You Won't Believe What is Inside the Black Canyon's Hoover Dam

The Black Canyon's Hoover Dam is a concrete arch-gravity dam in the Colorado River. The giant architecture lies on the border between the US states of Nevada and Arizona and it has impressed tourists and passersby for years.

Constructed during the Great Depression, the marvel of engineering at the time was dedicated to President Franklin D. Roosevelt. Its construction was an incredible feat at the time involving 6.6 million tons of concrete, the work of thousands and even, sadly, resulting in the death of over 100 people.

Today, the Hoover Dam is considered one of the seven engineering wonders of the modern world. It tops out at 726 feet above the Canyon floor and stretches 1,244 feet across the Black Canyon.

The term “arch-gravity” means the dam is thicker at the bottom at 660 feet thick and thinner at the top, a mere 45 feet thick. If all this has tickled your curiosity, the good news is there are tours to explore inside the dam.

The Power Plant Tour will take you 530 feet into the dam where you can view the hydroelectric generators. And a longer Hoover Dam Tour takes you through its passageways.

But if you are too lazy or too far for all that, simply watch this clip where the great What's Inside? family does the tour for you and brings it to your screen!