Oahe Dam
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The Oahe Dam is a large man-made dam along the Missouri River, just north of Pierre, South Dakota in the United States. It creates Lake Oahe, the 4th largest man-made reservoir in the United States, which stretches 231 miles (372 km) up the course of the Missouri to Bismarck, North Dakota. The dam's powerplant provides electricity for much of the north-central United States. It is named for the Oahe Indian Mission established among the Lakota Sioux in 1874.
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[edit] History
In September and October of 1804, the Lewis and Clark Expedition passed through what is now Lake Oahe while exploring the Missouri River.
Oahe Dam was authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1944, and construction by the United States Army Corps of Engineers began in 1948. It was officially dedicated by President John F. Kennedy on August 17, 1962, in which year it began generating power.
[edit] Statistics
- Dam height: 245 feet (75 m)
- Dam volume of earth fill: 92,000,000 cubic yards (70,000,000 m³)
- Dam volume of concrete: 1,122,000 cubic yards (858,000 m³)
- Spillway width: 456 feet (139 m)
- Spillway crest elevation: 1,596.5 feet (487 m)
- Lake maximum depth: 205 ft (62 m)
- Water speed through dam: 11 mph (5 m/s)
- Number of turbines: 7
- Power generated per turbine: 112,290 kW
- reservoir storage capacity: 2.35 million acre-feet (29 km³).
- States served with electricity: North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota and Montana
- Number of recreation areas around lake: 51
- Shore length: 2,250 miles (3620 km)
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[edit] Tours
Tours of the powerplant are given daily Memorial Day through Labor Day. Tours start at the Visitor Center, with check in at 9:30 a.m, 1:00 p.m, and 3:30 p.m. Plan an hour and a half per tour, and bring a photo ID. Groups of 10 or more should call to schedule a tour. Tours in the off-season by special appointment only. For large groups and off-season tours, please call (605) 224-5862.
[edit] Native American Displacement
As a result of the dam's construction the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation lost 150,000 acres (610 km²) bringing it down to 2,850,000 acres (11,534 km²) today. Standing Rock Reservation lost 55,993 acres (227 km²) leaving it with 2,300,000 acres (9,308 km²). Over and above the land loss, most of the reservations' prime agriculture land was included in the loss. The loss of this land had a dramatic effect on the Indians who lived on the reservations. One visitor to the reservations later asked why there were so few older Indians on the reservations, and was told that "the old people had died of heartache" after the construction of the dam and the loss of the reservations' land.[citation needed]
Huff Archeological Site is a fortified Mandan village site on what is now the bank of Lake Oahe. It is designated a National Historic Landmark, but is endangered by erosion pressure from the lake.
[edit] External links
- Oahe Dam and Lake Oahe, A Sightseer's Guide to Engineering page
- Boat ramp conditions
- Cheyenne River Sioux Tribe Community Environmental Profile [1]
- Standing Rock Sioux Tribe Community Environmental Profile [2]
- Oahe Dam is at coordinates Coordinates:
[edit] References
- Lawson, Michael L. Dammed Indians : the Pick-Sloan Plan and the Missouri River Sioux, 1944-1980. Norman: University of Oklahoma Press, 1982. ISBN 0-8061-2672-8
- Lazarus, Edward. Black Hills, White Justice : The Sioux Nation Versus the United States, 1775 to the Present. New York: Harper Collins, 1991. ISBN 0-06-016557-X.
- Cornell University site
[edit] See also
| Main stem
Fort Peck Dam - Garrison Dam - Oahe Dam - Big Bend Dam - Fort Randall Dam - Gavins Point Dam |
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Tributary dams |
