{{Use mdy dates|date=January 2025}} {{Use American English|date=January 2025}} {{Infobox dam | name = Fontana Dam | image = Fontana Dam in North Carolina is the tallest dam in the Eastern United States 03.jpg | image_caption = Fontana Dam and powerhouse (aerial view) | name_official = Fontana Dam | dam_crosses = [[Little Tennessee River]] | res_name = [[Fontana Lake]] | location = [[Graham County, North Carolina|Graham]] / [[Swain County, North Carolina|Swain]] counties, [[North Carolina]], U.S. | operator = [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] | dam_length = {{convert|2365|ft|m}} | dam_height = {{convert|480|ft|m}} | dam_width_base = | construction_began = {{start date and age|1942|01|01}} | opening = {{start date and age|1944|11|07}} | res_capacity_total = {{convert|1443000|acre.ft|km3}} | plant_capacity = 238.5 MW | coordinates = {{coord|35|27|8|N|83|48|17|W|type:landmark|display=inline,title}} | extra = }} '''Fontana Dam''' is a [[hydroelectric dam]] on the [[Little Tennessee River]] in [[Swain County, North Carolina|Swain]] and [[Graham County, North Carolina|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.

At {{convert|480|ft|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.<ref name=book1>Tennessee Valley Authority, ''The Fontana Project: A Comprehensive Report on the Planning, Design, Construction, and Initial Operations of the Fontana Project'', Technical Report No. 12 (Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1950), pp. 1-13, 43-45, 453.</ref> The dam and associated infrastructure was listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]] in 2017.

The dam impounds the {{convert|10230|acre|ha|adj=on}} [[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.<ref name=book1 /> The town's name was derived from the Italian word for "fountain."<ref name=oliver>Duane Oliver, ''Hazel Creek From Then Till Now'' (Maryville, Tenn.: Stinnett Printing, 1989), p. 69.</ref>

==Location== The Little Tennessee River flows for {{convert|135|mi|km}} from its source in the mountains of northern [[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]] to its mouth along the [[Tennessee River]] opposite [[Lenoir City, Tennessee]]. Fontana is located {{convert|61|mi|km}} above the mouth of the Little Tennessee, in a remote area where the westward-flowing river bends briefly to the south. Fontana Dam is a {{convert|30|mi|km|adj=on}} drive from the three nearest cities &mdash; [[Maryville, Tennessee]] to the west, [[Bryson City, North Carolina]] to the east, and [[Robbinsville, North Carolina]], to the south. The small resort of [[Fontana Dam, North Carolina|Fontana Village]] (which was first built as a temporary workers' village for people on the dam) has developed just south of the dam. The [[Great Smoky Mountains]] rise to the north, and the Yellow Creek Mountains (mostly protected within the [[Nantahala National Forest]]) rise to the south. Fontana is the uppermost of five dams on the Little Tennessee River: [[Cheoah Dam]] is {{convert|10|mi|km}} downstream, followed by [[Calderwood Dam]], [[Chilhowee Dam]], and [[Tellico Dam]]. Cheoah, Chilhowee, and Tellico were all named for historic Cherokee towns.

[[File:Fontana Spill 7 001 (8674996181).jpg|thumb|left|210px|Fontana's spillway in operation]]

Along with covering a {{convert|29|mi|km|adj=on}} stretch of the Little Tennessee, Fontana Lake also extends across the lower {{convert|11|mi|km}} of the [[Tuckasegee River]] (which flows southward from [[Cherokee, North Carolina|Cherokee]] and Bryson City), and the lower {{convert|5|mi|km}} or so of the [[Nantahala River]], extending into the scenic Nantahala Gorge. Several rapid-flowing mountain streams&mdash; some of which drop several thousand feet from the crest of the Great Smokies in just a few miles&mdash; empty into Fontana's north shore. The most notable of these streams &mdash; Eagle Creek and Hazel Creek &mdash; form substantial embayments just upstream from the dam.

