Ocoee Dam No. 2
Encyclopedia
Ocoee Dam Number 2 is a hydroelectric dam on the Ocoee River in Polk County in the U.S. state of Tennessee
. The dam impounds the Ocoee No. 2 Reservoir and is one of four dams on the Toccoa/Ocoee River owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority
. Ocoee Dam No. 2— which was completed in 1913— is perhaps most notable for its design, which utilizes a wooden flume
that carries water from the reservoir down the side of the Ocoee Gorge to the dam's powerhouse 5 miles (8 km) downstream. Ocoee No. 2 is also situated at the center of one of the nation's top whitewater rafting locations, and the dam's releases help to maintain consistent rapids on the river during warmer months.
. Ocoee No. 2 is 12 miles (19.3 km) upstream from Ocoee Dam No. 1
and 5 miles (8 km) downstream from Ocoee Dam No. 3
. The flume connecting Ocoee Dam No. 2 to its powerhouse winds its way along the cliffs overlooking the south side of the gorge before dropping the water to the powerhouse 5 miles (8 km) downstream from the dam. The dam and reservoir are surrounded by the Cherokee National Forest
, and the only major road access is provided via the Ocoee Scenic Byway, a section of U.S. Route 64
.
The dam's flume consists of a wooden trough situated upon a shelf carved out of the cliffside. The trough carries the water to a point just above the powerhouse where it drops the water 250 feet (76.2 m) through two large steel pipes to the powerhouse below. Without this flume system, the dam (at just 30 feet high) would be practically useless as a power plant.
some 30 miles (48.3 km) west of the Ocoee River in the latter part of the 19th and early 20th centuries required large amounts of electric power. Several private entities attempted to meet this demand by building dams that could produce hydroelectricity. In 1910, a group of financiers formed the Eastern Tennessee Power Company to use the Ocoee's hydro-power potential. ETPC completed Ocoee Dam No. 1 in late 1911, and work began on Ocoee Dam No. 2 the following year.
To build the dam, ETPC constructed a wooden "crib" made of 10 feet (3 m) by 10 feet (3 m) timbers, and filled the crib with stone. ETPC engineers realized that if the dam were built at the ideal powerhouse site, it would be unable to utilize the potential energy from the five-mile stretch immediately upstream in which the river drops 250 feet (76.2 m) in elevation. Engineers solved this dilemma by constructing the 5 miles (8 km) flume on the cliffs above the river gorge, which allows just a 19 feet (5.8 m) drop in the water level from the point at which it exits the reservoir to the point at which it spills through the pipes into the powerhouse below. At 14 feet (4.3 m) by 11 feet (3.4 m), the flume was unusually large for its day. The dam was completed in 1913, and its two generators went online in October of that year.
decision forced the company to sell its assets to the Tennessee Valley Authority, which had been established to oversee flood control and development in the greater Tennessee River
valley. The $78 million TVA paid for TEPCO included $2.59 million for Ocoee Dam No. 2.
TVA made several improvements to the dam in the 1940s which increased the dam's generating capacity by 15%. The dam's basic diversion design was used by TVA in the construction of Ocoee Dam No. 3 several miles upstream in 1942. By 1976, Ocoee No. 2's flume had deteriorated, and TVA decided to shut it down. To prevent it from being dismantled, several preservationist groups had the dam and flume placed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1979. TVA renovated the flume with treated wood, and placed it back in operation in 1983. A propane-powered tram
was built above the flume to allow authorities to inspect it.
Tennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
. The dam impounds the Ocoee No. 2 Reservoir and is one of four dams on the Toccoa/Ocoee River owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority
Tennessee Valley Authority
The Tennessee Valley Authority is a federally owned corporation in the United States created by congressional charter in May 1933 to provide navigation, flood control, electricity generation, fertilizer manufacturing, and economic development in the Tennessee Valley, a region particularly affected...
. Ocoee Dam No. 2— which was completed in 1913— is perhaps most notable for its design, which utilizes a wooden flume
Flume
A flume is an open artificial water channel, in the form of a gravity chute, that leads water from a diversion dam or weir completely aside a natural flow. Often, the flume is an elevated box structure that follows the natural contours of the land. These have been extensively used in hydraulic...
that carries water from the reservoir down the side of the Ocoee Gorge to the dam's powerhouse 5 miles (8 km) downstream. Ocoee No. 2 is also situated at the center of one of the nation's top whitewater rafting locations, and the dam's releases help to maintain consistent rapids on the river during warmer months.
Location
Ocoee Dam No. 2 is located 24 miles (38.6 km) above the mouth of the Ocoee River, near the center of the Ocoee Gorge, a steep-sided valley sliced as the Ocoee winds its way westward through the Appalachian MountainsAppalachian Mountains
The Appalachian Mountains #Whether the stressed vowel is or ,#Whether the "ch" is pronounced as a fricative or an affricate , and#Whether the final vowel is the monophthong or the diphthong .), often called the Appalachians, are a system of mountains in eastern North America. The Appalachians...
