Souvenir spoons from the turn of the century witnessed the beginning impetus for the widespread use of electricity. The easiest and cheapest way to meet this new demand was by building dams and hydro-electric projects.
Most such projects are not in the area that tourists visited, so there are not many such projects for which we have spoons. But in examining my collection, I found a few pieces that fit into this page.
Arrow
Rock Dam, Boise, Idaho
Dam, Marseille, Illinois
Water Works, Morrison, Illinois
Hydro-Electric Project, Sturgis, Michigan
The bowl shows the new "aqueduc (sic) de Ste. Thereze" on the Rio De Janeiro River in Brazil. This American made (Shepard) enameled spoon was probably custom made as a presentation at the commemoration of this aqueduct.
Hand engraved bowl featuring a "levee scene" from Memphis, Tennessee
The tall structures are smokestacks on the river boats
While not a hydro-electric project--it is related to water control.
The 1942 completion of the Grand Coulee Dam just 90 miles northwest of Spokane, Washington resulted in the worlds largest concrete dam and the greatest single source of electrical power in the USA. The forty-six story, 4,173 foot dam has enough concrete to pave a two lane highway from New York to Seattle. The Columbia River lake created by this dam is named after Franklin D. Roosevelt.
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