National Register of Historic Places

Salmon Falls Dam

Rogerson, Twin Falls County, Idaho
Listed
May 14, 2009
Type
Structure
Period
Industrial
Ref No.
09000328

About this property

Salmon Falls Dam is a dam constructed across Salmon Falls Creek in Twin Falls County, Idaho, in the United States. Located about 28 miles (45 km) southwest of Twin Falls, the concrete arch dam is 217 feet (66 m) high and 450 feet (140 m) long, impounding up to 230,650 acre-feet (0.28450 km3) of water in Salmon Falls Creek Reservoir. When full, the reservoir extends for 17 miles (27 km) upstream, encompassing 3,400 acres (1,400 ha). The dam and reservoir control runoff from a drainage basin of 1,610 mi2 (4,200 km2). The dam was built in 1910 to provide irrigation water storage, and is owned and operated by the Salmon River Canal Company. A secondary purpose is flood control: the dam has spilled floodwaters twice, in 1984 and 2017. Salmon Falls Creek Reservoir is also a popular recreational lake, and is considered one of the best fisheries in southern Idaho. The dam was the third-largest dam in the world at the time of its construction. It was part of a major reclamation effort which partly failed due to less water being available than planned, and partly due to unexpected leakage of water through the lava rock used in the dam's construction. The Salmon Falls Tract, the associated reclamation project, was originally termed the Salmon River Tract, and the dam was named the Salmon Dam. That naming "was chosen over Salmon Falls because the project promoters believed it had more appeal, although the dam’s name was changed back to Salmon Falls".

Location

Rogerson, Twin Falls County, Idaho
42.22955, -114.73728

Categories

AGRICULTURECONSERVATIONENGINEERINGEXPLORATION/SETTLEMENT
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Nearby Historic Sites

Rogerson School
Industrial
7.3 mi
Hollister School
Industrial
11.5 mi
Toana Freight Wagon Road Historic District
Listed
14.3 mi
Pleasant View School
Industrial
22 mi
Dau-Webbenhorst Barn
Industrial
24.1 mi

Questions about this property

When was Salmon Falls Dam listed on the National Register?

Salmon Falls Dam was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on May 14, 2009.

What type of historic resource is Salmon Falls Dam?

Salmon Falls Dam is classified as a structure in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Salmon Falls Dam?

The period of significance for Salmon Falls Dam is recorded as the industrial era.

Can I research the history near Salmon Falls Dam?

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