Sherman's Dam

Last updated

Sherman's Dam was an impoundment built on Hinkson Creek, Boone County, Missouri. The dam was operational between 1894 and 1920. The dam was constructed to provide a water supply for the city of Columbia, Missouri. The remains of the stone abutments can still be seen and accessed from the walking trail at Stephens Lake Park just upstream of the East Broadway bridge.

Contents

History

Marker indicating Sherman's Dam, October 2014 Sherman's Dam marker.jpg
Marker indicating Sherman's Dam, October 2014

Between 1879 and 1889 the city of Columbia experienced a series of catastrophic fires which destroyed significant sections of the town. A lack of adequate water supply to fight these fires was partially responsible for their severity. Then on January 9, 1892, Academic Hall on the University of Missouri campus burned to the ground. Following this event, other cities around the state of Missouri petitioned the Missouri General Assembly to move the university to their location citing the lack of adequate water supply in Columbia. However, the citizens of Boone County quickly raised funds necessary to rebuild. In March 1889 after heated debate, the senate of the Missouri General Assembly overturned a two-day-old Missouri house decision and voted that the university would stay in Columbia but ordered the city to build an adequate water supply with firefighting hydrants in the university area.

Business and civic leaders in the Columbia area created a private company "Columbia Water and Light". The leaders included W. T. Anderson, R. B. Price and I. O. Hockaday of the Boone County National Bank, and Missouri Governor David R. Francis. On December 20, 1892, William Anderson signed a contract with S. D. Gordon to construct the dam and associated steam powered pump and electrical generation plant at the site on Hinkson Creek. The resulting reservoir extended upstream of the dam for about 1 mile (1.6 km). The dam was named after the first superintendent of Columbia Water and Light, James Sherman.

In 1903 in Ithaca, New York, a typhoid epidemic occurred, the source of which was traced to the city water reservoir which was very similar in arrangement to the Columbia facility. This raised awareness of the importance of public water supply for human health and prompted the Columbia City Council to conduct a study of the Hinkson Creek watershed. Various unsanitary hog facilities – where hogs were routinely fed carcasses of horses and cows, runoff from upstream slaughtering operations together with many primitive privies were revealed and resulted in the water supply to be deemed unsafe for potable water. This evidence was used by a citizen activist group called "The Municipal Ownership League" in their political efforts to set up a publicly owned utility which would provide safe drinking water from deep groundwater wells. The efforts were successful and in February 1904, the City of Columbia purchased the assets of Columbia Water and Light Company after overwhelming public approval in a $100,000 bond issue.

There is a marble plaque at the site which reads "SHERMAN'S DAM (JAMES M.) 1st SUP, COLUMBIA WATER – LIGHT, 1894–1920". this indicated the dam was in use until 1920. Thereafter, the deep wells and alternative water sources from More's lake as well as siltation problems ended the utility of Sherman's dam. It is unknown if the dam was demolished or collapsed. Several large pieces of masonry remain in the creek bed downstream of the dam site.

Design and construction

Little is known about the construction of the dam. Efforts made to find photographs of the dam, pump station and electrical generation works have so far proved unsuccessful. The remaining abutments appear to be built of large blocks of limestone varying in dimensions with the largest approximately 4 feet by 3 feet by 2 feet.

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">St. Francis Dam</span> Former dam in Los Angeles County, California, US

The St. Francis Dam, or the San Francisquito Dam, was a concrete gravity dam located in San Francisquito Canyon in northern Los Angeles County, California, United States, that was built between 1924 and 1926. The dam failed catastrophically in 1928, killing at least 431 people in the subsequent flood, in what is considered to have been one of the worst American civil engineering disasters of the 20th century and the third-greatest loss of life in California history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fort Peck Dam</span> Dam in Montana, US

