O'Shaughnessy Dam - Shawnee Hills, Ohio
Posted by: 
Mr. 0
N 40° 09.248 W 083° 07.548
17T E 318943 N 4447031
A large dam just outside of Shawnee Hills, Ohio. Provides drinking water for the Columbus area, and provides a means of recreation.
Waymark Code: WM2RM1
Location: Ohio, United States
Date Posted: 12/14/2007
Views: 86
The O'Shaughnessy (pronounced Oh-Shawn-Uh-See) was built on the Scioto River in 1925. It created a source of drinking water for the City of Columbus, and the surrounding areas. The dam is named for Jerry O'Shaughnessy who proposed the idea for the dam, and supervised the projected.
The dam stands 84 feet tall, and is 879 feet long. The O'Shaughnessy Reservoir holds approximately 6.3 billion gallons of water covering a surface area of 845 acres. The dam also serves as a bridge for vehicular traffic traveling on Glick Rd.
In 1987 a pair of hydroelectric turbines were installed. They can only operate when the flow is sufficient, so they can only intermittently provide power. They can produce up to 5 megawatts. In 1990 the dam was placed of the U.S. National Register of Historic Places, and in 1991 the dam was restored.