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Dickinson Unit
State: North Dakota
Region: Great Plains
Related Documents
Dickinson Unit History (38 KB)
Related Facilities
Related Links
Dakotas Area Office
Dickinson Reservoir
Edward A. Patterson Lake
Weather Conditions (NOAA)
Heart River below Dickenson Dam, North Dakota (USGS)
Heart River above Lake Tschida near Glen Ullin, North Dakota (USGS)
Palmer Drought Index Map
Explanation of Palmer Drought Severity Index (Text)
Upper Heart
General
Dickinson Dam and Reservoir (Edward Arthur Patterson Lake) store water for irrigating valley lands downstream from the dam, and for a municipal water supply for the city of Dickinson, North Dakota. Some 400 acres of irrigable lands, in isolated tracts, are served by privately constructed pumping plants located along the Heart River near Dickinson. Flood control, fish and wildlife, and recreation benefits also are realized.
History
Settlement of the area began after 1864. The early occupants were ranchers who settled along the streams and used the public domain for grazing large herds of livestock. With the building of the Northern Pacific Railway into the Heart River Basin in the 1880`s, immigration became general and large ranches soon gave way to homesteads. Large numbers of settlers came during 1900-1910, and engaged in the production of cash grain farming and as a result extensive areas of rangeland were plowed up and the remaining range was grazed intensively. Although livestock production continued to be important, the increased demand for wheat during World War I brought on a tremendous expansion in wheat acreage. The drought years of the 1930`s and prevailing low prices seriously disrupted the economy and led to emigration and abandonment of farms.
Construction
Construction of Dickinson Dam began in March 1949 and was completed in March 1950. Initial water deliveries were made to the city of Dickinson in May 1952. Storage of floodwater has transformed 400 acres of irrigable lands from uncertain dry-farming to production of alfalfa, oats, corn, barley, potatoes, and truck crops. The storage of water has enabled the city of Dickinson to maintain a water supply for municipal and industrial use. Edward Arthur Patterson Lake is located in the prairie uplands where there are no natural lakes. Although small, it has provided new types of recreation for south-western North Dakota and is highly popular for camping, picnicking, swimming, boating, and fishing. The Dickinson City Park Board administers the reservoir area for recreational uses. For specific information on recreational opportunities at Dickinson Dam click on the name below. http://www.recreation.gov/detail.cfm?ID=1126 The Missouri River is 2,460 miles in length and traverses parts of ten states--Colorado, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, and Wyoming--and a small part of Canada. Together the land and the River are known as the Missouri River Basin. Plans to develop the Basin had been on the national agenda when the United States entered World War II. Originally development was to be coordinated by a Missouri Valley Authority (MVA), an organization similar to the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA). However, the governors of the ten states, among others, were violently opposed to the MVA idea; as a result the Bureau of Reclamation and the Army Corps of Engineers, who both had their eye on the Basin anyway, were asked to write their own proposals for development. What came out of those proposals has become known as the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program. The Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Program (PSMBP) is a cooperative project between the Bureau of Reclamation and the Army Corps of Engineers. The PSMBP which was intended as a compromise between the two agencies resembles a marriage of convenience rather then a true effort to reconcile the two offices. Each agency presented an independent plan to Congress outlining their intentions in regards to the resources of the Missouri River. In 1944, the Corps` report was outlined to the House by Major General Lewis A. Pick; the Bureau report was presented to the Senate by William G. Sloan. In an effort to avoid favoritism between the offices and promote coordination between Federal agencies, Congress ordered a compromise of the two plans. The outcome of Congress` directive little resembles a compromise, but rather a melding of the two proposals resulting in each agency getting what it originally wanted.(1) A part of the Heart Division, Missouri River Basin Project, the Dickinson Unit is a multipurpose unit which provides storage for irrigation and municipal water, flood control, fish and wildlife conservation, and recreational opportunities. Dickinson Dam is located about two miles west of Dickinson, North Dakota, on the Heart River. The county seat of Stark County and the primary city in the Heart River Basin, Dickinson is located in the center of southwestern North Dakota. Theodore Roosevelt Memorial Park lies thirty-five miles west of the Project. Located sixty miles from the Montana border and seventy miles from the border of South Dakota, Dickinson, North Dakota was established in 1881, when the Northern Pacific Railroad built its line through the western part of the state. Adjacent to the Heart River, one of the major western tributaries of the Missouri River, the City lies at an elevation of about 2,400 feet above sea level. Currently the City is served by the Burlington Northern Railroad; additionally, State Highway 22 and Interstate 94 intersect within the City limits. Four-hundred and five square miles of the Heart River`s total watershed area of 3,662 square miles, lie above Dickinson Dam.(2) The present source of municipal water for the city is Dickinson Reservoir, renamed Edward Arthur Patterson Lake in (3)1959. Originally, Dickinson was established as a community of large ranches. Encouraged by adequate moisture and high agricultural prices, an influx of new settlers in the early 1930`s chose to cultivate much of the land. Unfortunately, the 1930`s soon turned into disaster for most of the agricultural community across the nation. The 1929 Stock Market Crash followed by several years of drought severely impacted the farming community nationwide, including Dickinson, resulting in a significant decline in the farm population. The decline in the farm population begun in the 1930`s was furthered by the technological advances made in agriculture in the 1960`s; machinery made traditional farm hands unnecessary. Dickinson is the principal retail center in southwestern North Dakota. Dickinson`s primary functions are trade and services and it is likely that this will continue in the future. Dickinson is in the center of a trade area approximately sixty miles from east to west, and forty-five miles from north to south. Because of its relative isolation, the city is able to dominate the surrounding trade area with little difficulty. Despite a lack of significant manufacturing, the city boasts a diverse economy. Dickinson`s status as a major regional service center in southwestern North Dakota is not likely to change in the near future; it is expected that recreation, Dickinson State College, and manufacturing will all continue, with modest growth to contribute to the economy of the city and region.