Waterways and Dams, 1939-1951

As part of the expanded powers given to the federal government during the Great Depression, the Army Corps of Engineers was put in charge of flood control in 1936. The Corp began documenting floods on Washington waterways in the late 1930s, and spent the next two decades (with a break during World War II) containing rivers and reworking ports and harbors to prevent flooding and to create hydroelectric power.

In particular, the photographs of the Mud Mountain Dam illustrate changes in technology during this time. Work on the dam began in the late 1930s, but was not completed until after the war in 1948.

Teaching Tips
Water control and harvesting is an old story in the West, but one that is tied particularly to the expansion of the federal government during Franklin Roosevelt's administration and to the new technologies that became the hallmark of everyday life in Postwar America. These photographs can spark discussions about what life was like before and after federal improvements, and the lasting impact these changes have on the environment and people of Washington.

Classroom-Based Assessments: Humans and the Environment, Technology Through the Ages

Social Studies EALRs:
3. GEOGRAPHY The student uses a spatial perspective to make reasoned decisions by applying the concepts of location, region, and movement and demonstrating knowledge of how geographic features and human cultures impact environments.

5. SOCIAL STUDIES SKILLS The student understands and applies reasoning skills to conduct research, deliberate, form, and evaluate positions through the processes of reading, writing, and communicating.