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. 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 has been reported unreadable. Marker is near Guild, Tennessee, in Marion County. It can be reached from Serodino Road 0.1 miles west of Hale's

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Bar Road, on the left when traveling 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.

Regionally, this marker is in the American South,

specifically in the Upper South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 6 miles of this location, measured as the crow flies: Hales Bar Dam (a few steps from this marker); Running Water Town (approx. 1.3 miles away); Civil War in Tennessee (approx. 1.8 miles away); Federal-Georgia Road (approx. 2.3 miles away); Ebenezer Cumberland Presbyterian Church (approx. 2.3 miles away); Running Water Creek Bridge (approx. 3.4 miles away); Love's Ferry (approx. 4.9 miles away); Betsy Pack (approx. 5.3 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Guild.

Another marker is no longer nearby. Nickajack Cave (was approx. 1.9 miles away but has been confirmed missing).

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.

Hales Bar Dam image. Click for full size.

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.

Photographed by Edward Troxel, August 6, 2025

4. Location and Capacity Marker

Credits. This page was last revised on August 25, 2025. It was originally submitted on April 12, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. This page has been viewed 561 times since then and 47 times this year. Last updated on August 21, 2025, by Edward Troxel of Creal Springs, Illinois. Photos: 1, 2, 3. submitted on April 12, 2021, by Duane and Tracy Marsteller of Murfreesboro, Tennessee. 4. submitted on August 21, 2025, by Edward Troxel of Creal Springs, Illinois. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.