Garrison Dam is an earth-fill
embankment damAn embankment dam is a massive artificial water barrier. It is typically created by the emplacement and compaction of a complex semi-plastic mound of various compositions of soil, sand, clay and/or rock. It has a semi-permanent waterproof natural covering for its surface, and a dense, waterproof...
on the
Missouri RiverThe Missouri River flows through the central United States, and is a tributary of the Mississippi River. It is the longest river in North America and drains the third largest area, though only the thirteenth largest by discharge. The Missouri's watershed encompasses most of the American Great...
in central
North DakotaNorth Dakota is a state located in the Midwestern region of the United States of America, along the Canadian border. The state is bordered by Canada to the north, Minnesota to the east, South Dakota to the south and Montana to the west. North Dakota is the 19th-largest state by area in the U.S....
. At over two miles (3 km) in length, it is the fifth-largest earthen dam in the world, constructed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers from 1947-53. The reservoir impounded by the dam is
Lake SakakaweaLake Sakakawea is a reservoir in the Missouri River basin in central North Dakota. Named for the Shoshone-Hidatsa woman Sakakawea, it is the third largest man-made lake in the United States, after Lake Mead and Lake Powell. The lake lies in parts of six counties in western North Dakota: Dunn,...
, which extends to
Williston-Demographics:Preliminary data from a 2010 housing study indicates that population has grown by nearly 22 percent over the past decade; the actual increase might be much higher. Williston is in western North Dakota's booming oil patch, and adequate, affordable housing has become a concern. The...
and the confluence with the
Yellowstone RiverThe Yellowstone River is a tributary of the Missouri River, approximately long, in the western United States. Considered the principal tributary of the upper Missouri, the river and its tributaries drain a wide area stretching from the Rocky Mountains in the vicinity of the Yellowstone National...
, near the
MontanaMontana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...
border.
Garrison Dam is located between
RiverdaleRiverdale is a town in McLean County, North Dakota in the United States. The population was 205 at the 2010 census.Riverdale was the largest of the construction camps that sprang up in 1946 to house workers building the Garrison Dam just to the west...
and
Pick CityAs of the census of 2000, there were 166 people, 72 households, and 51 families residing in the city. The population density was 951.5 people per square mile . There were 117 housing units at an average density of 670.6 per square mile...
, named after the town of
GarrisonAs of the census of 2010, there were 1,453 people, 590 households, and 362 families residing in the city. The population density was 941.5 people per square mile . There were 655 housing units at an average density of 467.9 per square mile...
, directly north of the dam, across the reservoir. The dam is approximately midway between
BismarckBismarck is the capital of the U.S. state of North Dakota and the county seat of Burleigh County. It is the second most populous city in North Dakota after Fargo. The city's population was 61,272 at the 2010 census, while its metropolitan population was 108,779...
and
MinotMinot is a city located in north central North Dakota in the United States. It is most widely known for the Air Force base located approximately 15 miles north of the city. With a population of 40,888 at the 2010 census, Minot is the fourth largest city in the state...
, about 10 miles (16 km) west of
U.S. highway 83U.S. Route 83 is one of the longest north–south U.S. Highways in the United States, at . Only four other north–south routes are longer: U.S. Routes 1, 41, 59 and 87. The highway's northern terminus is north of Westhope, North Dakota, at the Canadian border, where it continues as...
.
HydropowerHydropower, hydraulic power, hydrokinetic power or water power is power that is derived from the force or energy of falling water, which may be harnessed for useful purposes. Since ancient times, hydropower has been used for irrigation and the operation of various mechanical devices, such as...
turbines at Garrison Dam have an electric power generating
nameplate capacityNameplate capacity, also known as the rated capacity, nominal capacity, installed capacity or maximum effect, refers to the intended technical full–load sustained output of a facility such as a power plant, a chemical plant, fuel plant, metal refinery, mine, and many others.For dispatchable power,...
of 583.3 megawatts.
Average productionThe net capacity factor or load factor of a power plant is the ratio of the actual output of a power plant over a period of time and its potential output if it had operated at full nameplate capacity the entire time...
of 240 megawatts serves several hundred thousand customers.
The construction on the dam necessitated the purchase of 152360 acres (616.6 km²) in the
Fort Berthold ReservationThe Fort Berthold Indian Reservation is a U.S. Indian reservation in western North Dakota that is home for the federally recognized Mandan, Hidatsa, and Arikara Nation, also known as the Three Affiliated Tribes...
that would be flooded by the creation of Lake Sakakawea. These lands were owned by the Three Affiliated Tribes and were sold in 1948 for $5.1 million and ~1700 residents relocated. Construction on the $300 million dam project began in 1947, and its embankment was enclosed in April 1953. The dam was dedicated by
PresidentThe President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
EisenhowerDwight David "Ike" Eisenhower was the 34th President of the United States, from 1953 until 1961. He was a five-star general in the United States Army...
two months later. Earthwork was completed in the fall of 1954 by the Corps of Engineers as part of a flood control and power generation project along the river.
The
Garrison Dam National Fish Hatchery is the world's largest
walleyeWalleye is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the northern United States. It is a North American close relative of the European pikeperch...
and northern pike producing facility and also works to restore endangered species, such as the
pallid sturgeonThe pallid sturgeon is an endangered species of ray-finned fish, endemic to the waters of the Missouri and lower Mississippi River basins of the United States...
.
In June 2011, in response to the
2011 Missouri River FloodsThe 2011 Missouri River floods are a flooding event on the Missouri River in the United States. The flooding has been triggered by record snowfall in the Rocky Mountains of Montana and Wyoming along with near record spring rainfall in central and eastern Montana...
, the dam was releasing over 140000 cuft/s, which greatly exceeded its previous record release of 65000 cuft/s set in 1997. The first use of the emergency spillway due to flooding started on June 1, 2011 at 8:00am.
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