| Bull Shoals Dam | |
| Coordinates: | 36.3661°N -92.5747°W |
| Country: | United States |
| Location: | Baxter / Marion counties, Arkansas |
| Construction Began: | 1947 |
| Opening: | 1951 |
| Owner: | U.S. Army Corps of Engineers |
| Dam Type: | Concrete gravity |
| Dam Height: | 256feet |
| Dam Length: | 2256feet |
| Dam Volume: | 2100000yd3 |
| Spillway Count: | 17 gate-controlled bays |
| Spillway Capacity: | 112200cuft/s |
| Res Name: | Bull Shoals Lake |
| Res Capacity Total: | 5760000acre.ft |
| Res Capacity Active: | 3400000acre.ft |
| Res Catchment: | 6036sqmi |
| Res Surface: | 71240acres |
| Res Elevation: | 695feet (max) |
| Res Max Length: | 87miles |
| Plant Turbines: | 4x 45-MW units, 4x 50-MW units |
| Plant Capacity: | 380 MW |
| Plant Annual Gen: | 883,910,000 KWh[1] |
Bull Shoals Dam is a concrete gravity dam on the White River in northern Arkansas in the United States. The dam lies on the border of Marion and Baxter Counties, and forms Bull Shoals Lake, which extends well northwest into Missouri. Its main purposes are hydroelectricity production and flood control.
The dam was built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in response to severe flooding between 1915 and 1927. President Franklin Delano Roosevelt authorized the construction of the dam as well as six others on the White River and its tributaries in the Flood Control Act of 1938. Construction started in June 1947 and the dam was completed in July 1951. When finished, the dam was one of the largest concrete structures in the world. From its completion until 2009, it is estimated that the dam has prevented about $225.5 million in flood damages.[2] [3]