Dams in Washington State

The 42nd state of the UNITED STATES achieving statehood in 1889, Washington in the Pacific Northwest region has multiple major rivers and has dozens of hydroelectric dams as a result. There are many dams in the state of Washington, so it is difficult to include every single one. However, the online Washington State Department of Transportation road map shows most of them, except the dams in the city of Spokane and possibly other ones. This is an excellent reference helping me publish a comprehensive post.

The most famous dam, Grand Coulee Dam, is the largest hydroelectric power producer and concrete structure in the United States. This dam is located along the Columbia River, at the border of Grant and Okanogan counties and near Douglas and Lincoln counties. Surrounding communities include Coulee Dam, Electric City, Elmer City, and Grand Coulee. A trip south-southwest along the State Route 155 highway leads you to Dry Falls Dam near Coulee City, at the south end of Banks Lake in northern Grant County. Pinto Dam is further south at the southern edge of Billy Clapp Lake. East of the Grand Coulee Dam and west of Spokane are Little Falls Dam and Long Lake Dam, both of which are found along the Spokane River at the borders of Lincoln and Stevens counties.

Other dams in the northern half of Washington include Diablo, Gorge, Ross, and Upper Baker in Whatcom County and Lower Baker Dam in Skagit County; Enloe Dam near Canada in northern Okanogan County; Box Canyon Dam in Pend Oreille County of northeastern Washington; Monroe Street Dam, Upper Falls Dam, and Upriver Dam in Spokane; Lake Chelan Dam in eastern Chelan County and two dams (Rocky Reach and Wells) along the border of Chelan and Douglas counties; and Henry M. Jackson Dam in south-central Snohomish County (northwest Washington). At the border of southeast Chelan and southern Douglas counties, Rock Island Dam is located not too far east of Washington's center point. Boasting the largest city in Washington (Seattle), King County in west-central Washington also has several dams: H. A. Hanson, Masonry, and South Fork Tolt. East of King County, the dams in Kittitas County are Cle Elum, Kachess, Keechelus, Roza, and Wanapum (Wanapum is also in southern Grant County).

Finally, there multiple dams in the southern half of Washington, especially in south-central and southeast Washington. Going east from Portland, Oregon, Borineville Dam (Skamania County), The Dalles Dam and John Day Dam (both in Klickitat County), and McNary Dam (Benton County) are located along the Columbia River at the Washington/Oregon border in southern Washington. Other dams in Southern Washington include Yale Dam (Yale River) at the border of Clark and Cowlitz counties; Swift Dam in western Skamania County; O'Sullivan Dam in southeast Grant County and Priest Rapids Dam along the Columbia River (Grant and Yakima counties); Bumping Lake, Clear Lake, Sunnyside, Tieton, and Wenas dams in Yakima County; Skookumchuck Dam along the Skookumchuck River in southern Thurston County; Alder Dam and La Grande Dam along the Nisqually River (Pierce and Thurston counties); and Cowlitz Falls, Mayfield, and Mossyrock dams along the Cowlitz River in Lewis County. Dams along the Snake River in southeast Washington include Ice Harbor and Lower Monumental in Franklin and Walla Walla counties, Little Goose Dam in Columbia and Whitman counties, and Lower Granite Dam in Garfield and Whitman counties.