In this Book
- The Untold Story of the Lower Colorado River Authority
- Book
- 2015
- Published by: Texas A&M University Press
summary
Arguably, no institution has transformed the heart of Texas like the Lower Colorado River Authority. Born in the Great Depression of the 1930s, LCRA built a chain of dams and brought predictability to the cycles of extreme droughts and floods that had long plagued Austin and other communities. It also brought hydroelectric power—and with that, modern-day civilization—to the hard-scrabble regions of Central and South Texas.
With those achievements, and the support of powerful political leaders like Lyndon Johnson, LCRA for years was touted as one of the state’s major success stories. But LCRA has never been a stranger to controversy, and while it continues to provide much of the energy and water that fuels the economic engine of Austin and beyond, most people know very little about LCRA.
In this book, readers will learn about the forces of nature and politics that combined to create LCRA; the colorful personalities who operated, supported, or fought with the agency; its spectacular successes, periodic blunders, and occasional failures; and its evolution as one of the most powerful public agencies in Texas.
With those achievements, and the support of powerful political leaders like Lyndon Johnson, LCRA for years was touted as one of the state’s major success stories. But LCRA has never been a stranger to controversy, and while it continues to provide much of the energy and water that fuels the economic engine of Austin and beyond, most people know very little about LCRA.
In this book, readers will learn about the forces of nature and politics that combined to create LCRA; the colorful personalities who operated, supported, or fought with the agency; its spectacular successes, periodic blunders, and occasional failures; and its evolution as one of the most powerful public agencies in Texas.
Table of Contents
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- Acknowledgments
- pp. xv-xvi
- Part One: Creating LCRA
- pp. 1-2
- 1. The Era of Frustration
- pp. 3-18
- 2. False Start
- pp. 19-28
- 3. New Deal
- pp. 29-38
- Part Two: Dams on the River
- pp. 39-40
- 4. Setting Up Shop
- pp. 41-48
- 5. The Ultimate Project
- pp. 49-67
- 6. The Day LCRA Blew Up a Dam
- pp. 68-76
- Part Three: Low Cost Power
- pp. 77-78
- 7. “We Have Taken Over”
- pp. 79-90
- 8. Living Better Electrically
- pp. 91-104
- 9. Public Power’s Dividends
- pp. 105-126
- Part Four The Winds of Change
- pp. 127-128
- 10. Energy and Other Crises
- pp. 129-143
- 11. The Winds of Change
- pp. 144-156
- 12. The Power to Make a Difference
- pp. 157-170
- Part: Five Water
- pp. 171-172
- 13. Floods and Droughts
- pp. 173-183
- 14. Clean Water
- pp. 184-191
- 15. Last Rights
- pp. 192-202
- Part Six: Parks and Recreation
- pp. 203-204
- 16. The Highland Lakes
- pp. 205-217
- 17. The Legend of Hippie Hollow
- pp. 218-225
- 18. The Colorado River Trail
- pp. 226-236
- Epilogue: Toward the First Hundred Years
- pp. 237-242
- Appendix: State Water Regulatory Agencies
- pp. 243-244
- A Note on Sources
- pp. 251-254
- Selected Bibliography
- pp. 255-256
Additional Information
ISBN
9781623493462
Related ISBN(s)
9781623493417
MARC Record
OCLC
935985653
Pages
320
Launched on MUSE
2016-01-27
Language
English
Open Access
No