Twain Harte Dam

Twain Harte Dam (National ID # CA00649) is a multiple arch dam in Tuolumne County, California. Its reservoir is Twain Harte Lake and it is located near Twain Harte, California.

Twain Harte Dam
Location of the dam in California, USA.
Location of the dam in California, USA.
Location of Twain Harte Dam in California
Location of the dam in California, USA.
Location of the dam in California, USA.
Twain Harte Dam (the United States)
Coordinates38°1′43.04″N 120°14′37.44″W
Construction began1927 (1927)
Opening date1928 (1928)

Developers began building Twain Harte Dam in the summer of 1927.[1] It was completed in 1928 and is owned by the Twain Harte Lake Association.[2] The dam is 36 feet (11 m) high, 325 feet (99 m) in length, and 8 feet (2.4 m) in width.[3] The dam has a crest elevation of 3,509.8 feet (1,069.8 m) and its volume is 1,197 cubic yards (915 m3).

In August 2014, fracturing of a granite dome known as "the Rock" located adjacent to the dam forced the closing and draining of the lake for safety reasons.[4][5] It was feared the dam would fail and there would be a flash flood in Sullivan Creek.[6] The cause of this fracturing is a process known as exfoliation.[7]

Twain Harte Lake is the name of the reservoir created by Twain Harte Dam. It has a normal water surface of 12 acres (4.9 ha), and a maximum capacity of 143 acre-feet (176,000 m3). Its drainage area is 1.04 square miles (2.7 km2). The lake is used for recreation and is available only to members of the Twain Harte Lake Association.

See also

References
  1. "Twain Harte Area History". Twain Harte Area Chamber of Commerce. 2014. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  2. "Twain Harte Lake Association". Twain Harte Lake Association. 2014. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  3. "Dams Within the Jurisdiction of the State of California (T-Z)" (PDF). California Department of Water Resources, Division of Safety of Dams. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  4. Heise, Sarah (4 August 2014). "Twain Harte dam closed after dam springs leak". KCRA. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  5. Caskey, Chris (5 August 2014). "New cracking at Twain Harte Lake dam worrisome". Union Democrat. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  6. Caskey, Chris (4 August 2014). "Twain Harte Lake Dam leak rattles residents". Union Democrat. Retrieved 14 September 2014.
  7. Johnson, Scott K. (10 September 2014). "A big chunk of the Sierra Nevada caught fracturing on video". Ars Technica. Condé Nast. Retrieved 14 September 2014.


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