[[North Carolina Highway 28]] (which crosses a bridge downstream from the dam) provides the only major road access to the Fontana Dam area. At [[Deals Gap, North Carolina|Deals Gap]], {{convert|11|mi|km}} west of the dam, the road intersects [[U.S. Route 129 in North Carolina|U.S. Route 129]], which continues westward to Maryville. East of the dam, NC-28 follows the lake's south shore for about {{convert|25|mi|km}} before intersecting [[U.S. Route 74 in North Carolina|U.S. Route 74]].

The Fontana Dam site previously hosted an {{RailGauge|800mm}} [[Narrow gauge railways|narrow gauge]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://blickpunktstrab.net/wordpress2/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/tramsderwelt2017.pdf|title=Trams of the World 2017|date=January 24, 2017|publisher=Blickpunkt Straßenbahn|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170216202427/http://blickpunktstrab.net/wordpress2/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/tramsderwelt2017.pdf|archive-date=February 16, 2017|access-date=February 16, 2017}}</ref> [[funicular]] railway for tourists.<ref>[http://www.crossfireforum.org/gallery/data/1189/cablecar.jpg Image of the incline railway]</ref> This has been closed.

==Capacity== Fontana Dam is 2,365 feet (721 m) long and 480 feet (146 m) high, making it the tallest dam in the Eastern United States. The dam has a flood storage capacity of {{convert|513965|acre.ft}}, and the combined capacity of its three generators is 293.6 megawatts. Fontana Lake has {{convert|238|mi|km}} of shoreline and {{convert|10230|acre|ha}} of water surface, and its surface elevation varies by {{convert|57|ft|m}} annually.<ref name=web1>Tennessee Valley Authority, [http://www.tva.com/sites/fontana.htm Fontana Reservoir] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090212133257/http://www.tva.com/sites/fontana.htm |date=2009-02-12 }}. Retrieved: 12 January 2009.</ref>

==Background and construction== [[Image:Fontana-dam-design-tva1.jpg|right|250px|thumb|Design plan for Fontana Dam, circa 1941]] The Aluminum Company of America ([[Alcoa]]) began investigating the Little Tennessee Valley around 1910 in hopes of finding a place for a water power source for the massive amounts of electricity needed at its aluminum production operations at nearby [[Alcoa, Tennessee]]. In 1913, Alcoa purchased the Tallassee Power Company (now [[Tapoco]]), and by 1930 the two entities had completed Cheoah and Calderwood dams, as well as [[Santeetlah Dam]] on the [[Cheoah River]]. By the mid-1930s, Alcoa had assessed the Fontana site and had purchased the initial {{convert|15000|acre|ha}} for the dam's construction.

In 1935, the [[Tennessee Valley Authority]] (TVA), which was concerned with the Little Tennessee's effect on flood control in the greater Tennessee Valley, began negotiating with Alcoa to assume control of the Fontana project. Although Alcoa preferred that TVA build the dam, TVA was unable to get necessary federal funding for the project until the outbreak of [[World War II]] in 1941. Emergency wartime initiatives called for a drastic increase in [[aluminum]] production. On August 14, 1941, TVA and ALCOA signed the "Fontana Agreement," which gave TVA possession of Fontana and control over the releases and output of Tapoco's Little Tennessee Valley dams, and in return guaranteed that Alcoa would be the primary benefactor of the dams' electrical output for at least twenty years. The [[United States Congress|U.S. Congress]] authorized funding on December 17, 1941, and construction of Fontana Dam began on January 1, 1942.<ref name=book1 />

[[File:FONTANA DAM. POWER TO WIN - NARA - 515881.jpg|thumb|right|190px|"Fontana Dam. Power to win." World War II poster]]

The building of Fontana Dam and its reservoir required the purchase of {{convert|68292|acre|ha}} of land, {{convert|5125|acre|ha}} of which were forested and had to be cleared. Some 1,311 families, 1,047 graves, and more than {{convert|60|mi|km}} of roads had to be relocated out of the project area. The towns of Fontana, Bushnell, Forney, and [[Judson, Swain County, North Carolina|Judson]] were completely inundated by the formation of [[Lake Fontana]].<ref name=book1 /> The temporary village of Welch Cove (later renamed Fontana Village) was constructed just south of the dam to house the project's workers, whose numbers had reached 5,000 by 1943 in spite of nationwide manpower shortages. Fontana Village has been adapted and expanded as a summer resort; some of the original 1940s buildings still are used.