The Fort Peck Dam is the highest of six major dams along the Missouri River, located in northeast Montana in the United States, near Glasgow, and adjacent to the community of Fort Peck. At 21,026 feet (6,409 m) in length and over 250 feet (76 m) in height, it is the largest hydraulically filled dam in the United States, and creates Fort Peck Lake, the fifth largest artificial lake in the U.S., more than 130 miles (210 km) long, 200 feet (61 m) deep, and it has a 1,520-mile (2,450 km) shoreline which is longer than the state of California's coastline. It lies within the Charles M. Russell National Wildlife Refuge. The dam and the 134-mile-long (216 km) lake are owned and operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and exist for the purposes of hydroelectric power generation, flood control, and water quality management.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Calaveras Reservoir</span> Reservoir in California, US

Calaveras Reservoir is located primarily in Santa Clara County, California, with a small portion and its dam in Alameda County, California. In Spanish, Calaveras means "skulls".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Colorado–Big Thompson Project</span> Federal water diversion project

The Colorado–Big Thompson Project is a federal water diversion project in Colorado designed to collect West Slope mountain water from the headwaters of the Colorado River and divert it to Colorado's Front Range and plains. In Colorado, approximately 80% of the state's precipitation falls on the West Slope, in the Rocky Mountains, while around 80% of the state's growing population lives along the eastern slope, between the cities of Fort Collins and Pueblo.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nagarjuna Sagar Dam</span> Dam in Andhra Pradesh & Nalgonda district, Telangana

Nagarjuna Sagar Dam is a masonry dam across the Krishna River at Nagarjuna Sagar which straddles the border between Palnadu district in Andhra Pradesh and Nalgonda district in Telangana. The dam provides irrigation water to the districts of Krishna, Guntur, Palnadu, Prakasam and parts of West Godavari districts of Andhra Pradesh and also Nalgonda, Suryapet, Khammam, Bhadradri Kothagudem districts of Telangana. It is also a source of electricity generation for the national grid.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Alameda Creek</span> River in California, United States

Alameda Creek is a large perennial stream in the San Francisco Bay Area. The creek runs for 45 miles (72 km) from a lake northeast of Packard Ridge to the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay by way of Niles Canyon and a flood control channel. Along its course, Alameda Creek provides wildlife habitat, water supply, a conduit for flood waters, opportunities for recreation, and a host of aesthetic and environmental values. The creek and three major reservoirs in the watershed are used as water supply by the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, Alameda County Water District and Zone 7 Water Agency. Within the watershed can be found some of the highest peaks and tallest waterfall in the East Bay, over a dozen regional parks, and notable natural landmarks such as the cascades at Little Yosemite and the wildflower-strewn grasslands and oak savannahs of the Sunol Regional Wilderness.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Union Valley Reservoir</span> Reservoir in El Dorado County, California

Union Valley Reservoir is a reservoir in eastern El Dorado County, California, about 20 miles (32 km) northeast of Placerville. The 277,000 acre-feet (342,000,000 m3) lake is in Eldorado National Forest in the Sierra Nevada at an elevation of 4,870 feet (1,480 m).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Prospect Reservoir</span> Dam in Western Sydney, New South Wales

The Prospect Reservoir is a heritage-listed 50,200-megalitre potable water supply and storage reservoir created by the Prospect Dam, across the Prospect Creek located in the Western Sydney suburb of Prospect, in New South Wales, Australia. The eastern bounds of the reservoir are a recreational area and the western periphery are within the bounds of Western Sydney Parklands. It was added to the New South Wales State Heritage Register on 18 November 1999.

