Fontana Dam

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Fontana Dam

Fontana Dam is a Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) hydroelectric dam on the Little Tennessee River in the U.S. state of North Carolina.

The dam is 2365 feet (721 m) long and 480 feet (146 m) high making it the tallest dam in the Eastern United States. It impounds Fontana Lake.

For thru-hikers on the Appalachian Trail, it marks the beginning or end of Great Smoky Mountains National Park, depending on their direction of travel.

[edit] History

Construction on the dam began in 1942 and finished in November 1944 at a cost of $70,420,688.48 (in 1944). The war-time need for the electric power meant that the crews worked around the clock in 3 shifts every day. Welch Cove (now Fontana Village) was constructed to house the workers whose numbers had reached 5,000 by 1943.

The electric generator started operation in 1945 and produced 228,000 kilowatts of power annually. Most of the electricity went to the aluminum factories about 45 miles (70 km) away.

The design of the dam was unusual for TVA at the time. The 480 feet high wall required 2,818,000 yd³ (2,155,000 m³) of concrete. It also does not have a conventional spillway but drains water out through two 34 foot (10.3 m) diameter spill pipes. The design is the work of TVA Chief Architect Roland Wank.