Kingsley Dam - Water Dams on Waymarking.com

Kingsley Dam and Lake McConaughy
Kingsley Dam was constructed between 1936 and 1941 to form Lake McConaughy, Nebraska's largest lake and the main storage reservoir for the Central Nebraska Public Power and irrigation District's hydro-irrigation project. Lake McConaughy is almost 22 miles long, covers more than 30,000 acres when full and can hold almost 2 million acre-feet of water.
The dam was constructed by pumping a mixture of loess soil and water (Brule clay) into the middle to form the watertight core while the sides were formed by pumping sand and gravel from the bed to the North Platte River (Lake Ogallala was formed during this process). The dam is 162 ft high, 1,100 ft wide at its base and 28 ft wide at the top. More than 26 million cubic yards of earth were moved during construction of the 3.5 mile-long dam. The face is covered by more than a million tons of rock in several layers and more than 180,000 concrete tetrahedrons.
The dam is named for George P. Kingsley of Minden and the lake for Charles W. McConaughy of Holdrege, both of whom were early advocates of developing the state's water resources for irrigation and power production.

Lake Control Structures
The Outlet Tower (the structure furthest from the dam) is used for normal water releases. Water enters the structure through gates at the bottom of the lake. Since addition of the hydroplant, most releases through the dam are controlled by wicket gates inside the hydroplant. The tower is 185 ft tall and is connected with the hydroplant by a steel-reinforced concrete tube 20 ft in diameter.
The "Morning Glory" Spillway is a flood-control structure that controls the top 16 feet of the reservoir. The spillway is 172 ft tall with a diameter of 101 ft. Its 12 gates, each 16 ft high and 22 ft wide, weigh 20 tons each.

Kingsley Hydroplant
The Kingsley Hydroplant was constructed between 1981 and 1984 to add to Nebraska's power generating capabilities. The 50-megawatt plant, like three other hydroplants owned by Central, is operated from the Control Center in Gothenburg. The Hydroplant is named for Donaldson W. Kingsley, the first president of the Central District's board of directors.
The immense spray of water occasionally seen coming from the plant passes through the bypass valve, which was originally installed as a means by which water could be released through the plant without running it through the turbine. The valve is now used on a regular basis during the summer to maintain dissolved oxygen levels for the benefit of the lake's trout population.

Waterway where the dam is located: North Platte River Main use of the Water Dam: Hydroelectric Power Production Material used in the structure: Concrete Height of Dam: 162 ft Fishing Allowed: yes Motor Sports Allowed: yes Date built: Not listed

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