My home town, is a
HALF mile down
The Construction of Watauga Dam
Wed, Jan 07, 1942 [2]
Though rumors of the building of the dam were whispered for years after the creation of the TVA, it wasn't until 1942 until construction begun and again in 1946 after the end of World War 2. Here I tell the story of the dam's creation via newspaper articles from the Elizabethton Daily Star. Click the photos for more details [1].
(Left) Tue, Mar 31, 1942[3]
(Above) Thu, Oct 01, 1942[4]
(Above) Tue, Jan 09, 1945 [5]
(Right) Fri, May 14, 1948 [6]
(Below) Wed, Dec 01, 1948 [7]
[9]
(Below) Wed, Dec 01, 1948[7]
TVA Cemetery Removal
One duty of TVA workers when preparing to flood a town is to remove the cemeteries in the area. This means attaining records, finding relatives, and contacting them about moving their relatives. Though most people moved their loved ones, some remain under Watauga lake to this day [8].
Pictured to the left is a standard record of removal from one grave. Photo 1 shows the permit issued by the Tennessee Department of Health to the TVA for grave disinterment. In this case, a Martin Holloway is being removed from Cable Cemetery to Blackburn. Photo 2 shows Lillie Holloway, the living wife of Mr. Holloway, granting permission for the TVA to move her husband from the cemetery. Lastly, the third document records the act of moving the monument along with any details regarding its quality before and after the move [8].
Above is a letter sent to the relatives, detailing the request to move the grave due to the building of Watauga Dam. They give the option of moving Mr. McQueen's mother, or letting her be in her current grave, although they give the suggestion of Dividing Ridge Church Cemetery as a possible relocation place [8].
This is just one map of many plotting the locations of graves in a cemetery. The map is quite detailed, providing description of the graves, trees in the cemetery, and seriation of the graves[8].