Wheeler Dam
| Wheeler Dam | |
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Wheeler Dam
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| Official name | Wheeler Dam |
| Location | Lauderdale / Lawrence counties, Alabama, United State |
| Coordinates | 34°48′25″N 87°22′55″W / 34.80694°N 87.38194°WCoordinates: 34°48′25″N 87°22′55″W / 34.80694°N 87.38194°W |
| Construction began | November 21, 1933 |
| Opening date | November 9, 1936 |
| Operator(s) | Tennessee Valley Authority |
| Dam and spillways | |
| Impounds | Tennessee River |
| Height | 72 ft (22 m) |
| Length | 6,342 ft (1,933 m) |
| Reservoir | |
| Creates | Wheeler Lake |
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Wheeler Hydroelectric Project
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| Nearest city | Rogersville, Alabama |
| NRHP Reference # | 16000431 |
| Added to NRHP | June 26, 2016 |
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 to improve navigation on the river and bring flood control and economic development to the region. The dam impounds the Wheeler Lake of 67,070 acres (27,140 ha) and its tailwaters feed into Wilson Lake.
Wheeler Dam is named for Civil War general and U.S. Congressman Joseph Wheeler. Congressman Wheeler was an early advocate of federal development of the Muscle Shoals area. The dam was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2016.
Wheeler Dam is located 275 miles (443 km) above the mouth of the Tennessee River, a few miles downstream from the river's Elk River confluence. The dam is roughly 7 miles (11 km) southwest of Rogersville and about 30 miles (48 km) downstream from Decatur. The dam's reservoir stretches for 74 miles (119 km) along the river to the base of Guntersville Dam to the east. Wilson Dam and the city of Muscle Shoals are located just 15 miles (24 km) downstream of Wheeler Dam. Alabama State Route 101 (Wheeler Dam Highway) crosses the top of the dam.
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Wikipedia