Bonneville Lock and Dam on Columbia River

(USACE; Satellite, 222+ photos)

USACE Teacher's Guide

It has two locks and 2.5 fish ladders. But the guide wall of the new lock severely restricts the length of what can use the first lock. The first lock was part of the original 1938 construction. The larger lock was added in 1993 to match the size of the seven other locks on the 465 mile Columbia-Snake River Inland Waterway. A second powerhouse was added in 1981 on the north side. [USACE] The spillway is in the middle.

Satellite

The 1938 lock is not even used for recreational boats. It has been closed. Even the new lock is small by Midwest standards. Specifically, the width is two barges rather than the three-barge width that we have on the Upper Mississippi, Ohio and Illinois rivers.

Bonneville Lock and Dam National Historic Landmark Brochure

Screenshot

Downloaded Fact Sheet

Downloaded Fact Sheet

Update:

WaterwaysJournal via Advanced-American
[An emergency lock closure on Sep 5, 2019. The sill developed a crack, and it had to be torn out and replaced with a new one. It was expected to reopen Sept. 30, 2019. It actually reopened Sep 27. [opb] ]

Portland District, US Army Corps of Engineers posted

We dug this cool photo up for you – it’s from the construction of Bonneville Dam in 1937.

That means today [Jun 11, 2022], this photo is 85 years old.

In recognition of the photo’s anniversary, as it were, we want to share the top 3 reasons we heart it so much:

1. So much to look at! The overalls on these men? Exquisite! Check out those hats! And … those cool-cat poses? So slay.

2. Just look at the size of that turbine. That is a - *checks measurements * - ginormous engineering masterpiece.

3. Our safety office would never let us take a photo like this today – OSHA rules and all, of course. It’s like an entire group simultaneously saying, “Look, ma – no hands! Or hard hats!”

James Torgeson shared
Building the Bonneville Dam between Washington and Oregon on the Columbia River.