On the recordJanuary 20, 2010
During the 57th Congress, our predecessors passed the Newland Reclamation Act that changed the landscape of arid Western States. Part of the 1902 act, which created the Reclamation Service, included funding for a dam in a narrow, 70-foot gorge in the Shoshone Canyon, 6 miles from Cody, WY. The construction of the Shoshone Dam began in 1905. Workers used 78,576 cubic feet of rubble concrete to build the massive structure. When work was completed on January 15, 1910, the Shoshone Dam was the world's highest concrete arch dam at 325 feet. The total bill for the dam was $1,345,000. Water from the Shoshone River filled a reservoir that covered an area 10 miles long and 4 miles wide--over 300,000 acres of land. Promotional brochures published during the early years boasted that the dam and reservoir created a 'healthful, invigorating and enjoyable climate with an abundance of sunshine and irrigation water.' Further, in an effort to draw enterprising farmers to the basin, they stated the area is 'immune from storms and that tornadoes and cyclones are unknown in the region.' The 79th Congress once again passed legislation affecting the dam-- this time to rename it for one of the West's favorite sons: William F. Cody. In 1946, the Shoshone Dam formally became the Buffalo Bill Dam. While Buffalo Bill may be most famous for his Wild West Show in the early 1900s, he had the vision to harness the Shoshone River to open the area for development.
