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In recognition of Labor Day … This Is Man’s Deed

Sep 03, 2025

Circa 1940, Pensacola Dam construction workers swing a bucket into place during a concrete pour atop what would become the dam’s powerhouse. The construction of Pensacola Dam created thousands of jobs during the Great Depression. As we celebrate Labor Day, we also remember the labor of all those who worked on this project, 85 years ago.

By late summer of 1940, Grand Lake was finally a reality. The major work on Pensacola Dam had been completed earlier that year and the waters of the Grand River had steadily filled the lake throughout the summer months. The dream of a hydroelectric facility across the Grand River Valley – first envisioned by Henry C. Holderman and then pursued by many others – had come true.

One of those present to see that dream go from blueprint to reality was Mrs. Frances Hope (Kerr) Holway. She was the wife of William Rea (W.R.) Holway, who was the longtime consulting engineer for the Grand River Dam Authority. Holway, a graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), was also the lead engineer on the construction of Pensacola Dam.

When that massive construction project – which provided jobs for thousands of Oklahomans during the Great Depression – was completed, Mrs. Holway, who had been a schoolteacher, put pen to paper to celebrate the monumental achievement.

And truly it was monumental. After all, Pensacola Dam stretches out for a mile across the Grand River Valley and is defined by its multiple arches which helped land the impressive structure on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003. But all that concrete, all that iron, all that blood, sweat and tears did not just happen. It took the effort of thousands of men and women, working long hours in the sun and heat, rain and wind, dust, and smoke, to complete the dam that has benefited so many others throughout the years.

With Labor Day 2025 just passed, it seems fitting to recall their labor, from 85 years ago.

With the following poem, Mrs. Holway forever immortalized the efforts of all those who helped to build Pensacola Dam. She wrote, This Is Man’s Deed. It can be found today on a plaque, located on the west end of the dam.

This Is Man’s Deed

Glorious and eternal

These towers and walls

Remember

Dreams of young men

Magnificent in hope

The long and crowded hours

When patient skill

Daring to create

Formed and shaped the plan

And labors heavy round

Brave constancy of toil

Making the vision real

The plan complete

GRDA is Oklahoma’s largest public power electric utility; fully funded by revenues from electric and water sales instead of taxes. Each day, GRDA strives to be an “Oklahoma agency of excellence” by focusing on the 5 E’s: electricity, economic development, environmental stewardship, employees and efficiency.