To control Flooding of the lower Colorado River, harness the river for power generation and provide water for the growing needs of the southwest economy, a dam was proposed. The Boulder Canyon Project Act was passed by congress in 1928. This act was a go ahead to construct a dam on the Arizona and Nevada border some 30 miles east of Las Vegas. Initially Boulder Canyon was picked for the site. However the site was switched to Black Canyon. By the time Black Canyon was chosen, the name Boulder was entrenched with the project. It was then difficult to change the name. President Hoover’s Interior Secretary Ray Wilbur named the dam Hoover Dam.
As word got out, job seekers flocked to Las Vegas and the proposed dam site by the thousands. Men and their families came to the area by wagon, foot, car, train and horse back. This time in history was the beginning of the great depression and people were desperate for work.
Unemployment reached 80 % in parts of the country. Las Vegas was
unprepared to handle these people and the government wasn’t prepared to hand
out jobs. While waiting for jobs, most were forced to live in tent communities and shanty towns
in and around Las Vegas.
The contract to build the dam was awarded to Six Companies Inc. Six Companies was a consortium formed by six smaller contractors to submit a bid for the Hoover Dam project. Because of the size of the dam many companies did not have the resources to make a qualified bid alone. Six Companies bid was $48,890,955 which was $5,000 lower than the next lowest bidder. There were three bidders. The Bureau of Reclamation had estimated the cost to be just $ 24,000 lower than Six Companies. The contract was awarded on March 11, 1931 and construction started on April 20, 1931. The highly talented dam builder Frank Crowe was picked to be the construction superintendent
As soon as hiring and construction began, people abandoned Las Vegas and moved closer to the construction sight. A new camp was established. It was called Ragtown and was considered a living hell. The average daily high temperature in July was 119 degrees. More than 25 workers and Ragtown family members died of heat prostration. Shelters in Ragtown were made of cardboard, scrap lumber, tarpaper, burlap and etc.. Blankets and clothes were positioned on whatever scrubby trees were available to provide shade. By the end of summer Ragtown had grown to 1400 people. Six Companies erected River Camp, a group of dormitories for single men only on the side of the river near Ragtown.
The federal government had anticipated this problem but got behind on plans to build a city to house the workers and their families near the construction site. This proposed city would be called Boulder City and was to be built on federal land rather than on land controlled by Nevada. The reason for the planned city was to isolate and control the workers and their families. The vices of Las Vegas were nearby. Also Six Companies could not collect rent in shanty towns.
An architect, Saco DeBoer, was hired to design Boulder City. His plan was to build a city as a lush desert oasis designed around concentric circles. DeBoer chose names for primary streets from the seven states that were impacted by the Colorado River project. His plan was scrapped as ridiculous. Six Companies wanted the town built quickly, sensibly, rectangular and leave the landscaping for others to worry about. The town was rapidly built with construction continuing through the spring of 1932. Eight large dormitories and a dining hall for the single men, and rows upon rows of individual houses for families were put into place as well as the Six Companies and Bureau of Reclamation offices.
As in the coal company camps there was a pecking order for housing size, quality and location. The Boulder City housing plan some what mirrored the organizational chart of Six Companies and the Bureau of Reclamation. Placed at the highest point in town the executive lodge and guest house, which was to be used by the Six Companies directors, their families and guests was built. This structure was a large Spanish style hacienda with white stucco walls, red tile roof and furnished at a cost of over $ 30,000. Slightly lower in elevation, a Spanish style home was built for Frank Crowe and his family.
Below Crowe’s house the Bureau of Reclamation built nine houses for their senior engineers and administrators. These homes were brick and tile structures designed in the popular Hollywood Spanish style. These homes had a fire place and were furnished with an electric refrigerator and indoor toilet. Each of these homes were 28 feet deep and 44 feet long. They contained two bedrooms, bathroom, kitchen, livingroom, and a diningroom. Some of these homes had basements. The exterior was Spanish Colonial with Revival overtones. The homes were constructed of rowlock brick and roofed with Spanish clay tile. Interiors were of a high quality finish. I had a personal tour of Mimi Garat Rodden’s home. As I stepped into her home, I felt as if time had stood still. Her home was close to being original with the exception of the screened porch being modified by enclosing it in as a room. The original quality of the interior finish work was exceptional for being 75 years old, especially the oak floors. Close to the Bureau of Reclamation houses, Six Companies built 14 five and six room frame houses for the assistant construction superintendents, high level managers and engineers.
