Pickwick Landing Dam
Encyclopedia
Pickwick Landing Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River
in Hardin County
, in the U.S. state
of Tennessee
. The dam is one of nine dams on the river owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority
, which built the dam in the 1930s as part of a New Deal
-era initiative to create a continuous navigation channel between the river's mouth and Knoxville
, and bring economic development to the area. The dam impounds the 43100 acres (17,442 ha) Pickwick Lake
and its tailwaters are part of Kentucky Lake
. Pickwick Landing Dam is named for a community situated near the dam site at the time of construction. The community had been named after the title character in the Charles Dickens
novel, The Pickwick Papers
.
Pickwick Landing Dam is located nearly 207 miles (333.1 km) above the mouth of the Tennessee River, a few miles north of the point where the states of Tennessee, Alabama
, and Mississippi
meet. This stretch of the river is also a geological boundary between the scattered hills of the Western Highland Rim
to the northeast and the flatlands of West Tennessee
to the northwest. Most of the land just south of the dam and its immediate lakeshore is part of Pickwick Landing State Park
, and Shiloh National Military Park
is located a few miles to the north. Pickwick Lake stretches nearly 53 miles (85.3 km) to the base of Wilson Dam at Muscle Shoals, Alabama
, and includes parts of Hardin County in Tennessee, Lauderdale
and Colbert
counties in Alabama, and Tishomingo County
in Mississippi. The area around Pickwick Landing Dam is sparsely populated, the nearest community of note being the small community of Counce, Tennessee
2 miles to the southwest. Tennessee State Highway 128 crosses the top of the dam, connecting the area to Savannah
to the north.
Throughout the 19th century, a series of river rapids known as the Muscle Shoals (in northern Alabama) were a major impediment to navigation along the Tennessee River and effectively isolated the upper stretches of the river (namely Knoxville and Chattanooga
) from the nation's major inland waterways. The construction of Wilson Dam by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the 1920s and the construction of Wheeler Dam
by the Tennessee Valley Authority in the 1930s flooded a large section of the shoals, but serious obstacles still remained between Riverton and Florence
, especially in the vicinity of Tuscumbia
. As Wheeler Dam neared completion in 1935, TVA knew a third dam would be necessary to connect the reservoirs at Muscle Shoals with the lower part of the river. Several private entities had investigated the possibility of building a dam at Parker's Landing (a few miles upstream from Pickwick), but the Corps of Engineers— which had surveyed the area in the 1920s— suggested TVA build a dam at Pickwick Landing. The Pickwick Landing project was authorized on November 19, 1934, and work began in March 1935.
The construction of Pickwick Landing Dam and its accompanying reservoir required the purchase of 63700 acres (25,778.5 ha) of land, 12590 acres (5,095 ha) of which had to be cleared. 506 families, 407 graves, and 70 miles (112.7 km) of roads had to be relocated. Parts of Riverton and Waterloo, Alabama
were flooded. The residents of the latter demanded TVA purchase the whole town, claiming the reservoir would destroy property values, but TVA declined, citing a study that suggested the reservoir would not have a serious or detrimental impact on the town's economy. Pickwick Landing Dam's original turbines were among the largest propeller-type turbines in the world at the time in which they were installed.
Pickwick Landing Dam was completed and the gates closed on February 8, 1938, although dredge work continued until 1941. The first generator went online in August 1938. The lock was designed by the Corps of Engineers, and its 63 feet (19.2 m) lift was among the highest in the world when the lock became operational on February 19, 1938. Pickwick Landing Dam was constructed at a cost of just over $45 million.
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...
in Hardin County
Hardin County, Tennessee
Hardin County is a county located in the U.S. State of Tennessee. As of 2010, the population was 26,026. The Hardin County seat is Savannah. The county was named posthumously for Col. Joseph Hardin, a Revolutionary War soldier and a legislative representative for the Province of North Carolina and...
, in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of 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...
. The dam is one of nine dams on the river owned and operated by 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...
, which built the dam in the 1930s as part of a New Deal
New Deal
The New Deal was a series of economic programs implemented in the United States between 1933 and 1936. They were passed by the U.S. Congress during the first term of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. The programs were Roosevelt's responses to the Great Depression, and focused on what historians call...
