Joseph Dodge Lieutenant Governor Joseph Dodge , born in 2201 , was the leader and one of the founders of the settlement , Hoover Dam ; he had lost contact with the New California Republic ( NCR ) as of 2253 . Background . Joseph Dodge was a positive man who led a good , but ultimately unspectacular existence as a councilman . He had aspirations to be a senator but never left a big enough impression in the right crowds to get noticed , he wasn ' t about " schmoozing " his way to the top , he thought of himself as a man of action , but he never saw any . In his mind it didn ' t matter he wasn ' t volunteering on previous opportunities , his tenure as councilman was enough . At least until his hand was forced . Before long volunteers were needed to forge a path eastwards , and since tensions were high with the Brotherhood of Steel , NCR did not want to send out their finest commanders in search of eastern lands to pioneer . So , more " expendable " commanders were chosen to lead caravans eastward to establish footholds and develop towns under the NCR banner . One of the commanders chosen to volunteer for this dangerous mission was Councilman Joseph Dodge . At first , he tried to sidestep the " honor , " but when he was told that refusing this mission would be considered an act of treason , he humbly accepted . Dodge was not sent out to blindly search for random towns to " unite " under NCR , he was given vague directions to Hoover Dam as his destination . Dodge did find Hoover Dam and set about uniting the scattered settlers eking out an existence . He convinced them that it was in their interests to accept the NCR ' s offer of protection and organization with the dam as the central hub . Dodge also quickly came to an agreement with the trog s in the Baseline , if they helped with maintaining the dam the he would supply them with food and goods . Protected from raiders by Dodge ' s troops , enthusiastically cooperated and with each new structure and fortification built felt more secure and with purpose . Councilman Dodge became known as Governor Dodge by the people of the dam , and was regarded as a fair , honest leader who brought the settlers of Hoover Dam into a time of enlightenment and self worth . In 2238 , Dodge granted Burham Springs a charter to excavate the existing mines in the region for the production of valuable coal resources . The decision went better than planned as they also struck oil . However , once the NCR presence withdrew , things went downhill for the town . By 2248 , the NCR was struggling to pay its workers . Foreman Porter ' s team were riled up enough to break into the NCR Storehouse and Bank in what became known as the 370 Raid . Dodge , tipped off by D . C . Lowery , sent in officers to stop them . It worked but the money was left vulnerable and still went missing . In 2249 , a desperate Dodge , still under the impression Porter knew where the money was and would loop around to claim it if given the opportunity , arranged a breakout for 370 team , but that didn ' t go to plan and only resulted in 308 team getting free . Thus , despite his best efforts , long lasting consequences were set in motion . When the war with the Brotherhood of Steel hit , everything started to go downhill . Dodge tried to keep a stiff upper lip , but the constant state of alert , coupled with the infrequent attacks on first the front gate and then on the caravans , wore heavily on Dodge . When regular supplies ceased from the NCR proper , almost all hope was lost in the now isolated town . However , Ailis McLafferty , of the Crimson Caravan Company , brought glimmers of hope . She found a good source of weapons and firearms to help Hoover Dam defend itself from the Brotherhoods attacks , which put the Crimson Caravan Company in a very favorable light with Dodge . However , even though the extra equipment would prove helpful in the war effort , Dodge knew that he was living on borrowed time . The water filtration system was failing , which had a far - reaching impact on Hoover ' s crop growth . In addition , the crops that were growing were not enough to maintain the citizenry and trade . Dodge needed a larger area to grow crops . To make matters even worse , the power from the two working power generators is slowly decreasing . Feeling the combined weight of the internal problems and the war on his shoulders , Dodge is on the brink of giving up . Daily schedule . Governor Dodge spends his days in his office in the NCR Military HQ , where he also lives . He will also attend council meetings at City Hall , even if he ends up being the only one who does . Notes . The teachers of Hoover Dam ' s school , having little to do without anyone attending , are so eager to teach they will gladly tell the Prisoner the known history of Hoover Dam , which includes that of Joseph Dodge . Appearances . Joseph Dodge was to appear only in " Van Buren " , the canceled " Fallout 3 " by Black Isle Studios . Behind the scenes . The image used as a concept design for Joseph Dodge is actually McLean Stevenson , playing Lt . Colonel Henry Blake on the popular 1970s television show " " .