Shasta Lake: Boomtowns and the Building of the Shasta Dam

Images of America: California

by Al M. Rocca

When national newspapers reported in 1938 that a large dam would be built in northern California, hundreds of job-seeking families streamed into Shasta County. Shasta Dam would be America's last large concrete dam and would take years to build, offering employment for those fortunate enough to secure a construction job during the Great Depression. Captured here in over 200 rare photographs is the story of the building of Shasta Dam, the boomtowns that resulted from its construction, and the residents who made the Shasta Lake region what it is today. America's master dam builder Frank T. Crowe and his band of dam builders diverted the Sacramento River and began the massive job of excavating millions of yards of dirt and rock. Meanwhile, boomtowns housing dam workers and their families rapidly expanded, developing both commercial and residential zones. Work on the dam was completed in 1945 and the question arose: Would the boomtowns survive? Featuring images from the United States Bureau of Reclamation and the Shasta Lake Historical Society, this new book focuses on both towns that no longer exist and some that still thrive, including Redding, Toyon, Shasta Dam Village, Project City, Summit City, and Central Valley.

128 pages, Paperback

First published October 28, 2002

About the author

I am currently serving as Professor Emeritus at Simpson University in Redding, California. I teach a course on Curriculum & Instruction for Secondary Teaching Candidates. I have earned an MA in geography and Phd in History. My teaching also includes United States history and world geography. As you can see from my list of books, I have written and published in both the adult non-fiction and children's historical fiction.

I have currently finished a new book titled, Endangered Species: Case #2 Sea Otter Rescue. The book takes place in and around the Monterey Aquarium and looks at the hardships faced sea otters and how aquarium efforts have helped mitigate these dangers.

I also have a major new book that is in its final stages. This book, Christopher Columbus, Pre-1492: The Birth of a Transatlantic Voyage will explain how Columbus's early voyages in the Mediterranean Sea and the Eastern Atlantic Ocean provided an expanding geographic understanding that provided him the confidence to conceive a transatlantic voyage to the Indies--changing the world.

Reviews

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Well put together pictorial history of one of the coolest dam’s I have ever toured