Olmos Dam

Olmos Dam is a detention dam located on the San Antonio River in San Antonio, Texas.[1][2] It was built in the 1920s, following the disastrous September 1921 San Antonio floods.[3] Work began on the dam on January 19, 1925,[4] and it was completed in 1926;[2][5][6][7] in 1929 a cut-off channel, to allow excess water to bypass the Great Bend in downtown,[8] was completed. Projects, which together have been providing flood control.[clarification needed][9]

In the 1970s, improvements were made by the City of San Antonio and the San Antonio River Authority.[10][11] In March 1979, an improvement was made to strengthen and anchor the dam, as well as modifying gate operations, in order to provide an emergency spillway.[5]

There are six gates within the dam, two of which are open at all times to a height of 2 ft (0.61 m). They are rotated once a week. Each gate is controlled via an actuator that is situated inside the dam's gatehouse.

San Antonio Express-News history columnist Paula Allen has referred to the dam as "the jewel in the crown of San Antonio’s system of flood control."[4]

It has become a "staple structure north of downtown San Antonio."[3]

Excavations in the area around Olmos Dam, both prior to the dam's construction in the 1920s and in subsequent excavations such as in 1979, have yielded a good number of Native American artifacts.[12][2]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Dams and Reservoirs in Texas: Historical and Descriptive Information, December 31, 1966," Cleo LaFoy Dowell, Seth Darnaby Breeding, Texas Water Development Board, 1967. p.36
  2. ^ a b c "Olmos Dam Site". car.utsa.edu. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  3. ^ a b Carnett, Lindsey (May 25, 2018). "SA Gears: A look inside Olmos Dam". mySA. Retrieved December 25, 2020.
  4. ^ a b Allen, Paula (May 24, 2015). "Scenic dam drive scrapped for security". ExpressNews.com. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  5. ^ a b "Olmos Reservoir (San Antonio River Basin) | Texas Water Development Board". www.twdb.texas.gov. Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  6. ^ "Olmos Dam Restoration: Aggregate Technologies, Houston/Baton Rouge". Retrieved December 27, 2020.
  7. ^ Fisher, Lewis F. (2007). River Walk: The Epic Story of San Antonio's River. Maverick Publishing Company. ISBN 978-1-893271-40-1. p.67
  8. ^ "The San Antonio River". www.edwardsaquifer.net. Retrieved January 12, 2021.
  9. ^ Brown, Amy K. (August 8, 2017). Explorer's Guide Austin, San Antonio, & the Hill Country (Third Edition) (Explorer's Complete). The Countryman Press. ISBN 978-1-68268-045-2.
  10. ^ San Antonio River Channel Improvement: Environmental Impact Statement. 1972.
  11. ^ McDonald, James E.; Curtis, Nancy F.; Program, Repair, Evaluation, Maintenance, and Rehabilitation Research; Center (U.S.), Engineer Research and Development; Engineers, United States Army Corps of (1999). Repair and Rehabilitation of Dams: Case Studies. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Engineer Research and Development Center.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) pp. 207-8
  12. ^ The Texas Journal of Science. Anchor Publishing Company. 1953.

29°28′25″N 98°28′27″W / 29.4735°N 98.4742°W / 29.4735; -98.4742


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