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Tallapoosa River

The Tallapoosa River runs 265 miles (426 km)[2] from the southern end of the Appalachian Mountains in Georgia, United States, southward and westward into the Appalachian foothills in Alabama. It is formed by the confluence of McClendon Creek and Mud Creek in Paulding County, Georgia. Lake Martin at Dadeville, Alabama is a large and popular water recreation area formed by a dam on the river. The Tallapoosa joins the Coosa River about 10 miles (16 km) northeast of Montgomery near Wetumpka (in Elmore County) to form the Alabama River.

There are four hydroelectric dams on the Tallapoosa: Yates, Thurlow, Martin and Harris dams. They are important sources of electricity generation for Alabama Power (a unit of the Southern Company) and recreation for the public.

Description

The Tallapoosa River, especially its lower course, was a major population center of the Creek Indians before the early 19th century. The contemporary name of the river is from the Creek words Talwa posa, which mean "Grandmother Town". The Creek consider the Tallapoosa branch of their tribe to be one of the oldest.

Horseshoe Bend National Military Park, a U.S. National Military Park managed by the National Park Service, is located along the banks of the Tallapoosa River just upstream from Lake Martin.[3] It preserves a battle site associated with the Creek War.

The river below Thurlow Dam provides a short run of outstanding Class II, III and IV whitewater kayaking.[4]

Tallapoosa, Georgia is named for the river, which runs near the town.[5]

Impoundments

The first hydroelectric dam in Alabama was built on the Tallapoosa River in 1902, by Henry C. Jones, an Auburn University electrical engineer, at the site of the current Yates Dam. It was destroyed in the flood of 1919 but rebuilt. The dam then belonged to the Montgomery Light & Water Power Company. In 1928 it was replaced by the Yates Dam.[6]

There are four hydroelectric dams on the Tallapoosa River: Yates Dam, Thurlow Dam, Martin Dam, and R.L. Harris Dam.

The table below outlines the four impoundments (dams) on the Tallapoosa River from south to north.

Significant tributaries

The Tallapoosa River's drainage has many significant tributaries which reflected below based on their location within the watershed.

Advocates

The Coosa-Alabama River Improvement Association, founded in 1890 in Gadsden, Alabama to promote navigation on the Coosa River is a leading advocate of the economic, recreational and environmental benefits of the Coosa and Tallapoosa River systems.[10]

The Alabama Rivers Alliance works to unite the citizens of Alabama to protect peoples right to clean, healthy, waters.[11]

Alabama Water Watch is dedicated to volunteer citizen monitoring of water quality in Alabama Rivers.[12]

The Alabama Power Foundation is a non-profit foundation providing grants for watershed, environmental and community projects along the Tallapoosa River and within the state of Alabama[13]

The Coosa River Basin Initiative is a grassroots environmental organization with the mission of informing and empowering citizens so that they may become involved in the process of creating a clean, healthy and economically viable Coosa River Basin.[14]

Major cities

A number of significant cities lie on the banks of the Tallapoosa River. They include:

References

Notes

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference gnis was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline data. The National Map Archived 2012-03-29 at the Wayback Machine, accessed April 27, 2011
  3. ^ [1] National Park Service; Horseshoe Bend National Military Park; Directions
  4. ^ D'Agostino, Mark. "Alabama Whitewater Paddling Guide". alabamawhitewater.com. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  5. ^ Krakow, Kenneth K. (1975). Georgia Place-Names: Their History and Origins (PDF). Macon, GA: Winship Press. p. 220. ISBN 0-915430-00-2.
  6. ^ a b Atkins, Leah Rawl (2006). "Developed for the Service of Alabama" - The Centennial History of the Alabama Power Company 1906-2006. Birmingham, Alabama: Alabama Power Company. pp. 154–55. ISBN 978-0-9786753-0-1.
  7. ^ Atkins, Leah Rawl (2006). "Developed for the Service of Alabama" - The Centennial History of the Alabama Power Company 1906-2006. Birmingham, Alabama: Alabama Power Company. pp. 37–38. ISBN 978-0-9786753-0-1.
  8. ^ "Power Website, Facts About Dams". Retrieved October 14, 2017.[permanent dead link]
  9. ^ "Alabama Power Website, Facts About Dams". Archived from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  10. ^ "Coosa- Alabama River Improvement Assn – CARIA". www.caria.org. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  11. ^ Alabama Rivers Alliance Website
  12. ^ Water Watch Website
  13. ^ "Alabama Power Foundation Website". Archived from the original on February 18, 2007. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  14. ^ "Protecting North America's Most Biologically Unique River Basin Since 1992 — Coosa River Basin Initiative". www.coosa.org. Retrieved October 14, 2017.
  15. ^ "Montgomery Water and Sewer Works Facilities". Retrieved October 14, 2017.

External links