. Ocoee No. 2 is 12 miles (19.3 km) upstream from Ocoee Dam No. 1
Ocoee Dam No. 1
Ocoee Dam Number 1 is a hydroelectric dam on the Ocoee River in Polk County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. The dam impounds the Parksville Reservoir , and is the farthest downstream of four dams on the Toccoa/Ocoee River owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority. Completed in 1911,...
and 5 miles (8 km) downstream from Ocoee Dam No. 3
Ocoee Dam No. 3
Ocoee Dam No. 3 is a hydroelectric dam on the Ocoee River in Polk County, in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It is one of four dams on the Toccoa/Ocoee River owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the early 1940s to meet emergency demands for electricity during...
. The flume connecting Ocoee Dam No. 2 to its powerhouse winds its way along the cliffs overlooking the south side of the gorge before dropping the water to the powerhouse 5 miles (8 km) downstream from the dam. The dam and reservoir are surrounded by the Cherokee National Forest
Cherokee National Forest
The Cherokee National Forest is a large National Forest created on July 19, 1936, by U.S. President Franklin Roosevelt, operated by the U.S. Forest Service and encompassing some 640,000 acres .-Location:...
, and the only major road access is provided via the Ocoee Scenic Byway, a section of U.S. Route 64
U.S. Route 64
U.S. Route 64 is an east–west United States highway that runs for 2,326 miles from eastern North Carolina to just southwest of the Four Corners in northeast Arizona. The western terminus is at U.S. Route 160 in Teec Nos Pos, Arizona. The highway's eastern terminus is at NC 12 and U.S. Route...
.
Capacity
Ocoee Dam No. 2 is a rock-filled crib-type dam 30 feet (9.1 m) high and 450 feet (137.2 m) long. The two units at the powerhouse downstream from the dam have a generating capacity of 23,100 kilowatts. The dam typically schedules major recreational releases on weekends in Spring and Fall and five days per week in Summer months.The dam's flume consists of a wooden trough situated upon a shelf carved out of the cliffside. The trough carries the water to a point just above the powerhouse where it drops the water 250 feet (76.2 m) through two large steel pipes to the powerhouse below. Without this flume system, the dam (at just 30 feet high) would be practically useless as a power plant.
History
The growth of industry in ChattanoogaChattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga is the fourth-largest city in the US state of Tennessee , with a population of 169,887. It is the seat of Hamilton County...
some 30 miles (48.3 km) west of the Ocoee River in the latter part of the 19th and early 20th centuries required large amounts of electric power. Several private entities attempted to meet this demand by building dams that could produce hydroelectricity. In 1910, a group of financiers formed the Eastern Tennessee Power Company to use the Ocoee's hydro-power potential. ETPC completed Ocoee Dam No. 1 in late 1911, and work began on Ocoee Dam No. 2 the following year.
To build the dam, ETPC constructed a wooden "crib" made of 10 feet (3 m) by 10 feet (3 m) timbers, and filled the crib with stone. ETPC engineers realized that if the dam were built at the ideal powerhouse site, it would be unable to utilize the potential energy from the five-mile stretch immediately upstream in which the river drops 250 feet (76.2 m) in elevation. Engineers solved this dilemma by constructing the 5 miles (8 km) flume on the cliffs above the river gorge, which allows just a 19 feet (5.8 m) drop in the water level from the point at which it exits the reservoir to the point at which it spills through the pipes into the powerhouse below. At 14 feet (4.3 m) by 11 feet (3.4 m), the flume was unusually large for its day. The dam was completed in 1913, and its two generators went online in October of that year.
TVA
In 1922, Eastern Tennessee Power merged with several other entities to form the Tennessee Electric Power Company (TEPCO). TEPCO maintained Ocoee Dam No. 2 until 1939, when a U.S. Supreme CourtSupreme Court of the United States
The Supreme Court of the United States is the highest court in the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all state and federal courts, and original jurisdiction over a small range of cases...
decision forced the company to sell its assets to the Tennessee Valley Authority, which had been established to oversee flood control and development in the greater Tennessee River
Tennessee River
The Tennessee River is the largest tributary of the Ohio River. It is approximately 652 miles long and is located in the southeastern United States in the Tennessee Valley. The river was once popularly known as the Cherokee River, among other names...
valley. The $78 million TVA paid for TEPCO included $2.59 million for Ocoee Dam No. 2.
TVA made several improvements to the dam in the 1940s which increased the dam's generating capacity by 15%. The dam's basic diversion design was used by TVA in the construction of Ocoee Dam No. 3 several miles upstream in 1942. By 1976, Ocoee No. 2's flume had deteriorated, and TVA decided to shut it down. To prevent it from being dismantled, several preservationist groups had the dam and flume placed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1979. TVA renovated the flume with treated wood, and placed it back in operation in 1983. A propane-powered tram
Tram
A tram is a passenger rail vehicle which runs on tracks along public urban streets and also sometimes on separate rights of way. It may also run between cities and/or towns , and/or partially grade separated even in the cities...
was built above the flume to allow authorities to inspect it.
External links
- Ocoee No. 2 Reservoir — official TVA site
- Ocoee No. 2 Recreational Release Schedule