Monticello Dam, Arch dam in Napa County, United States.
Monticello Dam is an arch dam and hydroelectric power station in Napa County, California. The concrete structure crosses Putah Creek valley and forms Lake Berryessa, which sits among wooded slopes of the Vaca Mountains.
Construction took place between 1953 and 1957 as part of an irrigation and power project for the region's growing communities. Before work began, residents of Berryessa Valley left their homes and hundreds of graves were relocated.
The reservoir's water is diverted at Putah Diversion Dam, 6 miles downstream, and carried by the 33-mile Putah South Canal to farms and to Terminal Reservoir, which supplies Vallejo and Benicia. The Berryessa name comes from José and Sixto Berryessa, granted Rancho Las Putas in 1843; their land became the valley the dam flooded.
The dam itself is not open to the public for safety reasons, but viewpoints along the lakeshore offer a good view of the structure. Visitor centers around the lake provide information about how the dam works and its background.
A funnel-shaped spillway measuring 22 meters (72 feet) across channels excess water through an underground tunnel back into Putah Creek. This morning-glory spillway is one of the largest of its type in the world.
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