Near Guild in Marion County, Tennessee — The American South (East South Central)
Location and Capacity
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, April 11, 2021
1. Location and Capacity Marker
Inscription.
Location and Capacity. . Hales Bar Dam was located along the Tennessee River at just over 431 miles (694 km) above the river's mouth, near the southwest end of the Tennessee River Gorge. The dam's reservoir extended up the river through the gorge all the way to Chattanooga, and had 162 miles (261 km) of shoreline. Before the construction of Hales Bar, this was a particularly unpredictable and dangerous section of the river, with numerous navigation obstacles. Downstream from the dam site, the river begins to steady as it enters the hills and flatlands near Guntersville. Hales Bar Dam was 113 feet (34 m) high and 2,315 feet (706 m) long, and its spillway had a combined discharge capacity of 224,000 cubic feet per second. After improvements by TVA in 1949, the dam had a generating capacity of 99,700 kilowatts. The dam's lock, which went into operation on November 1, 1913, was 60 feet (18 m) by 260 feet (79 m), and its 41-foot (12 m) lift was the highest in the world at that time.
Hales Bar Dam was located along the Tennessee River at just over 431 miles (694 km) above the river's mouth, near the southwest end of the Tennessee River Gorge. The dam's reservoir extended up the river through the gorge all the way to Chattanooga, and had 162 miles (261 km) of shoreline. Before the construction of Hales Bar, this was a
particularly unpredictable and dangerous section of the river, with numerous navigation obstacles. Downstream from the dam site, the river begins to steady as it enters the hills and flatlands near Guntersville. Hales Bar Dam was 113 feet (34 m) high and 2,315 feet (706 m) long, and its spillway had a combined discharge capacity of 224,000
cubic feet per second. After improvements by TVA in 1949, the dam had a generating capacity of 99,700 kilowatts. The dam's lock, which went into operation on November 1, 1913, was 60 feet (18 m) by 260 feet (79 m), and its 41-foot (12 m) lift was the highest in the world at that time.
Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Man-Made Features • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical date for this entry is November 1, 1913.
Location. 35° 2.77′ N, 85° 32.256′ W. Marker is near Guild, Tennessee, in Marion County. Marker can be reached from Serodino Road, 0.1 miles west of Hale's Bar Road, on the left when traveling
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west. Marker is at Historic Hales Bar Dam Powerhouse. Touch for map. Marker is at or near this postal address: 1265 Hales Bar Road, Guild TN 37340, United States of America. Touch for directions.
Also see . . . Hales Bar Dam (Wikipedia). (Submitted on April 12, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.)
Photographed By Duane and Tracy Marsteller, April 11, 2021
2. Location and Capacity Marker
The Hales Bar Dam Powerhouse is in the background.
Tennessee Valley Authority/Public domain, circa 1949
3. Hales Bar Dam
From The Nickajack Project: A Report on the Planning, Design, Construction, Initial Operations, and Costs, Technical Report No. 16 (Knoxville, Tenn.: Tennessee Valley Authority, 1972). Pixelation in the image was caused by the digital scan, and is not present in the original image.
Credits. This page was last revised on April 12, 2021. It was originally submitted on April 12, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 176 times since then and 35 times this year. Photos:1, 2, 3. submitted on April 12, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee.
