 When Ickes spoke at the dedication ceremony on September 30 , 1935 , he was determined , as he recorded in his diary , " to try to nail down for good and all the name Boulder Dam . " At one point in the speech , he spoke the words " Boulder Dam " five times within thirty seconds . Further , he suggested that if the dam were to be named after any one person , it should be for California Senator <unk> Johnson , a lead sponsor of the authorizing legislation . Roosevelt also referred to the dam as Boulder Dam , and the Republican @-@ leaning Los Angeles Times , which at the time of Ickes ' name change had run an editorial cartoon showing Ickes <unk> <unk> away at an enormous sign " <unk> <unk> , " <unk> it showing Roosevelt reinforcing Ickes , but having no greater success . 
