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APHY OGR GE T SPOTLIG H The Tennessee Valley Authority
The Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) is a federal agency that was established in 1933 to construct dams and power plants along the Tennessee River and its tribu- taries. The Tennessee River basin is one of the largest river basins in the United States, and people who live in this area have a number of common concerns. The TVA has helped the region in various ways: through flood and navigation control, the conservation of natural resources, and the generation of electric power, as well MISSOURI as through agricultural and industrial development. The Tennessee Valley covers parts of seven states. Thus, the TVA became an enormous undertaking, eventually com- prising dozens of major dams, each with associated power plants, recreational facilities, and navigation aids. ARKANSAS
HYDROELECTRIC DAM A hydroelectric dam uses water power to r e create electricity. The deeper the reservoir, iv R the greater is the force pushing water
i through the dam. p ip s s si is M
D The generator produces electricity and transmits it through the power lines. A The water is forced through the intake and into the penstock.
C The turbine drives the generator.
E Once it passes through the turbine, the water reenters the river.
B The water force spins the blades of the turbine.
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1 KENTUCKY DAM Over a mile and a half long and 206 feet high, the Kentucky Dam created the 184-mile-long Kentucky Lake, a paradise for fishing.
2 THE CUMBERLAND RIVER A similar series of dams, operated by the Corps of Engineers, is found on the Cumberland River. This system cooperates with the TVA. WEST ILLINOIS VIRGINIA
r 1
ive
R KENTUCKY hio Kentucky ▼ O VIRGINIA 3 NORRIS DAM ver Ri Located on the Paducah ch lin C Clinch River, a Kentucky tributary of the Lake South Holston Tennessee River, and Riv Dale 3 Watauga berl er Wilbur 2 um Hollow Cherokee the Norris Dam is C Center Norris Douglas Nashville Hill Great Oak Ridge named after Falls Senator George TENNESSEE Knoxville r D Cheoah e uck NORTH CAROLINA W. Norris of v R Watts Bar i iver Fort R Loudoun Fontana Nebraska. Norris e e s s Apalachia Santeetlah Glenville was a progres- e Chickamauga n Memphis n Hales Bar sive leader who e Pickwick Landing Nantahala T Nickajack Ocoees called for govern- Wheeler Chattanooga Chatuge Huntsville Nottely ment involvement SOUTH in the develop- Wilson GEORGIA CAROLINA ment of the Guntersville power potential MISSISSIPPI of the Tennessee Tennessee River watershed River. ALABAMA Region served by TVA power TVA Dam
050100 miles
050100 kilometers
THINKING CRITICALLY
1. Analyzing Distributions Locate the dams on this map. Why do you think they might have been placed in these particular areas? 2. Creating a Model Create a 3-D model of a dam. Before you begin, pose a historical question your model will answer. Think about environmental changes caused by the construction of a dam.
SEE SKILLBUILDER HANDBOOK, PAGE R31. ▼
Before 1930, most homes in the area had no electricity. Women wash clothes outside this homestead near IRESEARCH LINKS CLASSZONE.COM Andersonville, Tennessee, in 1933. Their estate was submerged when the Norris Dam filled.
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