Description
Correspondence, research data, manuscripts and reprints of writings, photographs and slides, hearing transcripts, students'
theses, etc., relating in part to agriculture, irrigation, and engineering in California, Australia, Canada, Britain, and
Mexico. There are typed cards in many cartons or attached to folders which provide detail on the contents of the collection.
Background
Elwood Mead (1858-1936) was a professor of engineering at the University of California, Berkeley. As a politician and engineer,
he is known for heading the United States Bureau of Reclamation (USBR) from 1924 until his death in 1936. In that capacity,
Mead oversaw the Hoover, Grand Coulee and Owyhee dams projects.