J. Percy Priest Dam is a dam

Dam

A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...

 in north central Tennessee

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...

 at mile 6.8 of the Stones River

Stones River

The Stones River is a major stream of the eastern portion of Tennessee's Nashville Basin region.-Geography and hydrography:The Stones River is composed of three major forks: the West, Middle, and East forks. The West Fork, long, rises in southernmost Rutherford County near the Bedford County...

, a tributary of the Cumberland

Cumberland River

The Cumberland River is a waterway in the Southern United States. It is long. It starts in Harlan County in far southeastern Kentucky between Pine and Cumberland mountains, flows through southern Kentucky, crosses into northern Tennessee, and then curves back up into western Kentucky before...

. It is located about ten miles (16 km) east of downtown Nashville

Nashville, Tennessee

Nashville is the capital of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat of Davidson County. It is located on the Cumberland River in Davidson County, in the north-central part of the state. The city is a center for the health care, publishing, banking and transportation industries, and is home...

. The reservoir behind the dam is Percy Priest Lake

Percy Priest Lake

J. Percy Priest Lake is a reservoir in north central Tennessee. It is formed by J. Percy Priest Dam, located between miles six and seven of the Stones River. The dam is located about 10 miles east of downtown Nashville and impounds a lake 42 miles long...

.

The Flood Control Act of 1946

Flood Control Act of 1946

The Flood Control Act of 1946 was passed by the United States Congress on July 24, 1946; to authorize 123 projects including several dams and hydroelectric power plants like Old Hickory Lock and Dam in Tennessee and the Fort Randall Dam in South Dakota. It also allowed bank adjustments and...

 commissioned the construction of a project under the name “Stewarts Ferry Reservoir”. Public Law 85-496, approved July 2, 1958, changed the name to J. Percy Priest

Percy Priest

James Percy Priest was an American teacher, journalist and politician who represented Tennessee in the United States House of Representatives from 1941 until his death.- Background :Priest was born in Maury County, Tennessee...

 in honor of the late Congressman from Tennessee. Construction began June 2, 1963 and the dam was completed in 1968. The dam was built under U.S. Army Corps of Engineers

United States Army Corps of Engineers

The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...

 supervision.

Rising 130 feet (40 m) above the streambed, the combination earth and concrete-gravity dam is 2716 feet (828 m) long with a hydroelectric power plant generating 28 MW of electrical power. The dam has contributed significantly in reducing the frequency and severity of flood

Flood

A flood is an overflow of an expanse of water that submerges land. The EU Floods directive defines a flood as a temporary covering by water of land not normally covered by water...

ing in the Cumberland Valley. In addition to the far-reaching effects of flood control, the project contributes to the available electric power supply of the area.

The dam is easily visible from Interstate 40

Interstate 40 in Tennessee

In the state of Tennessee, Interstate 40 traverses the entirety of the state from west to east, running from the Mississippi River at the Arkansas border to the northern base of the Great Smoky Mountains at the North Carolina border...

where it crosses the Stones River.

Reservoir Elevation (behind the dam)

(elevations are in feet above sea level)

504.50ft The dam can hold flood waters up to this level

494.50ft Elm Hill Marina begins to flood by surpassing the individual walkways to the boat docks

494.50ft Hamilton Creek Sailboat Marina begins to flood by surpassing the primary walkway to the sailboat docks

490.00ft Summer Pool (April to October)

483.00ft Winter Pool (November to March)

480.00ft Permanent Pool

Tailwater Elevation (below the dam)

Current Evevations and Hourly Discharge information can be found at: www.tva.gov/lakes/jph_o.htm

Hourly discharge

The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) reports all discharge information online viewable to the public.
Current elevations and hourly discharge information can be found at: www.tva.gov/lakes/jph_o.htm

It has been found that if J Percy Priest dam is discharging up to 9000 cuft/s it takes about 28 hours for the reservoir elevation to recede 1 foot (0.3048 m).

External links

• Priest Dam project changed lives of many - The Tennessean
• View Weather & Maps - Unearthed Outdoors
• www.tva.gov/lakes/jph_o.htm