The Grand Coulee Dam is one of the largest hydroelectric dams in the world, and one of the most productive. Construction started in 1933, in the middle of the Great Depression. It was funded by the Public Works administration, in an effort to provide jobs and eventually power to the pacific northwest. Work was finished in 1942 and the power it provided was instrumental in supporting northwestern industries during WWII. The dam currently produces 6,809 MW, more than three times the power generated by the better known Hoover Dam. In converting the natual downward flow of water into pure power, this dam fulfills the dreams and ideas expressed in so many of Leonardo’s water related drawings.
The dam is celebrated in the Woody Guthrie song “Grand Coulee Dam” with lyrics such as
"Roll along Columbia. You can ramble to the sea But river while you're ramblin' you can do some work for me"
A turn of phrase that, while colloquial, seems to express well Da Vinci’s view on the power of water.
