 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
History of Carolina Lakes --
Manmade for Man
|
|
mooth sheets of glass that ripple with images of towering pine and tupelo,
the manmade lakes of the Carolinas are home to large and small mouth bass, bream,
crappie, trout, catfish, and other aquatic life.
The miles of shoreline feature
secluded coves, wilderness, camping grounds, parks and hundreds of homes. The
eagle, the osprey, the hawk patrol the skies overhead.
Lurking in the depths of these human creations are buried towns, churches, cemeteries
and dreams. Lake Marion inundated the home of its namesake -- Revolutionary hero
Francis Marion.
|
|
 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
he waters of Keowee-Toxaway cover the ancient Cherokee center
of Keowee Old Town. The lands beneath Lake Murray were once home to 5,000 individuals,
three churches, six schools, and 193 cemeteries. The waters of the B. Everett
Jordan Lake cover the homes of eighteenth century Scottish highlanders.
The United States Army Corps of Engineers, Civilian Conservation Corps, Duke
Power, Santee-Cooper and South Carolina Electric and Gas were major players
in the creation and management of the 42 lakes that dot the Carolinas.
The utilitarian nature of their origins cannot dim the beauty of these lakes.
Many lie within national forests. Others are near urban centers such as Raleigh-Durham,
Charlotte, and Columbia. Lakefront property is valuable real estate. Many lakes
feature resorts, marinas, docks, and boat landings. Building these glimmering
jewels brought recreation to the heartland, the Piedmont, and the mountainous
areas of the Carolinas.
The lakes of the Carolinas are similar, yet unique. Lake James in North Carolina,
named for James B. Duke, the founder of Duke Power, is a 6,500-acre body of
water created by damming the Catawba River. Duke Power has other lakes on the
Catawba River -- Lake Hickory, Lookout Shoals Lake, and Rhodhiss Lake. The dams
at these lakes provide hydroelectric power for the Catawba Valley.
|
|
|
|
|
Bald eagles nest around the dam on Badin Lake and the
town of Badin is listed on the National Register of Historic Sites.
|
|
|
|
|
|
W. Kerr Scott Lake is named for former North Carolina Governor William Kerr
Scott; devastating flooding by the Yadkin-Pee Dee River led the Corps to its
creation. The W. Kerr Scott Reservoir nestles in the heart of the historic Yadkin
Valley in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Thousands of Scots-Irish
and German settlers streamed down the Great Warrior Path from Pennsylvania through
the Shenandoah Valley into the Yadkin Valley and the Piedmont of South Carolina.
In 1945 a disastrous hurricane struck the Cape Fear River Basin. The comprehensive
study of water needs that followed led the Corps to develop the B. Everett Jordan
Lake.
Seven counties in the central piedmont of North Carolina comprise the Uwharrie
Lakes Region -- Anson, Davidson, Montgomery, Randolph, Richmond, Rowan, and Stanley.
The Catawba, Saponi and Pee Dee once lived there. In this area, the Uwharrie
River joins the Yadkin to form the Pee Dee River that flows through South Carolina
to the Atlantic Ocean. The Yadkin-Pee Dee River forms a common boundary between
the seven counties. Six manmade lakes decorate this boundary -- Badin Lake, Blewett
Falls Lake, Falls Lake, High Rock Lake, Lake Tillery, and Tuckertown Reservoir.
High Rock Lake in Davidson County lies near Healing Springs, a former mineral
spring resort. In 1912 a subsidiary of L'Aluminum Francaise began building a
dam on the Narrows of the Yadkin River and the town of Badin. Before the project
was completed, World War I intervened and the French firm sold the dam and town
project to Alcoa. Today, bald eagles nest around the dam on Badin Lake and the
town of Badin is listed on the National Register of Historic Sites.
|
|
|
|
|
Damming the Santee River, one of the longest on the
eastern seaboard, required considerable engineering expertise.
|
|
|
|
|
|
A 1.5-mile-long earthen dam, the largest in the world when it was built, created
Lake Murray, named for William S. Murray, chief engineer for the project, near
Columbia, South Carolina. During World War II B-24 and B-25 bomber crews practiced
low-level bombing on island lakes. Some of these bomber crews flew with General
James H. Doolittle's Raiders on April 18, 1942 when they bombed Tokyo.
Built to supply electric power, the lakes of Santee-Cooper -- Lake Marion and
Lake Moutlrie -- have also served as magnets to draw new industries to South
Carolina. Santee-Cooper provides power to thousands of South Carolinians in
27 counties below the fall line either directly or through the sale of power
to electric cooperatives. Damming the Santee River, one of the longest on the
eastern seaboard, required considerable engineering expertise.
The Corps of Engineers built Lake Hartwell on the Savannah River for flood control
and is named for Nancy Hart, a Revolutionary War heroine. The Hartwell region
was once home to the Cherokee and the lake is near Fort Ninety-Six, colonial
frontier outpost. Lake Russell, another Corps project on the Savannah River,
is named for Georgia Senator Richard B. Russell. The lake opened in 1984 and
is South Carolina's newest lake. The third Corps lake on the Savannah is Lake
Thurmond, formerly Clark's Hill Reservoir. This 70,000-acre lake, named for
South Carolina's senior United States Senator Strom Thurmond, is one of South
Carolina's largest.
|
|
|
|
|
The lakes are balms for the jaded nerves of
commuters and relief for the stresses
of modern life.
|
|
|
|
|
Duke Power Company dammed the Saluda and Reedy Rivers to create Lake Greenwood;
located in three adjoining South Carolina counties. Duke Power also owns Lake
Jocassee, a scenic mountain lake and Lake Keowee, created by damming the Keowee
and Little Rivers. Lake Wylie, built on the Catawba River in 1926, straddles
the boundary between the Carolinas.
Today, the lakes of the Carolinas lure anglers, retirees, water sports enthusiasts,
bird watchers, hikers, and all those seeking an enhanced quality of life. The
lakes are balms for the jaded nerves of commuters and relief for the stresses
of modern life. Artists, photographers, authors, and cinematographers have also
discovered the natural beauty of the Carolina lakes.
In addition to providing electric power and reducing area flooding, many of
the lakes of the Carolinas also provide water for neighboring cities. The B.
Everett Jordan Lake illustrates the multipurpose nature of these lakes including
flood control, outdoor recreation, fish and wildlife conservation, and furnishing
water for the Cape Fear Basin.
Man dammed the rivers of the Carolinas to produce electricity, reduce flooding,
and create reservoirs. The lakes that flooded ancient burial grounds, Revolutionary
battle sites, colonial homesteads, villages, mills, and churches bring recreation,
waterfront living, and tourism to the land-bound reaches of the Carolinas. In
exercising his dominion over the earth, man forever changed the landscape of
the Carolinas.
|
|
|
|
| |
|
|
 |
|
|
|
Alexia Jones Helsley joined the SC department of Archives and History in 1968
and has served as Supervisor of Reference, Director of Public Programs and Director of Education.
At present, she is Director of Special Projects and Editor of the Biographical Directory of the SC House of
Representatives. Ms. Helsley is developing a genealogical guide for the Archives, teaching American History at
USC-Aiken. In 2001, she launched, AJH Historical Enterprises, genealogical and historical consulting business.
A magna cum laude Furman University graduate, she received her MA in history from
the University of South Carolina, and completed doctoral course work in Public
Administration. Ms. Helsley is the author of numerous books and has received
many prestigious awards. She is married, with two children.
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
 |
|
|
