 1: the canyon, or the abutments from what I can gather. Um, 649 00:37:41,400 --> 00:37:45,040 Speaker 1: you know how when you when you grab somebody nicely 650 00:37:45,200 --> 00:37:50,280 Speaker 1: and in jokingly by the shoulders right and are holding 651 00:37:50,280 --> 00:37:52,960 Speaker 1: them securely like this, right, so you've got your thumbs 652 00:37:53,000 --> 00:37:55,239 Speaker 1: on the front of their arms, and you've got their 653 00:37:55,280 --> 00:37:57,600 Speaker 1: fingers on the back of their arms like that, right, 654 00:37:58,400 --> 00:38:01,880 Speaker 1: your fingers and thumbs are acting as abutments. And so 655 00:38:01,960 --> 00:38:05,200 Speaker 1: the abutments that are holding rather than this poor sap 656 00:38:05,280 --> 00:38:09,200 Speaker 1: who again you're just joking around with um, rather than 657 00:38:09,360 --> 00:38:12,840 Speaker 1: than that person, these abutments are the canyon walls holding 658 00:38:13,239 --> 00:38:19,640 Speaker 1: the damn itself in places. Okay, I mean I had, 659 00:38:19,760 --> 00:38:24,080 Speaker 1: but like I couldn't tell if they were like parts 660 00:38:24,080 --> 00:38:28,000 Speaker 1: of that stuck out of the damn or parts that 661 00:38:28,120 --> 00:38:31,360 Speaker 1: stuck out of the canyon walls. And I don't know. 662 00:38:31,400 --> 00:38:33,480 Speaker 1: Maybe it was one of those things where everybody else 663 00:38:33,520 --> 00:38:35,440 Speaker 1: knows what abutments is, and that's why no one went 664 00:38:35,480 --> 00:38:38,040 Speaker 1: to the trouble of explaining it. But I couldn't find 665 00:38:38,080 --> 00:38:40,880 Speaker 1: it like spelled out or a good picture saying here's 666 00:38:40,920 --> 00:38:43,520 Speaker 1: the abutments. So I just assumed that no one else 667 00:38:43,600 --> 00:38:45,360 Speaker 1: knew and I was the only one digging into it. 668 00:38:45,440 --> 00:38:48,560 Speaker 1: But now I feel like my eyes have been open. Well, 669 00:38:48,640 --> 00:38:51,759 Speaker 1: I have the three fake teeth and implants, so I 670 00:38:51,800 --> 00:38:55,440 Speaker 1: know what abutments are. They go, that was it's different 671 00:38:55,480 --> 00:38:59,719 Speaker 1: in your teeth but not really the same word, same function, right, 672 00:39:00,080 --> 00:39:02,480 Speaker 1: So these abutments are in place, and they were like, 673 00:39:02,520 --> 00:39:07,279 Speaker 1: all right, we gotta start pouring some concrete. The design itself, Um, 674 00:39:07,320 --> 00:39:09,200 Speaker 1: a lot of damns use this design. It's called a 675 00:39:09,200 --> 00:39:14,359 Speaker 1: gravity arch, and it's basically just using the natural pressure 676 00:39:14,440 --> 00:39:18,920 Speaker 1: of of the land to uh kind of force everything 677 00:39:19,239 --> 00:39:23,200 Speaker 1: tight into that uh tightened down that concrete between those 678 00:39:23,200 --> 00:39:27,359 Speaker 1: two canyons. Yeah, it's really ingenious, dude. It's it's just 679 00:39:27,440 --> 00:39:31,799 Speaker 1: like an arched bridge where gravity presses down on the arch, 680 00:39:31,960 --> 00:39:34,239 Speaker 1: which makes the arch press in to say, like the 681 00:39:34,280 --> 00:39:37,840 Speaker 1: walls of the canyon that the bridge is crossing, and 682 00:39:37,880 --> 00:39:40,200 Speaker 1: the bridge the walls of the canyon pushed back, which 683 