Harris Station Dam

Harris Station Dam is a hydroelectric dam in Northeast Somerset, Somerset County, Maine. Also known as the Indian Pond Project, the dam was built from 1952 to 1954 as the largest hydroelectric dam in the state of Maine. It impounds the Kennebec River at the southern end of the natural Indian Pond, about 12 miles (19 km) downstream from Moosehead Lake.^[5]

Indian Pond
Kennebec River, Maine. Harris Station Dam stands 12 miles (19 km) downstream from its source at Moosehead Lake, and Indian Pond floods the river for 9 miles (14 km) upstream of the dam.
Indian Pond
Location	Somerset County, Maine
Coordinates	45°31′N 69°49′W[1]
Basin countries	United States
Max. length	9 mi (14 km)[2]
Surface area	3,455 acres (1,398 ha)[3]
Max. depth	118 feet (36 m)[4]
Water volume	64,093 acre⋅ft (79,058,000 m3)[3]
Surface elevation	955 ft (291 m)[1]

The concrete gravity structure is 175 feet (53 m) high and was named for Ford Harris, the chief engineer of original builders Central Maine Power.^[6] The dam creates about 86 megawatts of hydroelectric power. It is owned and operated by Brookfield Renewable.^[7]

The Kennebec River valley is flooded upstream of the dam northeasterly through Indian Stream township into Sapling township. Tributaries Bog Brook, Gold Brook, Falls Brook, Coburn Brook, and Brandy Brook enter the west side of the reservoir. East side tributaries are Burnham Brook draining Burnham Pond, and Indian Stream draining Little Indian Bog, Big Indian Pond, Trout Pond, and Moore Bog.^[2] The reservoir has good cold water habitat for brook trout, lake trout, and land-locked Atlantic salmon.^[4]

References

1. U.S. Geological Survey Geographic Names Information System: Indian Pond
2. The Maine Atlas and Gazetteer (Thirteenth ed.). Freeport, Maine: DeLorme Mapping Company. 1988. pp. 40&41. ISBN 0-89933-035-5.
3. Maine Depts. of Environmental Protection and Inland Fisheries & Wildlife (2005-08-04). "Maine Lakes: Morphometry and Geographic Information". Senator George J. Mitchell Center for Environmental and Watershed Research, The University of Maine. Archived from the original on 2006-09-03. Retrieved 2008-07-31.
4. "Canada Falls Lake" (PDF). Maine Department of Inland Fisheries and Wildlife. State of Maine. Archived from the original (PDF) on 4 June 2016. Retrieved 7 May 2016.
5. "Harris Station Dam: The Key to Kennebec River Rafting - Maine Rafting and Adventure Vacations | Northern Outdoors". Archived from the original on 2012-01-26. Retrieved 2012-07-25.
6. "History of Harris - ES398B - Dammed Maine: Watershed Policies and Governance - Colby College Wiki". Archived from the original on 2016-07-13. Retrieved 2012-07-25.
7. "Maine". Archived from the original on 2015-12-23. Retrieved 2013-07-29.

External links

• Water portal
• Renewable energy portal

45°27′38″N 69°51′55″W