The design of the dam was unusual for TVA at the time. It was feared that the 2,818,000 yd³ (2,155,000 m³) of concrete required for the dam would create a structure so massive, that heat released during its setting would be trapped for years, and would eventually cause cracks to form. To aid the release of this heat, engineers divided the dam into construction joints and outfitted them with grout pipes and cooling coils. The dam's spillway presented another problem, as engineers were worried that the water's {{convert|400|ft|m|adj=on}} drop would cause erosion issues at the dam's foundation. A special spillway was thus designed that drains water out through two 34-foot (10.3 m) diameter spill pipes into a diversion tunnel equipped with a deflection system.<ref name=book1 /> The dam's design is largely the work of TVA chief architect [[Roland Wank]].

Fontana Dam was completed at a cost of $70,420,688.48 (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|70420688.48|1944}}}} in {{inflation/year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP}}), and the gates closed on November 11, 1944. Two generating units were placed in operation on January 20, 1945, in time to provide crucial energy for aluminum production in the closing months of World War II. Over {{convert|40000|acre|ha}} along Fontana Lake's north shore were eventually transferred to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and several thousand acres along the south shore were transferred to the [[U.S. Forest Service]].<ref name=book1 />

=== Cracks in the dam === Despite the innovative design of the dam, cracks were observed in the face of the dam in 1949. In 1972, additional cracks appeared and started to expand in 1973. Following extensive investigations, specialists determined that the cracks were caused by stresses in the curved portions of dam from [[thermal expansion]]. The cracking was exacerbated by [[alkali-aggregate reaction]], which causes the concrete volume to increase and develop additional stresses. The area around the crack was [[Prestressed concrete|post-tensioned]] with steel tendons, and an expansion slot was made in 1976 to alleviate the stresses developed within the cracked area.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.lassp.cornell.edu/sethna/SimScience/cracks/advanced/fontana_problem1.html|title=Fontana Problem|publisher=SimScience|access-date=21 September 2018}}</ref> New slot cuts are made every 4–5 years to stop its growth.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.tva.gov/Newsroom/Good-Medicine-for-Fontana-Dam |title=TVA - Good Medicine for Fontana Dam |access-date=2017-10-07 |archive-date=2017-10-07 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171007021858/https://www.tva.gov/Newsroom/Good-Medicine-for-Fontana-Dam |url-status=dead }}</ref> The last cuts were performed by [[Bluegrass Companies]] in 2016.<ref>Archived at [https://ghostarchive.org/varchive/youtube/20211205/Ez6uGRp5BKM Ghostarchive]{{cbignore}} and the [https://web.archive.org/web/20180920194942/https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ez6uGRp5BKM Wayback Machine]{{cbignore}}: {{cite web| url = https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ez6uGRp5BKM| title = Fontana Dam pressure relief slot cut 2016 full | website=[[YouTube]]}}{{cbignore}}</ref>

==North Shore Road controversy== [[File:Fontana Dam from above.jpg|thumb|Elevated view of Fontana Dam]] {{Main|Lakeview Drive}} The construction of Fontana Dam led to the flooding of most of [[North Carolina Highway 288]], which connected [[Deals Gap]] and Bryson City. The [[National Park Service]], after gaining possession of Fontana's north shore tracts, reached an agreement with Swain County in the 1940s to replace the north shore road.

By 1972, only {{convert|7.2|mi|km}} of the road had been completed. People in the area had more appreciation for the effect of such construction on the environment and raised challenges; in addition, the NPS had difficulty securing sufficient funding for the road. In the 1970s, environmental concerns completely halted the road's progress, and locals nicknamed the unfinished road "The Road to Nowhere".

