The Hartford republican. (Hartford, Ky.) 18??-1926, 1913-06-27
engineers Reach
The BED ROCK
Now Pouring Concrete After
3 Years Work.
Largest Of Worlds Prospects will
Be Storing Water In
1915.

lei Paso, Tex, June 25.-After three
years Of work. the United States
|Government engineers of the Recla-
nation Service supervising the con-
struction of the gigantic dam in the
Rlb Grande at Elephant Butte. N.
NJ, 10 miles north OF FL Paso. have
found a rock foundation and have
just started work laying the cement
foundation.
l.. NJ. Lawson. project engineer OF
the United States reclamation work
In this district, said that the most
important work in this mammoth I'M
dertaking has been finished. Actual
work on the construction of the dam
has now been started and will be
rushed TO completion. The dam will
be holding water In 1915. and the
entire project completed the follow
ing year.
One-half million cubic yards of con-
crete will be used to block this dam.
which is to be the largest In the
world. The dimensions of the dam
are: Length, 1850 feet on top; height.
265 feet; maximum thickness, 200
II. While the Assouan Dam In Egypt
is longer across the top in its width.
It is over 100 feet smaller In height,
and will store but i,S60.OO0 acre feet
OF water. The Enge storage reservoir
Ut Elephant Butte will store 2,760,000
acre feet-enough to irrigate the en-
J tire acreage OF the project foot deep
fifteen times.
The great project will cost the gov
ernment SlO,O0O.00O. 1t will make
lake forty mics long. averaging six
miles wide and all the lower part
will be 100 feet deep.
b. l.. Baldwin. construction engin-
Ger. who is supervising the work on
the dam, and his associate engineers
are much pleased over the progress
of the work. When the work was
started some so-called experts said
1t was impossible to construct dam
at Elephant Butte or in that vicinity
to hold enough water to irrigate the
great Rio Grande Valley. These ex-
perts said the country was of volcan-
ic origin badly broken and rock bot
tom could not be found. But the gov
eminent engineers continued their
work and they have been rewardd by
seeing the most difficult Of the con-
.structional work finished.
When the dam Is completed APP
proximately 10000 acres Of land In
the Rio Grande Valley above and
below Ell Paso will receive water for
irrigation. This land borders both
sides of the river from Elephant
Butte to a point thirty-five miles
.S,Nitheast of this city. This includes
lands in the Las Palomas. Rincon.
Mesilla ,Juarez and Ell Paso valleys.
Only approximately $4,000 acres Is
now being irrigated from the Ordin-
. ATv y1lOW Oh the TiNcT'
The dam to-day presents a vastly
different aspect than 1t did last sum
mer, when the work of excavating
was in the preliminary stages. More
than half a million cubic yards OF
earth and rock have been removed
from the river bed. Immense Golfer
dams are delivering the rivers flow
through the flume along the west
bank, while the foundation work Is
going on. The engineers and work
men have performed wonderful
work making ready for the actual
4 building of the gigantic wall that will
store waters for valley development.
Machine shops, a standard guage
railroad, a tramway. a galloway. a
concrete mixing plant and many 9TH
err costly installations have had to be
erected before the actual blocking Of
4 the river could be begun.
The flow of water will be regulated
BY three sets of 5-foot tunnels
through the dam. Each tunnel will
kbe closed and sealed water-tight. un-
Lily II is desired to deliver an irriga-
ton flow to any of the canals serv-
ing the different sections Of land to
be cultivated and watered.
\ The dam will be protected from
4 overflow by q splllway 200 feet In
width, which will carry off the water