Theodore Roosevelt Dam

Theodore Roosevelt Dam is a dam on the Salt River located northeast of Phoenix, Arizona. The dam is convert|357|ft|m high and was built between 1905 and 1911, and renovated 1989 - 1996. The Dam is named after Theodore Roosevelt. The dam has a hydroelectric generating capacity of 36,000 kW. The dam forms the Theodore Roosevelt Lake as it impounds the Salt River.

Construction on Roosevelt Dam began in 1903 at the confluence of Tonto Creek and the Salt River. The primary purpose of the project was to provide water storage for the Salt River Project and flood control through the Salt River Valley. The dam was finished in 1911 after several devastating floods had interrupted the construction progress in 1905. At the time of completion in 1911, it was the largest masonry dam in the world with a height of 280 feet (84 m) and a length of 723 feet (216 m) while Roosevelt Lake was for a time the world's largest artificial reservoir. The dam was originally known as "Salt River Dam #1", it was not until 1959 that the dam and reservoir were officially named after Theodore Roosevelt.

In 1989, an ambitious expansion and renovation project was begun at Roosevelt Dam. The dam was resurfaced with concrete and its height was raised 77 feet (23 m) to 357 feet (107 m) which had the effect of increasing the storage capacity of Roosevelt Lake by roughly 20%. This project was completed in 1996 at a cost of $430 million. Shortly after completion, however, the area entered into a prolonged period of drought, and it would be some time before the newly increased capacity was put to use, with the lake finally reaching historic levels of 97% capacity in early 2008.

Brief History

One of the original five federal projects authorized on March 13, 1903, under the Reclamation or Newlands Act of 1902, Roosevelt Dam was the first major project to be completed under the new federal reclamation program. This, the world's highest masonry dam, was started in 1906 and completed in 1911. The beginning of federal production of electric power occurred at Roosevelt Dam when Congress, in 1906, authorized the Reclamation Service to develop and sell hydroelectric power at the Salt River Project.

The Reclamation Act of 1902 created the United States Reclamation Service whose purpose was to design and construct irrigation projects to aid the settlement of the arid west. Previous efforts by individuals and private irrigation companies were inadequate and often unsuccessful. With the creation of the Reclamation Service, the lead role of the federal government in developing large-scale irrigation projects was firmly established.

Roosevelt Dam, as originally conceived and built, was to be a symbol of success and a showpiece for the new agency. Completed at a cost of 10 million dollars, the primary function of the dam was to provide water storage for the Salt River irrigation project and flood control for the Salt River Valley. The dam contributed more than any other dam in Arizona to the settlement of Central Arizona and to the development of large-scale irrigation there. A secondary purpose of the dam was to generate a moderate amount of hydroelectric power. The lake created behind Roosevelt Dam, known as Lake Roosevelt, contained more than a million acre-feet of water and was the world's largest artificial lake.

External links

* [http://www.srpnet.com/water/dams/roosevelt.aspx SRP Water Operations- Theodore Roosevelt Dam]
* [http://www.apachetrail.net/rooseveltdam.html Roosevelt Dam & The Apache Trail]
* [http://www.scientificamericanpast.com/Scientific%20American%201900%20to%201909/7/lg/sci741908.htm 7/4/1908;The Great Roosevelt Irrigation Dam]