Las Vegas age. [volume] (Las Vegas, Nev.) 1905-1947, 1929-12-28
Rotarians Hear
Flight Of Fancy
Club Transported To New
Years Day, 1910 and Hear
Las Vegas Progress Brief
ly Reviewed.

ht the Rotary NEE ing Thursday
neon, the New Years Day pro-
gram was presented by c. p, SquireS
TIE program took the shape OF
an imaginary article printed in the
Las Vegas Age of date January l
1910, which was review of the pre-
ceding decade, l930-1940 1t was not
written as a prophecy, but merely
as a suggestion of the possibilities
of the Las Vegas of 1910.
FROM LAS VEGAS AGE
JANUARY 1, 1870.
AS is customary, the Age in its
New Year number gives brief sum-
mary Of the progress Of Las Vegas
during the past ten years.
Boulder Dam Project
The outstanding development Of
all time both as an engineering
achievement of unparalleled scope,
and in its tremendous stimulus TO
the west was the Boulder dam
project
The work was authorized by a bill
signed by President Coolidge in De-
cember 81, 1923, and the year 1929
was devoted to clearing up the mass
of preparatory details.
The actual construction of the
works was begun in 1880, the OPP
position TO the project which had
been somewhat active up to that
time having gradually been elimi-
mated The first actual work was
undertaken by the Union Pacific,
which, because it had during 1929
prepared for the work, was able 10
complete The railroad construction
to the material yards. in 60 days, AT
the same time the us. Bureau Of
Reclamation, under DR.. Mead, con-
eress having made the first approp-
liation for the work in February,
1890 got in full swing. A SiXty-tOot
concrete highway to the dam site
was completed during the early fall
of 1880 cOincident with the con-
struction Of the sewage and water
systems and the principal buildings
at the government camp.
After the completion CT the trans
portation lines material and ma
chinery i'll vast quantities were as
Sembled at the site of the dam and
work on driving the four great So
foot tunnels was begun by the con-
tractors September /, 1880.
The year 1929 had been for Las
Vegas one OF hopeful waiting, with
some anticipatory growth. The new
Las Vegas really dates from 1880.
The census of April, 1890, showed
a population of 1888 souls III Las
Vegas an increase estimated at
about 1000 for the first three
months Of that year. The census
estimate for 1910, is $4,000, showing
a four-fold increase during the ten
year period.
The Boulder dam tunnels were
completed in September, 1882, hav-
ing been pushed to completion in
an incredibly short time. During
the tunnel construction, the sides
OF the great cliffs on each
side of the dam site had been blast
ed away to provide a bedding for
the sides of the dam. With the COM
pletion of the tunnels a temporary
| fill was made just below the upper
portals of the tunnels and during
I the low water season OF the fall OF
/ 1882, the entire river was diverted
| through the tunnels
Excavations for the upper and
lower Golfer dams were pushed with
a tremendous force Of men and ma
chinery and in April, 1888, the
foundation work for the upper cof-
fer dam was completed. The spring
floods of that year caused par
tial cessation of work. during about
| three months, but in July the work
of pouring the concrete to complete
the Golfer dams was resumed. that
part of the work being completed
in the spring of 1884 in time to dI-
vert the entire volume of the spring
Continued on Page a.