Minidoka Dam

Minidoka Dam
Minidoka Dam and Lake Walcott
Minidoka Dam is located in the United States
Minidoka Dam
Location in the United States
Minidoka Dam is located in Idaho
Minidoka Dam
Location in Idaho
CountryUnited States
LocationCassia / Minidoka counties, Idaho
Coordinates42°40′10″N 113°29′01″W / 42.66944°N 113.48361°W / 42.66944; -113.48361
Construction began1904
Opening date1906; 118 years ago (1906)
Operator(s)U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
Dam and spillways
ImpoundsSnake River
Height86 feet (26 m)
Length4,475 feet (1,364 m)
Spillway typeGated and flashboard section
Spillway capacity40,800 cu ft/s (1,160 m3/s)
Reservoir
CreatesLake Walcott
Total capacity210,200 acre-feet (0.2593 km3)
Catchment area2,231 sq mi (5,780 km2)
Normal elevation4,245 feet (1,294 m)
Power Station
Hydraulic head74 ft (23 m)
Turbines2 X 10 MW Kaplan horizontal turbines
(Units 8, 9)
3 and 5.5 MW Francis turbines (Units 6 and 7),
Units 1-5 retired
Installed capacity28 MW
Minidoka Dam and Power Plant
Area640 acres (260 ha)
Built1904
NRHP reference No.74000746 [1]
Added to NRHPOctober 29, 1974

The Minidoka Dam is an earthfill dam in the western United States, on the Snake River in south central Idaho. Completed in 1906, the dam is east of Rupert on county highway 400; it is 86 feet (26 m) high and nearly a mile (1.6 km) in length, with a 2,400-foot (730 m) wide overflow spillway section.[2]

Minidoka Dam and power plant were listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1974.[1] Walcott Park, close to the dam, is a popular summertime picnic area. Lake Walcott State Park and the headquarters for the Minidoka National Wildlife Refuge are adjacent to the dam.

  1. ^ a b "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. ^ Jackson, Donald C. (1988). Great American Bridges and Dams. The Preservation Press. pp. 289–290. ISBN 0-89133-129-8.