History

Tallulah Falls is the oldest and largest plant in the North Georgia Hydro Group. It is also among Georgia's outstanding engineering achievements. The project consists of a 126-foot high by 426-foot long dam built across the Tallulah River just above what was Tallulah Falls and next to a major bridge over the gorge. It directs the water to an intake structure on the river's bank, and into a horseshoe-shaped tunnel. The tunnel - 11 feet wide at the base, 14 feet high, 6,666 feet long, cut through solid rock and lined with concrete throughout - leads from the intake structure to the forebay on the side of the gorge above the powerhouse. From the forebay, the water is passed to the powerhouse through six massive steel penstocks.

The powerhouse is not located near the dam, but downriver. Although the flow of water is controlled, the two-mile long, 600-foot deep gorge, with its five major waterfalls, remains between the dam and powerhouse as a state park. Since 1992, Georgia Power has scheduled whitewater releases for kayakers and sightseers to enjoy.

The property for the Tallulah Falls plant and dam was originally purchased by the North Georgia Electric Company before 1905. After a series of utility company acquisitions, it was sold in 1910 to Georgia Power Company, an ancestor of, but not the same as, the Georgia Power Company today. Envisioning a plant like no other in the Southeast, Georgia Power immediately planned and proceeded with its construction according to designs set forth by Charles O. Lenz, chief engineer of the project. Work was soon halted, however, due to lack of financing and insufficient demand for electric power. This situation led to a merger in 1912 of several utilities that could use the plant's capacity, thereby forming the Georgia Railway and Power Company.

About 25 percent of the plant had been completed when the new merged company took the project over. Soon thereafter, a lawsuit was filed that attacked its claim to the Tallulah Falls property. Title, however, was held to be valid.

The plant's first unit began operating in 1913 and by early 1914, all five 12,000-kilowatt generating units had been completed, making it then the third largest hydroelectric facility in the country generating more power than demand for several years to come. A sixth unit, identical to the other five, was added in 1919. This brought the plant's total output to its present-day generating capacity of 72,000 kilowatts.