Theodore Roosevelt Dam

A couple weeks ago we spent a day driving to Theodore Roosevelt Dam. Building of the dam started in 1903, shortly after Congress passed the Reclamation Act of 1902.  This act allowed for developing water projects to control floods and drought, harnessing water, and supporting growth and development of the desert southwest.

Workers constructed the dam at a narrow gorge where the Salt River and Tonto Creek merged.  At the time it was built (between 1903 and 1911) the cyclopean-masonry gravity arch dam was the highest in the world, and among the last of the stone masonry dams built.

Stones were cut from surrounding hillsides, and placed by hand to construct the dam.  It rose 280 feet above the river; 184 feet thick at the base, and 16 feet wide on top. The original dam top provided space for two Model-T Fords to pass as tourists drove the Apache Trail highway.

In 1984 Congress approved to modify the dam, making it safer and providing for more flood water storage. These modifications, done between 1993 and 1996, involved adding concrete reinforcements, increasing the dam height to 357 feet and strengthened it's entire structure.

In addition to regulating and storing water, recreation opportunities also developed.  Boating, fishing and camping are popular on the reservoir.  New upgraded roads, including Roosevelt Lake Bridge, allow visitors driving large recreational vehicles and modern day autos, to reach the lake more safely.