(4) In 1903 and 1904, the Reclamation Service made a reconnaissance survey of the Heart River Basin. The excessive cost of development and lack of interest by the land owners led to the conclusion that further work was not justified. In 1926, in the interest of irrigation and flood control, the Bureau of Reclamation rechecked the area. Despite the fact that the study showed that 12,000 acres could be irrigated and floods could be controlled, the project still did not appear to be particularly attractive. By 1942, agricultural requirements in the United States had far exceeded farm production. In the subhumid area farmers were developing an interest in irrigation. Along the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers and in the Heart River Valley damaging floods were recurring. Additionally, population in the city of Dickinson increased while the water supply diminished. River basin development as a concept was taking shape. In 1936, the President`s Great Plains Drought Area Committee prepared a report stressing the need for conservation of Great Plains resources. The Bureau of Reclamation, prompted by all of these things, initiated a new detailed survey inclined toward maximum development of all the Basin resources. The detailed survey then led to plans for two units on the Heart River, the Heart Butte Unit and the Dickinson Unit; the Heart Butte Unit was presented in the Heart Butte Development Report while the Dickinson Unit was presented in a detailed report in October of 1947.(5) Despite the fact that the detailed survey of the Basin was not completed until 1947, authorization for the Dickinson Unit was included as a part of the Pick-Sloan Missouri Basin Project. Among other things, the Flood Control Act of December 22, 1944(6) authorized the Pick-Sloan Plan for construction in the Missouri River Basin.(7) A rolled earthfill dam across the Heart River and a combined spillway and outlet-works structure at the right abutment are the principal features of the Project. The Dam itself was originally had a crest length of approximately 2,275 feet and a crest width of thirty feet at elevation 2,434 feet. The maximum height was about sixty-one feet above the lowest foundation. Modifications were made to the structure in 1982. The embankment was raised 2.6 feet to an elevation of 2436.6 with a crest width of twenty-four feet.(8) The upstream slope of the embankment, above elevation 2,404 is covered with a layer of rock riprap; the downstream slopes have been seeded on twelve inches of topsoil. In addition, a forty-foot wide cutoff trench was excavated to a firm foundation for approximately 2,000 feet of the length of the dam. The spillway is an ungated structure 200 feet wide with a design capacity of 33,200 cfs. A combined spillway and outlet works structure consists of an approach channel, an uncontrolled open channel spillway 200 feet wide, a stilling basin, and an outlet works adjacent to the left wall of the spillway consisting of a trashrack, a gate structure, a twenty-four-inch pipe and a valve box.(9) Additionally, in 1982 bascule gates were added to the service spillway and an auxiliary spillway was constructed. Adler Construction Company, of Madras, Oregon, began construction on Dickinson Dam March 30, 1949.(10) Final construction of the Dam was completed exactly a year later in March 1950, well ahead of schedule.(11) Construction also included reshoring parts of the railroad embankment of the Northern Pacific Railway Company, which was accomplished through placement of earthwork and riprap protection. Additionally, relocation and conditioning of about 6,900 feet of gas-transmission pipeline and telephone lines, proved necessary.(12) Reclamation dedicated the Dam on August 13, 1950 in a ceremony attended by North Dakota governor Fred G. Aandahl.(13) In 1951, the spring run-off filled Dickinson Reservoir for the first time.(14) Late in 1951, the city connected water mains to the outlet works of the Dam and subsequently, in the spring of 1952, completed the municipal water plant. The first water through the new plant arrived from Dickinson Reservoir in May 1952. After May 19, 1952, regular daily diversions from the Reservoir provided the City's water supply.(15)
Plan
The water supplied from Edward Arthur Patterson Lake is pumped by private operators; therefore, the Federal Government does not contemplate the construction or operation of irrigation distribution works. Dickinson Dam is a homogeneous earthfill structure across the Heart River, 1.5 miles west of Dickinson, North Dakota. The dam has a structural height of 65 feet, is 2,275 feet long across the crest, and contains 324,000 cubic yards of materials. A combined overflow spillway and outlet works is located near the right abutment of the dam. In 1981, a spillway gate was added, and conservation storage was increased. This increased the available water supply for the city of Dickinson. The capacity of the spillway is now 38,800 cubic feet per second at a water surface elevation of 2430.6 ft, and the outlet works now has a capacity of 45 cubic feet per second at a water surface elevation of 2420.0 ft. An auxiliary grass-lined spillway was also completed in 1981 to pass a revised inflow design flood. Dickinson Dam and Edward Arthur Patterson Lake are operated by the Bureau of Reclamation.
Contact
Contact
Title: Area Office ManagerOrganization: Dakotas Area Office
Address: PO Box 1017
City: Bismarck, ND 58501
Fax: 701-250-4326
Phone: 701-250-4242
Contact
Title: Public Affairs OfficerOrganization: Great Plains Region
Address: 2021 4th Avenue North
City: Billings, MT 59101
Fax: 406-247-7604
Phone: 406-247-7610
Contact
Organization: Dickinson-Heart River Mutual Aid CorporationAddress: RR 2, Box 118
City: Dickinson, ND 58601
Phone: 701-225-2665