Lake Mead Cruise – See St. Thomas, the Ruins of Lake Mead

St. Thomas was everything you’d expect an old west town to be in the early 1900’s.

Mormons founded St. Thomas where the Muddy and Virgin Rivers came together. Its access to water gave it a start as a farming town. It had a railroad station, miners, farmers, and various shops that accommodated them.  Over 270 people lived there, according to the 1930 Census. Never did they suspect that in this land of drought and desert, a flood would destroy their town.

Yet that’s exactly what happened.

The Hoover Dam, one of the largest dams in the world at the time, created Lake Mead as its reservoir. Lake Mead was right next to St. Thomas. As the water rose, people began to leave.

The last resident left St. Thomas in 1938, when the water level of Lake Mead finally rose too high.

The water buried the down for 65 years, like a Mormon Atlantis. Recently, climate changes caused the water to recede, leaving the town center exposed.

If you come with us on a Lake Mead Cruise, you just might see the ruins of St. Thomas peeking out of the crusty ground.

The story of St. Thomas is a unique and powerful story of progress, and the things we leave behind to pursue it.

Let us show you Lake Mead on your next visit to Vegas.