00:39:40,280 --> 00:39:43,160 Speaker 1: only strengthens the bridge. Same exact thing. It's like if 684 00:39:43,160 --> 00:39:46,080 Speaker 1: you took a bridge at arch bridge and put it 685 00:39:46,120 --> 00:39:49,200 Speaker 1: on its side. That's what the Hoover dam is. So 686 00:39:49,239 --> 00:39:52,600 Speaker 1: when the water presses into that curve of the arch, 687 00:39:53,120 --> 00:39:56,800 Speaker 1: it tries to straighten the dam, which presses the damn 688 00:39:56,840 --> 00:39:59,799 Speaker 1: into the sides of the canyon walls, which press back 689 00:40:00,400 --> 00:40:05,680 Speaker 1: strengthens the damn. It's ingenious, ingenious, I tell you, yeah, 690 00:40:05,719 --> 00:40:08,640 Speaker 1: And so uh they didn't even need that. That's kind 691 00:40:08,640 --> 00:40:11,080 Speaker 1: of the funny part about all of this there's so 692 00:40:11,160 --> 00:40:14,000 Speaker 1: much concrete that it could have been a flat slab, 693 00:40:14,080 --> 00:40:18,960 Speaker 1: which a lot of damns are, but um, apparently engineers 694 00:40:18,960 --> 00:40:21,640 Speaker 1: thought that would freak people out to have a flat 695 00:40:21,719 --> 00:40:24,840 Speaker 1: slab damn that big, and so they said, let's just 696 00:40:24,880 --> 00:40:29,640 Speaker 1: curve it anyway, because everyone understands basic physics, right, all right, 697 00:40:29,680 --> 00:40:33,520 Speaker 1: and it looks cool and it does look very cool. Um, alright, 698 00:40:33,520 --> 00:40:36,759 Speaker 1: so we're we're actually finally to the concrete. Um. There 699 00:40:36,800 --> 00:40:42,879 Speaker 1: are three point two five million cubic yards of concrete 700 00:40:43,280 --> 00:40:46,080 Speaker 1: that make up the Hoover dam, uh and then another 701 00:40:46,160 --> 00:40:50,600 Speaker 1: one point one one million cubic yards and um, it's 702 00:40:50,600 --> 00:40:52,880 Speaker 1: not just the damn face. There's a lot of you know, 703 00:40:52,920 --> 00:40:55,840 Speaker 1: the houses, a power plant and all these outlying structures, 704 00:40:56,520 --> 00:41:01,239 Speaker 1: and five million barrels of cement. Five million barrels went 705 00:41:01,280 --> 00:41:06,200 Speaker 1: into mixing all this concrete, which they mixed on site, uh, 706 00:41:06,239 --> 00:41:10,080 Speaker 1: sen in rail cars hoisted down on these cableways that 707 00:41:10,120 --> 00:41:14,320 Speaker 1: they had built. And every seventy eight seconds, these workers 708 00:41:14,360 --> 00:41:17,480 Speaker 1: would get a new bucket of concrete to poor right 709 00:41:17,640 --> 00:41:21,279 Speaker 1: right for um until about five ft of the dam 710 00:41:21,400 --> 00:41:23,719 Speaker 1: had been poured, and then after that they had to 711 00:41:23,760 --> 00:41:27,120 Speaker 1: stop for seventy two hours to let it cure, because 712 00:41:27,239 --> 00:41:30,200 Speaker 1: curing is a huge part when you're working with concrete. 713 00:41:30,239 --> 00:41:33,560 Speaker 1: If it doesn't cure right, then the stuff inside is 714 00:41:33,560 --> 00:41:36,040 Speaker 1: going to take longer to cure than the stuff outside. 