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Humanities magazine features Reinhardt’s ‘drowned towns’

Humanities, the magazine of the National Endowment for the Humanities, features an article in the fall 2024 issue, “The Atlas of Drowned Towns: A new digital project looks at the forgotten history of America’s submerged communities,” about the work of Bob Reinhardt, an associate professor in the Department of History and the School of the Environment.

Detroit, demolished
Detroit, Oregon: The town, just before it was flooded by Detroit Dam. Photo provided by Bob Reinhardt.

Reinhardt’s research focuses on the towns and communities flooded in the interest of hydroelectric projects, mainly in the American West between the 1920s and 1970s. Reinhardt, with the support of grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and others, created the online Atlas of Drowned Towns. The public history site catalogs the stories of these lost places with news reports, oral histories, photographs, interactive maps and more. Find the Atlas of Drowned Towns at drownedtowns.com.

Anna Webb, senior communications specialist and editor of Boise State Magazine in the Office of Communications and Marketing, wrote the story for the national publication.