Fontana Dam
Fontana Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Little Tennessee River in Swain and Graham counties, North Carolina, United States. The dam is operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the early 1940s to satisfy the skyrocketing electricity demands in the Tennessee Valley to support the aluminum industry at the height of World War II; it also provided electricity to a formerly rural area.
| Fontana Dam | |
|---|---|
Fontana Dam and powerhouse (aerial view) | |
| Official name | Fontana Dam |
| Location | Graham / Swain counties, North Carolina, United States |
| Coordinates | 35°27′8″N 83°48′17″W |
| Construction began | January 1, 1942 |
| Opening date | November 7, 1944 |
| Operator(s) | Tennessee Valley Authority |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Impounds | Little Tennessee River |
| Height | 480 feet (150 m) |
| Length | 2,365 feet (721 m) |
| Reservoir | |
| Creates | Fontana Lake |
| Total capacity | 1,443,000 acre-feet (1.780 km3) |
| Power Station | |
| Installed capacity | 238.5 MW |
At 480 feet (150 m) high, Fontana is the tallest dam in the Eastern United States; at the time of its construction, it was the fourth-tallest dam in the world. The dam and associated infrastructure was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017.
The dam impounds the 10,230-acre (4,140 ha) Fontana Lake, which spreads across a scenic stretch of the Little Tennessee along the southwestern boundary of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The Appalachian Trail crosses the top of the dam. Fontana is named for the now-inundated town of Fontana, a former lumber and copper-mining hub once located at the mouth of Eagle Creek. The town's name was derived from the Italian word for "fountain."