Abstract
The UNLV University Libraries Collection of Boulder City, Hoover Dam, and Lake Mead National Recreation Area Maps and Brochures (1927-1998) primarily contains regional maps, brochures for local points of interest, and subdivision plat maps of Boulder City, Lake Mead, and Hoover (Boulder) Dam.
Finding Aid PDF
Date
Extent
Related People/Corporations
Scope and Contents Note
The UNLV University Libraries Collection of Boulder City, Hoover Dam, and Lake Mead National Recreation Area Maps and Brochures (1927-1998) primarily contains regional maps, brochures for local points of interest, and subdivision plat maps of Boulder City, Lake Mead, and Hoover (Boulder) Dam. Boulder City, Nevada materials depict its early planning and development in the 1930s and later development between the 1950s and 1980s. The collection also includes maps of Boulder City after its incorporation in 1960 and advertisement posters from Boulder City organizations. Hoover (Boulder) Dam materials include maps and brochures highlighting the dam's history, scenic routes, and points of interest in the surrounding area. Lake Mead National Recreation Area materials include topographic and rendered maps and brochures of Lake Mead and its vicinity.
Access Note
Collection is open for research. Some items in this collection are digital surrogates. Arrangements must be made in advance to access digital files; please contact UNLV Special Collections and Archives for additional information.
Publication Rights
Materials in this collection may be protected by copyrights and other rights. See Reproductions and Use on the UNLV Special Collections and Archives website for more information about reproductions and permissions to publish.
Arrangement
This collection is arranged into three series:
Series I. Boulder City, Nevada maps, drawings, and brochures, 1930-1998;
Series II. Hoover (Boulder) Dam maps, drawings, and brochures, 1927-1991;
Series III. Lake Mead National Recreation Area maps, drawings, and brochures, 1947-1977).
Biographical / Historical Note
Boulder City is a city in Clark County, Nevada incorporated in January 1960 originally established to support the construction of Hoover (Boulder) Dam.
In December 21, 1928, President Calvin Coolidge authorized the building of Hoover Dam and the creation of Boulder City. Six Companies, Inc. was contracted to construct the dam, and Boulder City was used to house the company’s workers. The town was originally built on federally owned land under the jurisdiction of the Bureau of Reclamation.
The Bureau of Reclamation built the first set of Boulder City housing for administrative employees and dam workers between 1931 and 1932. Beginning in 1931, City Manager Sims Ely issued permits for Boulder City commercial buildings. In 1958, Congress approved the Boulder City Act, resulting in the Bureau of Reclamation transferring 33 square miles to Boulder City’s new government, retaining facilities needed for the operation and maintenance of Hoover Dam. Boulder City was incorporated in January 1960.
The Boulder City Historic District, built in the Spanish Colonial Revival architectural style, entered the National Register of Historic Places in 1983 as one of the largest historic districts in the United States. At 203 square miles, Boulder City became the largest city in Nevada geographically in 1995 after purchasing over 150 square miles of adjacent land. The United States Census Bureau lists Boulder City’s population as 15,977 as of July 1, 2018.
Sources:
"Historic Timeline." National Park Service. February 18, 2016. Accessed August 27, 2019. https://www.nps.gov/lake/learn/news/timeline.htm
McIntyre, Susan, Susan Danielewicz, and Gary Zupanic. “The Historic District of Boulder City, Nevada.” Boulder City Historic Preservation Committee. Spring 2012. Accessed August 15, 2019. https://www.bcnv.org/DocumentCenter/View/106/The-Historic-District-of-Boulder-City-PDF
Nicoletta, Julie. “Boulder City and Hoover Dam.”
“QuickFacts: Boulder City city, Nevada.” United States Census Bureau. 2018. Accessed August 15, 2019. https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/bouldercitycitynevada
Rocha, Guy. “Myth #98 - Largest Historic District in the Nation.” Nevada State Library and Archives. 2011. Accessed August 15, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20120319204838/http://nsla.nevadaculture.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=779&Itemid=418
Shepherd, Natasha. “Boulder City: A gateway to the past.”
The United States Bureau of Reclamation began construction on Hoover Dam in the Black Canyon, located on the Nevada-Arizona border, in 1932. The Black Canyon Project dammed the Colorado River and constructed a hydroelectric power plant to provide electricity to the southwestern United States. The dam created the reservoir known as Lake Mead. Originally called Boulder Dam, the government officially renamed it Hoover Dam in 1947 in honor of President Herbert Hoover.
Sources:
"Hoover Dam." History.com Editors. History. August 21, 2018. Accessed August 27, 2019. https://www.history.com/topics/great-depression/hoover-dam.
Lake Mead, located in Clark County, Nevada and Mohave County, Arizona on the Colorado River, is the sixteenth largest man-made lake in the world. Its surface area is 164,000 acres with a storage volume of 26,134,000 acre-feet.
The National Park Service originally named Lake Mead the "Boulder Dam Recreation Area" in 1936 preceding Hoover Dam's (Boulder Dam) construction, existing as the United State's largest reservoir at the time. In 1947, the National Park Service then renamed the reservoir Lake Mead after Dr. Elwood Mead, who was the Commissioner of the Bureau of Reclamation from 1924 to 1936. In 1964, Public Law 88-639 established the Lake Mead National Recreation Area under the jurisdiction of the National Park Service.
Over time, Lake Mead's water level fluctuated from its highest point in July 1983 at 1,225 feet, down to its current height at 1,083 feet in 2019. However, Lake Mead still exists as one of the largest reservoirs in the United States with depths surpassing 300 feet. Lake Mead National Recreation Area is also the sixth most visited park in the National Park System and the premier inland water recreation area in the Western United States.
Sources:
"Lake Mead Statistics." Lakes Online. July 18, 2019. Accessed August 27, 2019. http://www.mead.uslakes.info/Statistics.asp
"Lake Mead Water Level." Lakes Online. July 18, 2019. Accessed August 27, 2019. http://mead.uslakes.info/level.asp
"Lake Mead." Vegas.com. 2019. Accessed August 27, 2019. https://www.vegas.com/attractions/near-las-vegas/lake-mead/
Preferred Citation
UNLV University Libraries Collection of Boulder City, Hoover Dam, and Lake Mead National Recreation Area Maps and Brochures, 1927-1998. MS-00955. Special Collections and Archives, University Libraries, University of Nevada, Las Vegas. Las Vegas, Nevada.
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Acquisition Note
Materials were periodically collected by the University Libraries Special Collections and Archives; accession number 2019-075.
Processing Note
In 2019, as part of an archival backlog elimination project, Jimmy Chang rehoused and arranged the materials, wrote the finding aid, and entered the data into ArchivesSpace. Some items in this collection are digital surrogates. In 2021, due to insurmountable preservation issues, Victoria Palma digitized select materials from the collection for preservation purposes. Originals were discarded.