-era initiative to create a continuous navigation channel between the river's mouth and Knoxville
Knoxville, Tennessee
Founded in 1786, Knoxville is the third-largest city in the U.S. state of Tennessee, U.S.A., behind Memphis and Nashville, and is the county seat of Knox County. It is the largest city in East Tennessee, and the second-largest city in the Appalachia region...
, and bring economic development to the area. The dam impounds the 43100 acres (17,442 ha) Pickwick Lake
Pickwick Lake
Pickwick Lake is the reservoir created by Pickwick Landing Dam as part of the Tennessee Valley Authority. The lake stretches from Pickwick Landing Dam to Wilson Dam....
and its tailwaters are part of Kentucky Lake
Kentucky Lake
Kentucky Lake is a major navigable reservoir along the Tennessee River in Kentucky and Tennessee. Created in 1944 by the Tennessee Valley Authority's impounding of the Tennessee River by Kentucky Dam, the lake is the largest artificial lake by surface area in the United States east of the...
. Pickwick Landing Dam is named for a community situated near the dam site at the time of construction. The community had been named after the title character in the Charles Dickens
Charles Dickens
Charles John Huffam Dickens was an English novelist, generally considered the greatest of the Victorian period. Dickens enjoyed a wider popularity and fame than had any previous author during his lifetime, and he remains popular, having been responsible for some of English literature's most iconic...
novel, The Pickwick Papers
The Pickwick Papers
The Posthumous Papers of the Pickwick Club is the first novel by Charles Dickens. After the publication, the widow of the illustrator Robert Seymour claimed that the idea for the novel was originally her husband's; however, in his preface to the 1867 edition, Dickens strenuously denied any...
.
Location
Alabama
Alabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, and Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
meet. This stretch of the river is also a geological boundary between the scattered hills of the Western Highland Rim
Highland Rim
The Highland Rim is a geographic term for the area in Tennessee surrounding the Central Basin. Nashville is largely surrounded by higher terrain in all directions....
to the northeast and the flatlands of West Tennessee
West Tennessee
West Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of the State of Tennessee. Of the three, it is the one that is most sharply defined geographically. Its boundaries are the Mississippi River on the west and the Tennessee River on the east...
to the northwest. Most of the land just south of the dam and its immediate lakeshore is part of Pickwick Landing State Park
Pickwick Landing State Park
Pickwick Landing State Park is a state park in Hardin County, Tennessee, located in the Southeastern United States. The park is situated around the Pickwick Lake impoundment of the Tennessee River, and is named for Pickwick Landing, a 19th-century riverboat stop.-External links:* — official...
, and Shiloh National Military Park
Shiloh National Military Park
Shiloh National Military Park preserves the American Civil War Shiloh and Corinth battlefields. The main section of the park is in the unincorporated town of Shiloh, about nine miles south of Savannah, Tennessee, with an additional area located in the city of Corinth, Mississippi, 23 miles ...
is located a few miles to the north. Pickwick Lake stretches nearly 53 miles (85.3 km) to the base of Wilson Dam at Muscle Shoals, Alabama
Muscle Shoals, Alabama
Muscle Shoals is a city in Colbert County, Alabama, United States. As of 2007, the United States Census Bureau estimated the population of the city to be 12,846. The city is included in The Shoals MSA. It is famous for its contributions to American popular music.-Geography:Muscle Shoals is located...
, and includes parts of Hardin County in Tennessee, Lauderdale
Lauderdale County, Alabama
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*86.4% White*10.0% Black*0.4% Native American*0.7% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*1.4% Two or more races*2.2% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
and Colbert
Colbert County, Alabama
Colbert County is a county of the U.S. state of Alabama. Its name is in honor of brothers George and Levi Colbert, Chickasaw Indian chiefs. George Colbert operated a ferry across the Tennessee River in 1790 near present day Cherokee....
counties in Alabama, and Tishomingo County
Tishomingo County, Mississippi
As of the census of 2000 there were 19,163 people, 7,917 households, and 5,573 families residing in the county. The population density was 45 people per square mile . There were 9,553 housing units at an average density of 22 per square mile...
in Mississippi. The area around Pickwick Landing Dam is sparsely populated, the nearest community of note being the small community of Counce, Tennessee
Counce, Tennessee
Counce is an unincorporated community in Hardin County, Tennessee, United States. Counce is located on Tennessee State Route 57 near the Mississippi border. The community is adjacent to the Tennessee River near the Pickwick Landing Dam...