Farther down the hill where the desert was more flat were the workers houses. Six
Companies built cheap frame houses. Two men took 12 hours to craft each house, foundation to roof. In six months 658 houses were built. The carpenters called them “ Dingbat’ houses. They were basically all identical and cost $750 to build per Six Companies. However the carpenters commented it was more like $140 each. If the renters wanted windows and screens it was their problem. These cottage interiors were depressing. In one corner stood a sink on a lumber frame. Across from it was a tiny three burner gas range and oven. The bathroom was located in an enclosed portion in the screened porch with an entrance from inside the house. It contained a toilet and shower, but no sink or water heater. Except for several hanging lightbulbs, the rest of the interior was empty. The pine floors were bare and full of splinters. The splinters were a hazard for small children. Walls were thin with cracks and loose joints open to the wind. Dust continually blew through the cracks. As soon as a family could afford it, linoleum was placed in the home.
These homes were mansions compared to Ragtown. The two-room rented for $19 per month and the three-room rented for $30 per month. Once the workers started to settle in the cottages, the drab shells were turning into homes. Lumber was scavaged to build cupboards and closets. Scrap boards and canvas were turned into window mounted swamp coolers which doubled as ice boxes for milk and eggs. Old sheets, blankets and clothing become curtains. Discarded blasting powder crates served as tables and chairs. As money came in real furniture and refrigerators were purchased at the company store. Landscaping for the cottages was beginning to move along. A total of 1,500 structures were built by Six Companies. Single workers living in the dormitories paid $1.65 per day for room, board and insurance which was $0.05 of the $1.65. Wages for the laborers were $4.00 per day.
Boulder City Company was formed as a subsidiary of Six Companies to manage room, board, and the commercial end of the Six Companies operation, such as the dormitories, workers cottages, mess hall, laundry, recreation hall and the company store.
The extremely hot summer of 1931 was enough for Six Companies to change their mind about the landscaping and parks for Boulder City. The decision to bring in the well known landscaper Wilbur Weed (No kidding) was a political decision. With Hoover up for reelection and strike threats from the workers it would be bad publicity to have a town that contained cottages, cactus and dusty streets. Weed did a great job. By 1932 Boulder City had lawns, parks and trees and was on its way to becoming a real community.
Sims Ely was selected by Six Companies to be the City Manager. Ely was the absolute law. There was no liquor or gambling allowed in Boulder City. He was initially charged with creating a business district for Boulder City. He awarded few permits through a rigid selection process. A successful applicant would pass Ely’s requirement for character, personality, age, physical condition, financial fitness, and past experience. Once the stores were opened, Ely fixed prices so that no conspiring for high prices could occur between the owners. However, the real competition for the independent store owners was the Six Companies Company store. This was the only store in town that offered everything under one roof. It was the only place that the workers could spend the scrip in which sometimes they were paid as an advance for future wages.
At first paper scrip was issued. I was unable to get the start date but it was in use in the summer of 1932. The $5 booklets contained coupons. The booklets were made by Allison coupon Co. of Indianapolis, Ind. There were four different issues of the paper scrip. Each had their specific design and color on the coupons. Was this done to thwart counterfeiting ? The first booklet contained 5 cent, 10 cent and 25 cent coupons. The second booklet contained the same. The third issue contained 5, 10, 25 and 50 cent coupons. The fourth issue contained the same denominations as issue three. There are several booklet covers known in collectors hands. None of the coupons are known to exist.
Many of the workers went to Las Vegas for entertainment. The paper scrip was a problem for the merchants, saloons and the red light district. The workers could not gamble with paper scrip or use it for purchases. The coupons were not good if torn from the book. Even if the worker was willing to discount the scrip for what ever, it was worthless away from a Six Companies business. After successful lobbying by the merchants and local politicians. Six Companies discontinued the use of paper scrip. Coin scrip was then issued starting in October, 1932. With the issue of coin scrip, the merchants in Las Vegas were somewhat happy. Saloon merchants, retail establishments and ladies of the night gladly took the scrip at a discount of 20 to 25 %. These recipients would later take the scrip to the Boulder City Company store and redeem it for merchandise.
