Grand Coulee Dam crane-lifted buckets, each supporting eight tons of concrete. To cool the concrete and facilitate curing, about of piping was placed throughout the hardening mass. Cold water from the river was pumped into the pipes, reducing the temperature within the forms from to . This caused the dam to contract about eight inches in length; the resulting gaps were filled with grout. Until the project began, the stretch of the Columbia River where the dam was to rise was as yet unbridged, making it difficult to move men and materials. In , the Grand Coulee Bridge (a permanent highway bridge) was
Grand Coulee, Washington Grand Coulee, Washington Grand Coulee is a city in Grant County, Washington, United States. The population was 988 at the 2010 census. Grand Coulee was officially incorporated on November 6, 1935. It is located above the Grand Coulee Dam and next to North Dam. Grand Coulee is located at (47.939706, -119.001597). According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which, is land and is water. As of the census of 2010, there were 988 people, 474 households, and 246 families residing in the city. The population density was . There were 554