715 00:41:36,480 --> 00:41:38,440 Speaker 1: Um which isn't that big of a deal if you're 716 00:41:38,440 --> 00:41:41,120 Speaker 1: pouring like you know, a driveway in a house or 717 00:41:41,160 --> 00:41:43,360 Speaker 1: something like that. But when you're pouring a dam that 718 00:41:43,440 --> 00:41:46,799 Speaker 1: has to have like really exact dimensions, you have to 719 00:41:46,880 --> 00:41:49,640 Speaker 1: keep the outside and the inside curing at about the 720 00:41:49,680 --> 00:41:52,359 Speaker 1: same rate. So they came up with this really ingenious 721 00:41:52,520 --> 00:41:57,200 Speaker 1: um way to cure this concrete really fast. And they 722 00:41:57,280 --> 00:42:01,440 Speaker 1: ran pipes, steel pipes all through all the concrete that 723 00:42:01,480 --> 00:42:03,680 Speaker 1: they poured, So there's steel pipes running all over the 724 00:42:03,680 --> 00:42:07,319 Speaker 1: Hoover dam inside of it, and they cooled water on 725 00:42:07,520 --> 00:42:10,840 Speaker 1: site to like like just above freezing, and they pumped 726 00:42:10,880 --> 00:42:14,160 Speaker 1: it through these pipes so that when they were pouring concrete, 727 00:42:14,440 --> 00:42:17,680 Speaker 1: the concrete was being cooled internally and they were spraying 728 00:42:17,719 --> 00:42:20,080 Speaker 1: it with water on the outside too, So it was 729 00:42:20,160 --> 00:42:23,440 Speaker 1: curing at about the same rate inside as it was outside, 730 00:42:23,760 --> 00:42:26,759 Speaker 1: and it was curing fast in about seventy two hours, 731 00:42:26,800 --> 00:42:29,799 Speaker 1: where if they had poured a slab that if they 732 00:42:29,840 --> 00:42:31,719 Speaker 1: poured the Hoover Dam in one big slab had just 733 00:42:31,800 --> 00:42:33,680 Speaker 1: left it, first of all, it would have been all 734 00:42:33,760 --> 00:42:36,839 Speaker 1: messed up all kinds of ways. But it also would 735 00:42:36,840 --> 00:42:39,480 Speaker 1: have taken about a hundred and twenty five years to 736 00:42:39,680 --> 00:42:42,759 Speaker 1: cure fully on its own. It'd still be curing now. 737 00:42:43,160 --> 00:42:45,359 Speaker 1: But they get they managed to get these you know, 738 00:42:45,719 --> 00:42:49,240 Speaker 1: five foot increments to cure in about seventy two hours. 739 00:42:49,920 --> 00:42:53,360 Speaker 1: So again, I mean another just the idea that they like, 740 00:42:53,440 --> 00:42:55,760 Speaker 1: nobody had really tried something like this on the scale. 741 00:42:55,760 --> 00:42:57,799 Speaker 1: So these people were kind of making it up and 742 00:42:57,840 --> 00:43:00,040 Speaker 1: going and doing the math as as they went a 743 00:43:00,080 --> 00:43:02,680 Speaker 1: long and they were right like time after time. That's 744 00:43:02,680 --> 00:43:04,960 Speaker 1: the most astounding part to me. Yeah, I mean that 745 00:43:05,040 --> 00:43:07,879 Speaker 1: the heat is a big problem for concrete because it's 746 00:43:07,920 --> 00:43:10,840 Speaker 1: going to expand in that heat, and then you know, 747 00:43:10,840 --> 00:43:13,000 Speaker 1: in the desert it can cool down quite a bit. 748 00:43:13,120 --> 00:43:16,000 Speaker 1: You know, the temperature variation between the heat of day 749 00:43:16,000 --> 00:43:19,279 Speaker 1: and at night can be really drastic, and so it's 750 00:43:19,320 --> 00:43:21,799 Speaker 1: really tough to control all that and they managed to 751 00:43:21,840 --> 00:43:25,680 Speaker 1: do it, which is remarkable. Um, they divide this whole 752 00:43:25,719 --> 00:43:28,760 Speaker 1: thing up into blocks, and there are two hundred blocks 753 00:43:28,800 --> 00:43:32,640 Speaker 1: total making up the Hoover Dam. Um. Depending they're they're 754 00:43:32,680 --> 00:43:36,400 Speaker 1: smaller at the downstream face and they are upstream, but 755 00:43:36,520 --> 00:43:40,960 Speaker 1: they range from about square feet to sixty square feet. Uh. 756 00:43:40,960 --> 00:43:44,440 Speaker 1: And all of those blocks together, all two hundred of them, 757 00:43:44,600 --> 00:43:50,520 Speaker 1: make up the Hoover Dam. Finally, on they poured that 758 00:43:50,640 --> 00:43:53,960 Speaker 1: last bucket of concrete, which I imagine was a pretty 759 00:43:54,040 --> 00:43:56,919 Speaker 1: darn good day. I'll bet it was too. And then 760 00:43:56,960 --> 00:44:00,160 Speaker 1: after that, after that last block of concrete cured, they 761 00:44:00,200 --> 00:44:03,920 Speaker 1: squeeze grout, which is um cement and water, like a 762 00:44:03,960 --> 00:44:07,360 Speaker 1: really kind of slushy mixture, into every crack and crevice 763 00:44:07,440 --> 00:44:11,160 Speaker 1: there was in between those blocks to form a solid sheet. 764 00:44:11,440 --> 00:44:14,840 Speaker 1: And then just for good measure, they pumped grout into 765 00:44:14,880 --> 00:44:18,479 Speaker 1: those cooling pipes. So and then they cap that off. 766 00:44:18,920 --> 00:44:24,919 Speaker 1: So inside the Hoover Dam there's enough concrete to make 767 00:44:25,040 --> 00:44:30,400 Speaker 1: a sixteen ft wide, eight inch deep road all the 768 00:44:30,400 --> 00:44:35,760 Speaker 1: way from San Francisco to New York. It is amazing. So, dude, 769 00:44:35,760 --> 00:44:38,759 Speaker 1: I think we should do this into two parts. If 770 00:44:38,800 --> 00:44:41,000 Speaker 1: Evil Kinevel got a two parter, I think the Hoover 771 00:44:41,080 --> 00:44:43,279 Speaker 1: Dam deserves a two parter. Two. We've been at it 772 00:44:43,280 --> 00:44:45,000 Speaker 1: for forty five minutes, so there's still a long long 773 00:44:45,040 --> 00:44:48,640 Speaker 1: way to go. So should we do that? Yes, let's 774 00:44:48,680 --> 00:44:51,680 Speaker 1: so since we're doing a two parter. Uh, well, I 775 00:44:51,680 --> 00:44:54,480 Speaker 1: guess that brings up listener mail, right, Chuck, I think 776 00:44:54,560 --> 00:44:59,720 Speaker 1: let's skip listener mail. Okay, Damn doesn't get too listener mails. Okay, fine, 777 00:45:00,120 --> 00:45:02,239 Speaker 1: was just it was getting a little ambitious. Well, in 778 00:45:02,280 --> 00:45:04,279 Speaker 1: the meantime, if you want to drop us a line, 779 00:45:04,320 --> 00:45:06,080 Speaker 1: you can go to stuff you Should Know dot com 780 00:45:06,120 --> 00:45:08,160 Speaker 1: and check out our social links. You can check me 781 00:45:08,200 --> 00:45:10,440 Speaker 1: out on the Josh Clark Way dot com and you 782 00:45:10,480 --> 00:45:13,640 Speaker 1: can send me Chuck, Jerry and everyone involved in Stuff 783 00:45:13,680 --> 00:45:16,480 Speaker 1: you Should Know an email to stuff podcast at i 784 00:45:16,560 --> 00:45:21,840 Speaker 1: heeart radio dot com. Stuff you Should Know is a 785 00:45:21,840 --> 00:45:24,960 Speaker 1: production of iHeart Radios. How stuff works for more podcasts 786 00:45:24,960 --> 00:45:26,879 Speaker 1: for my heart Radio because at the iHeart Radio app, 787 00:45:26,960 --> 00:45:29,600 Speaker 1: Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.