North Carolina's [[U.S. Senator]] [[Jesse Helms]] finally secured funding for the road in 2000, and the NPS for the first time conducted a required [[environmental impact study]] of the project. Published in 2007, the EIS concluded that the road's construction would cause "major, adverse, long-term impacts to topography, geology, and soils" in the area.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070824110559/http://www.northshoreroad.info/deismain/section4/4.2.4.pdf North Shore Road Environmental Impact Statement, Section 4.2]. 2007. Retrieved: 11 November 2010.</ref><ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20070824104550/http://www.northshoreroad.info/deismain/section4/4.3.1.pdf North Shore Road Environmental Impact Statement, Section 4.3]. 2007. Retrieved: 11 November 2010.</ref> Proponents of the road argued that the environmental concerns were exaggerated.<ref>{{cite news |first1=Mark |last1=Barrett |first2=Julie |last2=Ball |date=3 December 2006 |url=http://www.citizen-times.com/article/99999999/NORTHSHORE/61203023/Supporters-say-critics-exaggerate-threats-to-nature |title=Supporters Say Critics Exaggerate Threats to Nature |work=[[Asheville Citizen-Times]] |access-date=11 November 2010 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20120722155437/http://www.citizen-times.com/article/99999999/NORTHSHORE/61203023/Supporters-say-critics-exaggerate-threats-to-nature?nclick_check=1 |archive-date=22 July 2012}}</ref>

In 2007, Swain County accepted a $52 million cash settlement from the National Park Service and agreed to drop its demand for a new road along the North Shore.<ref name="FGH">{{cite news|url=http://www.wral.com/news/state/story/6948672/|title=Feds to pay $52M to not build NC's road to nowhere|date=2010-02-02|publisher=[[WRAL-TV]]|access-date=2010-02-02|archive-url=https://archive.today/20100205205727/http://www.wral.com/news/state/story/6948672/|archive-date=2010-02-05|url-status=dead}}</ref> The final installment of $35.2 million was paid on June 29, 2018. Under a 2010 agreement, the money was deposited with the [[North Carolina State Treasurer|state treasurer's office]]. Swain County can spend only the [[interest]] the money earns.<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.charlotteobserver.com/news/local/article214204949.html|title=Feds broke promises to NC county for 75 years. A big bank deposit changed all that.|last=Henderson|first=Bruce|work=[[The Charlotte Observer]]|date=July 3, 2018|access-date=July 3, 2018}}</ref>

==See also== {{Portal|United States|Water|Renewable energy}} *[[Hazel Creek (Great Smoky Mountains)|Hazel Creek]]

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{Commons}} * [http://www.tva.com/sites/fontana.htm Fontana Reservoir] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090212133257/http://www.tva.com/sites/fontana.htm |date=2009-02-12 }} &mdash; official TVA site * [http://www.tva.gov/heritage/fontana/ TVA historical information] * [http://www.polarinertia.com/nov03/fontana01.htm Fontana Dam Images] * [http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/gmdhtml/nphtml/gsmgrd22.html Maps of the quadrangle]

{{Little Tennessee River dams}} {{Tennessee Valley Authority Facilities}} {{Authority control}}

[[Category:Dams on the Little Tennessee River]] [[Category:Appalachian Trail]] [[Category:Buildings and structures in Swain County, North Carolina]] [[Category:Buildings and structures in Graham County, North Carolina]] [[Category:Dams completed in 1944]] [[Category:Dams in North Carolina]] [[Category:Energy infrastructure completed in 1944]] [[Category:Great Smoky Mountains]] [[Category:Hydroelectric power plants in North Carolina]] [[Category:Tennessee Valley Authority dams]] [[Category:Historic districts in North Carolina]] [[Category:National Register of Historic Places in Graham County, North Carolina]] [[Category:Dams on the National Register of Historic Places in North Carolina]]