ROOSEVELT DAM AND LAKE

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 dam (the world's highest masonry dam) was started in 1906 and completed in 1911. The purpose of the dam 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. The lake created behind Roosevelt Dam, known as Lake Roosevelt, was the world's largest artificial lake.

We will be coming back here in April to spend a couple of weeks. There has to be a lot of fish in that water just waiting for Jim to catch them.