The spectacular beauty of Fontana Lake hides a dramatic history. The creeks and river valleys that lie beneath its waters were once the home of small towns and farms that were sacrificed for America’s war efforts in the mid-1940s. Fontana dam, the highest dam east of the Mississippi, was built to provide energy for the secret atomic bomb research at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, during World War II. Fontana village housed the thousands of workers who built the dam in record time. Today, the village is a popular, year-round resort, and the lake draws hikers, boaters, fishermen, filmmakers, and nature lovers to its waters and 240 miles of rugged shoreline. So the next time you’re enjoying fishing or boating on Fontana Lake, take just a moment to remember the great sacrifices made by what many call America’s greatest generation.
Digital Heritage Moments are produced at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. To learn more, visit digitalheritage.org.