The metal scrip is rather nice and well made. From the pieces I have seen, the quality control during the manufacturing was excellent. The reverse shows a picture of the dam as it would look after completion. It is not known what company made the metal scrip. There were both brass and nickel plated brass sets. The denominations were nickel –20mm, dime – 23mm, quarter – 26mm, half – 28mm and dollar – 30mm. It is unknown why both metals were used. One theory posed by Dennis McBride was that one set was held back by Six Companies to guard against counterfeiting. However there is another Boulder City Company scrip that has surfaced. It does not have a picture of the dam on the reverse. Six nickels are known to exist. No one had any historical information relative to this scrip. A mystery to be solved.
The issuance of scrip did create a lot of controversy. Not only were complaints relative to
the use of scrip by workers, independent merchants, but also by politicians. After an investigation of the complaints Dr. Elwood Mead, the commissioner of reclamation, made the following statement: “Employees are paid cash every two weeks. Scrip is issued as credit to employees between pay days. This method is standard business practice and is used by most of the large companies. Because it is the only practical system combining economy, simplicity and service. To advance cash between pay days will require too much additional book keeping.” If scrip were not issued for such current necessities as groceries, meats, bread, tobaccos, clothing, etc, between pay days, This would create extreme hardship to employees and their families. New employees in many cases come in broke and down and out and require credit to purchase shoes, work clothes and other necessities to get along until the first payday. With a floating population such as appears at every construction sites, the tendering of credit in the form of scrip is considered good business as protection to the contractor and preventing the drifting in and out of camp on short notice of workers on the project.
The independent merchants of Boulder City fought back by putting out a full page flyer to the Six Companies employees that they should not be afraid to purchase items from the independents. Six Companies management put out a rebuttal stating that Six Companies employees were not bound to only shop at the company store. They had a right to shop where ever they desired. Six Companies again countered that scrip issued was only 10 per cent of the total pay roll and there was plenty of “real money” to be spent by the employees of their choosing.
The following table presents the actual pay roll and scrip payments from January to June, 1932 and shows that the total amount paid in scrip, as an average over six months, was 9.3 % of the gross payrolls. There was plenty of “real money” to be spent at the independents. The basic problem with the independents was lack of diversity of merchandise.
A — Amount of gross pay roll
B — Amount paid in scrip
C — Percent of gross paid in scrip
A B C
Jan. $443,794,11 $33,962 7.6
Feb. $333,242,86 $28,462 8.5
Mar. $471,806.37 $40,500 8.5
Apr. $464,325.51 $45,496 9.8
May $399,541,83 $40,765 10.2
June $360,807.77 $40,935 11.3
Total $2,473,518.45 $230,120
Monthly Average over six months:
$412,253 $38,353 9.3 %
After the presidential election of 1932 things were changing. Roosevelt won and the democrats were now in power. Roosevelt appointed Harold Ickes to replace Ray Wilbur as Secretary of Interior. Wilbur was a valuable and important political ally of Six Companies. Ickes was an unknown easterner with a reputation for reform. On May 8, 1933 Ickes indicated he would take a personal interest in the goings on at Black Canyon. One of his first moves was to change the name of Hoover Dam to Boulder Dam. He commented that Hoover was not in office when the plans to build the dam were under discussion. It was obvious that the politics changed dramatilly when Roosevelt won. Ickes proceeded to go after Six Companies management practices. He had two areas that were not to his favor. He condemned the use of scrip. He instructed W. A. Bechtel, of Six Companies to cease payment in scrip and to redeem all of it in cash. The second request was to start hiring additional African Americans. There were 24 on the payroll out of a work force of 4000 that grew to a peak of 5000. However Six Companies had a contract with the government that specified who they could hire. Ickles could do nothing about this situation. Later the working number of African Americans dropped to 11. Ickes did hold some power over Boulder City since it was a government reservation. He forced the city to allow the African Americans that worked on the dam to live there.
Scrip was officially stopped May 19,1933. Six Companies proceeded to call in the scrip for redemption. According to J. F. Reis, of Six Companies, of the $ 365,146.60 in metal scrip issued to employees of Six Companies and the Boulder City Company, nearly $ 1,000 was not brought in. Of the $ 121,543.00 let out in paper coupons, only $ 181.60 was not retrieved. This helps explain the scarcity of the paper coupons. After the scrip was called in, Six Companies set up a partial credit system on May 25, 1933 with credit authorization cards issued to the employee and family members for use in several departments in the company store. On June 1, 1933 credit arrangements were good in all departments.
