Meyers Falls Dam - Kettle Falls, WA
Posted by: 
T0SHEA
N 48° 35.687 W 118° 03.478
11U E 421992 N 5382951
Built in 1961 on the Colville River, this small dam provides a reservoir for a small hydroelectric station of about 59 MW output at Meyers Falls, south of the City of Kettle Falls.
Waymark Code: WMK7CF
Location: Washington, United States
Date Posted: 02/23/2014
Views: 4
This waterfall will vary tremendously through the year, as the reservoir behind the dam is small and spring runoff causes the necessity of spilling all the water for a couple of months. The waterfall will never quit completely as the gates on the dam are pretty leaky.
This 24.5 foot high dam replaced the original timber-crib dam built in 1915 which failed in 1961, necessitating the construction of this dam.
The first hydro station, near the dam, was built in 1903, with upgrades taking place in 1910 and 1915, with further development taking place at later dates. It is still operational and supplies power equivalent to that required by about 1,000 homes. A second generating station was added across the river in 1915 and both continue to produce power.
In 1830 a gristmill was built by the Hudson's Bay Company on the river above the dam and continued in use until after the first generating station was built. Interestingly, this early use of the Colville River makes it the oldest source of water power in continual use west of the Mississippi River.
The Meyers Falls Power Plant was placed on the National Register of Historic Places on June 29, 1995.
Coordinates for the dam were taken at a viewing area to the southeast.
Location of the waterfall:
Greenwood Loop Road
Kettle Falls, WA USA
99141
Coordinates of parking: N 48° 35.687 W 118° 03.474
Fees: 0.00 (listed in local currency)
Type / features of structure: Dam
Estimated height in feet: 24
Estimated height in meters: 7.00
Estimated width in feet: 100
Estimated width in meters: 30
River/stream/lake/reservoir: Colville River - Meyers Falls Reservoir
Flow dates: Not listed
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Visit Instructions:
To log this waymark, you will need to be able to prove to the waymark owner that you were at the waterfall in question. An original photo of the waterfall with your GPS in the photo would count as proof. Or a logged visit to a geocache in the area of the waterfall could also count as proof of a visit.