Enloe Dam and Powerplant

Enloe Dam
Enloe Dam from downstream
LocationOkanogan County, Washington
Coordinates48°57′57″N 119°30′03″W / 48.96583°N 119.50083°W / 48.96583; -119.50083
Construction began1919
Opening date1920
Operator(s)Okanogan County Public Utility District
Dam and spillways
Type of damConcrete gravity arch
ImpoundsSimilkameen River
Height54 feet (16 m)
Length290 feet (88 m)
Width (crest)6 feet (1.8 m)
Width (base)41 feet (12 m)
Spillway typeUncontrolled ogee overflow
Reservoir
Total capacity507 acre-feet (0.000625 km3) due to siltation
Power Station
Turbinesabandoned
Enloe Dam and Powerplant
Nearest cityOroville, Washington
Area3 acres (1.2 ha)
NRHP reference No.78002764[1]
Added to NRHPOctober 18, 1978

The Enloe Dam, also known as the Similkameen Dam, and its powerplant are located on the Similkameen River about 4 miles (6.4 km) west-northwest of Oroville, Washington. Located just above Similkameen (Coyote) Falls, the concrete arch-gravity dam stands about 54 feet (16 m) high, with a crest length of about 290 feet (88 m), built between 1916 and 1923. The dam was named after the president of the Okanogan Valley Power Company, Eugene Enloe. The dam was operated to generate power at its powerplant, located about 850 feet (260 m) downstream from the dam.[2] Lacking fish ladders, Enloe Dam blocks fish passage and completely extirpated anadromous fish migration into the upper reaches of the Similkameen River and its tributaries in Canada.[3]

  1. ^ "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ^ Vissia, Rod (November 12, 1974). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory - Nomination Form: Enloe Dam and Powerplant" (PDF). National Park Service. Archived from the original (PDF) on 29 March 2012. Retrieved 7 September 2011.
  3. ^ "Similkameen River". Archived from the original on 2019-03-28. Retrieved 2017-10-19.