The scrip was given to Sims Ely for disposal. There is no information how the paper scrip was destroyed. The alleged disposal method of the metal scrip was that the Six Companies machine shop workers poured molten metal on the scrip. It then was placed in a metal container, sealed and dropped in the Colorado River. There is a picture at UNLV library showing scrip that was supposedly removed from the river during dredging. However the amount in the picture is a very small fraction of what was to have been dumped in the river. The amount of scrip held by the company was huge. If only dollars were stamped we are talking about 364,146 pieces. Assuming that there was equal dollar value for each denomination, there would have been 2.7 million pieces of scrip. By calculating the volume of this scrip and using the density of brass at 534 pounds per cubic foot there would have been approximately 9 tons of scrip. The size and weight of such a box would have been prohibitive to handle. The big question is how much scrip was pulled from the river or was it pulled from the river? I did see a dollar that had what looked like heat damage. Maybe some of the scrip was destroyed by a cutting torch and a token amount dumped in the river. Being brass and nickel plated brass, the scrap value of this amount of scrip would have been high. It is likely the majority of the scrip was sold as scrap. Six Companies was in Black Canyon and Boulder City for one purpose and that was to make money. Why would they dump valuable brass in the river? With thousands of unclassified documents stored in the Boulder City Museum, the answer is probably there.
What is the value of the scrip to collectors? I saw two nickels in an antique shop. The asking price was $ 70 each. I have seen some pieces ( nickel, dime, and quarter) sell on ebay for $25 to $30 each. I know of two collectors that have several sets. Where is the scrip shown in the picture at UNLV? One collector commented the half dollar appears to be the most difficult to find. At this point I would say R6 to R8 would be my guess on rarity depending on the denomination. Due to the historical nature of the Hoover Dam construction, collectors may be reluctant to part with it. There was $365,146 of coin in play. Are there hoards lurking to be found? Where is this treasure?
The mystery scrip, a nickel (see above), without the dam picture on the reverse recently sold for $19 on e bay. However another nickel is listed by a coin dealer in Reno at $250. There is also a nickel at the Boulder City
museum. A collector owns three nickels. This scrip contains the initials that were stamped on tokens made by Los Angeles Rubber Stamp Company. Based on these letters this scrip appears to be genuine. A number of various Nevada fake tokens were made disguised as being made by Los Angeles Rubber Stamp Company.
When the dam was finished, Six Companies and Boulder City Company ceased all operations in Boulder City. Many of the buildings they built were demolished including some of the small cottages. Many of the houses remain today and are owned by private citizens as well as commercial property.
Boulder City remained as a government reservation until September 2,1958 when the Bureau of Reclamation relinquished control. The land mass of the city at 203 square miles is larger than any city in Nevada. Current population is 15,000. Boulder City is one of two cities in Nevada that prohibits gambling. Liquor is now legal. Boulder Dam was renamed back to Hoover Dam in 1947 by President Truman
One can look down various streets and see the company houses that have been transformed with additions, siding, different colors and etcetera. The Bureau of Reclamation building still stands and is in every day use by the local officers and staff. The Boulder City Hotel build during dam construction was renovated into a nice quaint hotel. It houses the museum, restaurant, gift/art shops. Other buildings contain commercial businesses.
Before we finish I would like to tell a story about the creativity of the workers. Due to the height of the canyon walls and dam, a pebble falling a thousand feet could split open a worker’s head. For protection the workers took base ball caps and dipped them in pine tar multiple times until a thick layer of hardened tar formed. These new “safety caps” were very effective in reducing injuries. Six Companies was convinced and supplied all the workers with factory made hard safety hats making this construction project one of America’s first hard hat projects.
While researching for this article, I met many very nice people. They were very generous in sharing information, and providing leads and great conversations. I am grateful and appreciative of the help of the following people:
Ms. Mimi Garat Rodden —— Nevada Historical Consultant appointed by President Reagan
Mr. Dennis McBride —— Nevada State Museum Las Vegas Curator of Collections & History/ Programs and Author
Mr., Shirl Naegle ——Director Boulder City Museum
Ms. Rosemarie Iliano —Boulder City Artist
Mr. Darrell Mc Garvey —— Boulder City Business Owner
Mr. William Smith — Boulder City Antique and Coin Dealer
Ms. Kelli Luchs — University of Nevada Las Vegas Library Staff Member
Mr. Robert Walsh — External Affairs Officer Lower Colorado Region Bureau of Reclamation
Mr. Bob Ferraro — Former Mayor of Boulder City (31 years public service)
Reference information ;
Hoover Dam An American Adventure by Joseph E. Stevens
UNLV Library Pictures
Boulder City by Mimi Garat Rodden