Hickory Log Creek Dam is a gravity dam on the Hickory Log Creek which runs from northeast and north-central Cherokee County, Georgia, United States, south-southwest to the northeastern part of Canton, the county seat. It is a tributary of the Etowah River, which it meets shortly after crossing under Riverstone Parkway.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Academic Hall</span> Building in Missouri, United States of America

Academic Hall was the original main building of the University of Missouri. It was dedicated in 1843 and destroyed by fire in 1892. Academic Hall's six Ionic columns, today known as The Columns, stand on Francis Quadrangle as the most recognizable symbol of the University of Missouri.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Keith Sebelius Lake</span> Reservoir in Norton County, Kansas

Keith Sebelius Lake, formerly known as Norton Reservoir, is a man-made reservoir on Prairie Dog Creek in northwest Kansas. Built and managed by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation, it is used for flood control, irrigation, recreation, and local water supply. Prairie Dog State Park is located on its shore.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hauser Dam</span> Dam in Montana, U.S.

Hauser Dam is a hydroelectric straight gravity dam on the Missouri River about 14 miles (23 km) northeast of Helena, Montana, in the United States. The original dam, built between 1905 and 1907, failed in 1908 and caused severe flooding and damage downstream. A second dam was built on the site in 1908 and opened in 1911 and comprises the present structure. The current Hauser Dam is 700 feet (210 m) long and 80 feet (24 m) high. The reservoir formed by the dam, Hauser Lake, is 25 miles (40 km) long, has a surface area of 3,800 acres (1,500 ha), and has a storage capacity of 98,000 acre-feet (121,000,000 m3) of water when full.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Salmon Creek Dam</span> Lake in the state of Alaska, United States

The Salmon Creek Dam is a concrete arch dam on the Salmon Creek, 3 miles (5 km) northwest of Juneau, Alaska. Built in 1914, it is the world's first constant-angle arch variable radius dam. Since it was built, over 100 such dams have been constructed all over the world. The dam was designated as a National Historic Civil Engineering Landmark by the American Society of Civil Engineers in 2022.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pactola Dam</span> Dam in Pennington County, South Dakota

Pactola Dam is an embankment dam on Rapid Creek in Pennington County, South Dakota, about 10 miles (16 km) west of Rapid City. The dam was completed in 1956 by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation to provide flood control, water supply and recreation. Along with the nearby Deerfield Dam, it is part of the Rapid Valley Unit of the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program. U.S. Route 385 runs along the crest of the dam. The dam forms Pactola Lake, which at over 1,200 acres (490 ha) is the largest and deepest body of water in the Black Hills.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cedar Bluff Reservoir</span> Reservoir in Kansas, United States

Cedar Bluff Reservoir is a reservoir in Trego County, Kansas, United States. Built and managed by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation for irrigation and area water supply, it is also used for flood control and recreation. Cedar Bluff State Park is located on its shore.

The San Acacia Diversion Dam is a structure built in 1934 for the Middle Rio Grande Conservancy District (MRGCD) near to San Acacia, New Mexico, United States. It diverts water from the Rio Grande into irrigation canals.

Wolffs Run is a tributary of Stony Creek in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania. It is approximately 0.4 miles (0.64 km) long and flows through Hazle Township. The watershed of the stream has an area of 0.6 square miles (1.6 km2). A reservoir known as the Humboldt Reservoir is located on it. The reservoir serves as a water supply and is dammed by the Humboldt Dam.

Flat Branch is a stream in Columbia, Missouri. It was the original water source for the town of Columbia and its forerunner Smithton. It is a branch of Hinkson Creek and begins Northwest of Downtown Columbia. Flat Branch Park straddles the creek between 4th Street and Providence. Flat Branch was so named on account of its low riverbanks.

Grindstone Creek is a stream in Boone County in the U.S. state of Missouri. It is a tributary of Hinkson Creek.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hinkson Creek</span> Stream in the U.S. state of Missouri

Hinkson Creek is a stream in Boone County in the U.S. state of Missouri. Its middle section runs through the city of Columbia, Missouri It was named after Robert Hinkson, a pioneer citizen who lived along its banks. Several trails, conservation areas, and parks are along its path. it eventually empties into Perche Creek southwest of Columbia. The MKT Trail follows the creek in Boone County.

References

    38°56′54.6″N92°18′17.3″W / 38.948500°N 92.304806°W / 38.948500; -92.304806