The pioneering farmers of Central Washington faced an obstacle of inadequate rainfall. Fertile fields would be productive if water could be diverted to the area, leading to the proposal of building a concrete dam across the Columbia River. This would raise the water level and divert it south into the Grand Coulee, an immense natural channel in Eastern Washington. The Bureau of Reclamation was placed in charge of the Grand Coulee project, and still operating it today. On July 16, 1933, an enthusiastic crowd of 3,000 witnessed the first stake being driven into place, initiating the greatest engineering endeavor yet undertaken. Although pioneer settlers lived and farmed the area, the project attracted thousands of men and women to work during the Great Depression era. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt authorized $60 million to get the dam project started which eventually would bring electricity to 11 western states and irrigation to over 500,000 acres of farmland in the Columbia Basin.
The Grand Coulee Dam stands as a monumental achievement of the determination, success and risks of the thousands who contributed to the creation of this giant.