| USA > Oregon > Cascade Locks > Science and Environment > Civil Engineering > Dams |
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Bonneville Dam |
This is a large federal power and waterway project in Washington and Oregon. It stands 40 miles east of Portland, Oregon and controls the flow of the lower Columbia River. The dam is 197 feet high and 2,690 feet long.
Its generators produce power that is marketed in the Pacific Northwest. The dam has raised the river water level and made it possible for large ships to travel up the river 188 miles. Boats pass the dam through a lock 76 feet wide and 500 feet long. Salmon can also pass over the dam by swimming through several fishways to spawning grounds in the upper course of the Columbia.
The US government began building the dam in 1933 and completed it in 1937. The dam carries Captain Benjamin de Bonnevill's name, an army officer who was the hero of Washington Irving's book, The Adventures of Captain Bonneville.
| Location | US Army Corps of Engineers Cascade Locks Oregon 97014 |
| Phone | 541-374-8820 |
