Claytor Dam

The Claytor Dam is a gravity dam on the New River in Pulaski County, Virginia, United States. It is located about 2.5 mi (4.0 km) south of Radford. It is named after William Graham Claytor, then vice president of Appalachian Power Company (APC), who was instrumental in the dam's construction. APC is now a subsidiary of American Electric Power (AEP), which owns the dam. The primary purpose of the dam is hydroelectric power generation and it supports a 75 MW power station. Its reservoir, Claytor Lake, is also used for recreation. The dam was constructed and its power station commissioned in 1939. It received its first license in 1943.^[1] It is 1,142 ft (348 m) long and 145 ft (44 m) tall. It stores a reservoir with a capacity of 225,000 acre⋅ft (278,000,000 m³). The reservoir covers 4,472 acres (1,810 ha) and stretches 21.67 mi (34.87 km) behind the dam.^[2]

Claytor Dam
Claytor Lake just above the dam
Location of Claytor Dam in Virginia
Country	United States
Location	Pulaski County, Virginia
Coordinates	37°4′31.23″N 80°35′5.53″W
Purpose	Power
Status	Operational
Opening date	1939; 86 years ago (1939)
Dam and spillways
Type of dam	Gravity
Impounds	New River
Height	145 ft (44 m)
Length	1,142 ft (348 m)
Spillways	9 sluice gates
Spillway type	Controlled, crest overflow
Reservoir
Creates	Claytor Lake
Total capacity	225,000 acre⋅ft (278,000,000 m3)
Surface area	4,472 acres (1,810 ha)
Maximum length	21.67 mi (34.87 km)
Maximum water depth	115 ft (35 m)
Normal elevation	1,846 ft (563 m)
Commission date	1939
Turbines	4 x 18.75 MW Francis-type
Installed capacity	75 MW

See also

• Virginia portal
• Water portal
• Renewable energy portal

• Claytor Lake
• Claytor Lake State Park