ABSTRACT
The Hoover Dam was completed in 1936, at a cost of 49 million dollars, and it was the largest dam in the world. Construction started on the dam in 1930 and finished in 1936, ahead of schedule. The Hoover Dam is now an important tourist attraction, drawing a million visitors a year, many from nearby Las Vegas, thirty miles away, where a variety of tours to the dam and the Grand Canyon that can be purchased. It was during the 1930s that the United States built the Hoover Dam, the Golden Gate Bridge, and the 102 story Empire State Building, which was the tallest building in the world until the World Trade Center was built in the 1970s. In terms of engineering triumphs, people showed the way in the 1930s and their accomplishments in outer space. The Hoover Dam was a signifier of America's industrial might and its leadership in engineering, technology and dam building.
