Sartell Dam
Encyclopedia
The Sartell Dam is a dam
across the Mississippi River
in Sartell
, Minnesota
in the United States
. The dam generates hydroelectric
power for the adjoining Sartell Paper Mill
. The dam is referred to as the Champion Dam in official documentation.
Construction of the structure was begun by the Watab Pulp and Paper Company in 1907 and finished in 1911. Seven workers died during construction, most from drowning as a result of washouts on the site's cofferdam
. A cave-in
on the dam's west end also killed the son of the project's foreman
.
The dam was constructed of wooden planks, local granite
, and field stones as well as 25,000 barrels concrete
.
Between 1960 and 1964, the dam was rebuilt by the St. Regis Corporation which had purchased the adjoining paper mill
in 1946. The mill and dam are currently owned by Verso Paper.
Construction of the dam resulted in the formation of Little Rock Lake
approximately five miles (8 km) upriver. The dam itself is 20 feet tall.
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...
across the Mississippi River
Mississippi River
The Mississippi River is the largest river system in North America. Flowing entirely in the United States, this river rises in western Minnesota and meanders slowly southwards for to the Mississippi River Delta at the Gulf of Mexico. With its many tributaries, the Mississippi's watershed drains...
in Sartell
Sartell, Minnesota
Sartell is a city in Benton and Stearns counties in the U.S. state of Minnesota. It is part of the St. Cloud Metropolitan Statistical Area. The population was 15,876 at the 2010 census, making it St. Cloud's most populous suburb and the largest city in the central Minnesota region after St...
, Minnesota
Minnesota
Minnesota is a U.S. state located in the Midwestern United States. The twelfth largest state of the U.S., it is the twenty-first most populous, with 5.3 million residents. Minnesota was carved out of the eastern half of the Minnesota Territory and admitted to the Union as the thirty-second state...
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
. The dam generates hydroelectric
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...
power for the adjoining Sartell Paper Mill
Sartell Paper Mill
The Sartell Paper Mill, officially the Verso Paper Sartell Mill, is a paper mill located in the city of Sartell in the U.S. state of Minnesota...
. The dam is referred to as the Champion Dam in official documentation.
Construction of the structure was begun by the Watab Pulp and Paper Company in 1907 and finished in 1911. Seven workers died during construction, most from drowning as a result of washouts on the site's cofferdam
Cofferdam
A cofferdam is a temporary enclosure built within, or in pairs across, a body of water and constructed to allow the enclosed area to be pumped out, creating a dry work environment for the major work to proceed...
. A cave-in
Cave-in
A cave-in is a collapse of a geologic formation, mine or structure which typically occurs during mining or tunneling. Geologic structures prone to cave-ins include alvar, tsingy and other limestone formations, but can also include lava tubes and a variety of other subsurface rock formations.In...
on the dam's west end also killed the son of the project's foreman
Construction foreman
A construction foreman is the worker or tradesman who is in charge of a construction crew. While traditionally this role has been assumed by a senior male worker, the title in the modern sense is gender non-specific in intent...
.
The dam was constructed of wooden planks, local granite
Granite
Granite is a common and widely occurring type of intrusive, felsic, igneous rock. Granite usually has a medium- to coarse-grained texture. Occasionally some individual crystals are larger than the groundmass, in which case the texture is known as porphyritic. A granitic rock with a porphyritic...
, and field stones as well as 25,000 barrels concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
.
Between 1960 and 1964, the dam was rebuilt by the St. Regis Corporation which had purchased the adjoining paper mill
Paper mill
A paper mill is a factory devoted to making paper from vegetable fibres such as wood pulp, old rags and other ingredients using a Fourdrinier machine or other type of paper machine.- History :...
in 1946. The mill and dam are currently owned by Verso Paper.
Construction of the dam resulted in the formation of Little Rock Lake
Little Rock Lake
Little Rock Lake is a reservoir in Benton County, Minnesota, United States. The lake was formed in 1911 by the impounding of the Mississippi River by the Sartell Dam 5 miles downriver....
approximately five miles (8 km) upriver. The dam itself is 20 feet tall.