2 miles to the southwest. Tennessee State Highway 128 crosses the top of the dam, connecting the area to Savannah
Savannah, Tennessee
Savannah is a city in Hardin County, Tennessee, United States. The population was 6,917 at the 2000 census and the 2007 population estimate was 7,262. It is the county seat of Hardin County. Savannah hosted the NAIA college football national championship game from 1996-2007. Savannah is home to...
to the north.
Capacity
Pickwick Landing Dam is 113 feet (34.4 m) high and 7715 feet (2,351.5 m) long, and has a generating capacity of 240,200 kilowatts. The dam's spillway has 22 bays with a combined discharge of 650000 cuft/s. Pickwick Lake has 496 miles (798.2 km) of shoreline and 43100 acres (17,442 ha) of water surface, and has a flood-storage capacity of 417700 acre.ft.Pickwick Landing Dam is serviced by two locks— one measuring 110 by and the other measuring 110 by. The locks' lift raises and lowers vessels up to 63 feet (19.2 m) between Pickwick and Kentucky lakes.Background and construction
Chattanooga, Tennessee
Chattanooga is the fourth-largest city in the US state of Tennessee , with a population of 169,887. It is the seat of Hamilton County...
) from the nation's major inland waterways. The construction of Wilson Dam by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in the 1920s and the construction of Wheeler Dam
Wheeler Dam
Wheeler Dam is a hydroelectric dam on the Tennessee River between Lauderdale County and Lawrence County in the U.S. state of Alabama. It is one of nine dams on the river owned and operated by the Tennessee Valley Authority, which built the dam in the mid-1930s as part of a New Deal-era initiative...
by the Tennessee Valley Authority in the 1930s flooded a large section of the shoals, but serious obstacles still remained between Riverton and Florence
Florence, Alabama
Florence is the county seat of Lauderdale County, Alabama, United States, in the northwestern corner of the state.According to the 2005 Census Bureau estimates, the city's population was 36,721....
, especially in the vicinity of Tuscumbia
Tuscumbia, Alabama
Tuscumbia is a city in and the county seat of Colbert County, Alabama, United States. As of the 2010 census, the population was 8,423 and is included in The Shoals MSA....
. As Wheeler Dam neared completion in 1935, TVA knew a third dam would be necessary to connect the reservoirs at Muscle Shoals with the lower part of the river. Several private entities had investigated the possibility of building a dam at Parker's Landing (a few miles upstream from Pickwick), but the Corps of Engineers— which had surveyed the area in the 1920s— suggested TVA build a dam at Pickwick Landing. The Pickwick Landing project was authorized on November 19, 1934, and work began in March 1935.
Waterloo, Alabama
Waterloo is a town in Lauderdale County, Alabama, United States. It is part of the Florence - Muscle Shoals Metropolitan Statistical Area known as "The Shoals". As of the 2000 census, the population of the town is 208. The town was incorporated in on the banks of the Tennessee River...
were flooded. The residents of the latter demanded TVA purchase the whole town, claiming the reservoir would destroy property values, but TVA declined, citing a study that suggested the reservoir would not have a serious or detrimental impact on the town's economy. Pickwick Landing Dam's original turbines were among the largest propeller-type turbines in the world at the time in which they were installed.
Pickwick Landing Dam was completed and the gates closed on February 8, 1938, although dredge work continued until 1941. The first generator went online in August 1938. The lock was designed by the Corps of Engineers, and its 63 feet (19.2 m) lift was among the highest in the world when the lock became operational on February 19, 1938. Pickwick Landing Dam was constructed at a cost of just over $45 million.
See also
- Dams and reservoirs of the Tennessee RiverDams and reservoirs of the Tennessee RiverThe Tennessee Valley Authority operates the Tennessee River system to provide a wide range of public benefits: year-round navigation, flood damage reduction, affordable electricity, improved water quality and water supply, recreation, and economic growth....
- List of crossings of the Tennessee River