Lake Nottely is one of many reservoir

Reservoir

A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...

s of 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...

. It is located entirely in Union County, Georgia

Union County, Georgia

Union County is a county located in the U.S. state of Georgia. As of 2000, the population was 17,289. The 2007 Census Estimate shows a population of 20,968. The county seat is Blairsville.Its Sole commissioner is Lamar Paris, who has served since 2001....

 in the United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

. Formed in 1942 by the 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...

ming of the Nottely River

Nottely River

The Nottely River is a river in the United States. The river originates in the Blue Ridge Mountains in northern Georgia. The river flows for into the artificial Hiwassee Reservoir in North Carolina...

, Nottely Reservoir extends 20 miles (30 km) upstream to the town of Blairsville

Blairsville, Georgia

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 659 people, 226 households, and 101 families residing in the city. The population density was 619.7 people per square mile . There were 261 housing units at an average density of 245.4 per square mile...

.

Construction of Nottely Dam

Nottely Dam

Nottely Dam is a hydroelectric and flood storage dam on the Nottely River in Union County, in the U.S. state of Georgia. The dam is owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the early 1940s as a flood control structure and to help regulate flow at nearby Hiwassee...

 began in 1941 and was completed in 1942. The dam is 184 feet (56 m) high and stretches 2,300 feet (701 m) across the Nottely River. Lake Nottely has a 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...

-storage capacity of 61588 acre.ft. Its primary purpose was for flood control in the 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...

 watershed, but in the 1950s a single 15 megawatt generator was installed for power generation

Hydroelectricity

Hydroelectricity is the term referring to electricity generated by hydropower; the production of electrical power through the use of the gravitational force of falling or flowing water. It is the most widely used form of renewable energy...

.

Approximately 70% of the shoreline is under the jurisdiction of the United States Forest Service

United States Forest Service

The United States Forest Service is an agency of the United States Department of Agriculture that administers the nation's 155 national forests and 20 national grasslands, which encompass...

 and undeveloped. In recent years, many new homes and properties have contributed to Lake Nottely's growing importance for recreation. Its proximity to Atlanta (2 hours) is resulting in increased use of this reservoir.