Damming the Colorado: The Rise of the Lower Colorado River Authority, 1933-1939

by John A. Adams Jr.

Before there was a Lower Colorado River Authority, the Colorado River cut across Central Texas free and unfettered by artificial structures. But the river could be unpredictable and dangerous. In the early years of the twentieth century there were numerous attempts to harness and develop the river. Some Texans desperately wanted private enterprise to achieve that goal, but the job proved to be larger than the resources of the private sector. What emerged in the mid-1930s was a cooperative federal-state approach that created controversy yet results.

John Adams details the dynamics in the struggle of private interests and public institutions to cooperate in the taming of the Colorado. The Great Depression further constricted private capital available for large-scale reclamation projects, but the New Deal entered into the effort. With seasoned Texas politicians in Washington, millions of dollars in federal funds were channeled into the Lower Colorado River Authority. The Lower Colorado River Authority resulted in a system of dams, reservoirs, and hydroelectric power stations.

Intensive research in primary documents, including four sets of presidential papers, and in state and national archives has enabled Adams to trace the development of the accord and relationships between private utility interests, conservationists, and politicians that finally dammed the Colorado and further cemented the precedent for federally funded water and reclamation projects in the West.

161 pages, Hardcover

First published November 1, 1990

About the author

John A. Adams, Jr. received a Bachelor’s Degree, Master’s Degree and Ph.D. in History from Texas A&M. He also completed the Southwestern Graduate School of Banking at Southern Methodist University and holds Certified Economic Developer (CED) credentials. Adams was a Captain in the United States Air Force and served as President and CEO of Enterprise Florida Inc., which is the only public-private statewide economic development organization in the nation.

Adams served as a delegate to the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade negotiations in Geneva, an advisor to the World Trade Organization, Chairman of the Industry Sector Advisory council for trade policy review at the U.S. Department of Commerce and has provided Congressional testimony on U.S.-Mexico border infrastructure issues.

He was an Adjunct Professor of International Banking and Finance at Texas A& M International University in Laredo, Texas. Adams is the author of several books on Texas A&M and the Corps of Cadets, We Are the Aggies, Softly Call the Muster, Keepers of the Spirit and co-author of Texas Aggies Go To War as well as many other books on international trade, economic development and history.