Bartlett Dam

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title: "Bartlett Dam" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["dams-in-arizona", "buildings-and-structures-in-maricopa-county,-arizona", "buttress-dams", "united-states-bureau-of-reclamation-dams", "dams-completed-in-1939", "multiple-arch-dams", "historic-american-engineering-record-in-arizona", "1939-establishments-in-arizona", "national-register-of-historic-places-in-maricopa-county,-arizona", "dams-on-the-national-register-of-historic-places-in-arizona"] topic_path: "engineering" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bartlett_Dam" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::data[format=table title="Infobox dam"]

Field	Value
name	Bartlett Dam
image	BartlettDam.jpg
image_caption	Bartlett Dam
dam_crosses	Verde River
location	Tonto National Forest, Maricopa County, near Phoenix, Arizona
status	In use
dam_type	Concrete, multiple-arch buttress
dam_length	823 ft
dam_height	308.5 ft
dam_width_base	7.5 ft
dam_width_crest	4.5 ft
dam_volume	223773 cuyd
spillway_type	Service, gate-controlled
spillway_capacity	287500 ft3/s
construction_began	1936
opening	1939
owner	U.S. Bureau of Reclamation
operator	Salt River Project
res_name	Bartlett Lake
res_capacity_total	178,186 acre.ft
res_catchment	6160 sqmi
res_surface	2700 acre
location_map	Arizona
coordinates
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| name = Bartlett Dam | image = BartlettDam.jpg | image_caption = Bartlett Dam | name_official = | dam_crosses = Verde River | location = Tonto National Forest, Maricopa County, near Phoenix, Arizona | status = In use | dam_type = Concrete, multiple-arch buttress | dam_length = 823 ft | dam_height = 308.5 ft | dam_width_base = 7.5 ft | dam_width_crest = 4.5 ft | dam_volume = 223773 cuyd | spillway_type = Service, gate-controlled | spillway_capacity = 287500 ft3/s | construction_began = 1936 | opening = 1939 | cost = | owner = U.S. Bureau of Reclamation | operator = Salt River Project | res_name = Bartlett Lake | res_capacity_total = 178,186 acre.ft | res_catchment = 6160 sqmi | res_surface = 2700 acre | res_max_depth = | plant_operator = | plant_turbines = | plant_capacity = | plant_annual_gen = | plant_commission = | plant_decommission = | location_map =Arizona | location_map_caption = | location_map_size = | coordinates = | website = | extra = The Bartlett Dam is a concrete multiple-arch buttress dam on the Verde River, located 50 km northeast of Phoenix, Arizona. The dam creates Bartlett Lake and its primary purpose is irrigation water supply. It was the first dam constructed on the Verde River and the first of its type constructed by the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. It was built between 1936 and 1939. It was named after Bill Bartlett, a government surveyor. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017.

History

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/BartlettDamUC.jpg" caption="The dam under construction in 1939."] ::

In response to the Great Depression and subsequent drops in crop prices, farmers struggled harder to have a dam constructed on the Verde River. Finally, in 1935, the Salt River Project received approval to build the Bartlett Dam. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation constructed the dam between 1936 and 1939, in a total of 1,000 days. Upon completion, the dam was the tallest multiple arch buttress type in the world at the time. 80% of the funding for the dam was provided by the Salt River Project (SRP) and 20% by the Bureau of Indian Affairs. Construction on the dam provided needed jobs and flood control on the river. Although flood waters temporarily halted construction in February 1937, flooding was finally minimized with the construction of the dam. The next large flood in the area would not come until the winter of 1965–66.

Because of safety concerns, the dam was later modified during the mid-1990s by the Bureau of Reclamation. Beginning in March 1994, the dam was raised 21.5 ft and subsequently, its service spillway was modified as well to accompany the new height. An unlined auxiliary spillway was also constructed about 1500 ft south of the dam's left abutment. The new spillway consists of a concrete control structure and a three-segment fuse plug which is designed to erode in specific stages during flooding. The modifications to the dam were complete in December 1996.

Design, dimensions, and impoundment

::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e0/BartlettDamNewSpilway.jpg" caption="A view of the dam and both spillways"] ::

The Bartlett dam consists of 10 arches, 9 buttresses, and is flanked by 2 gravity wing dams. Before being modified, the Bartlett Dam was 287 ft tall and contained 182000 cuyd of concrete.

The reservoir created by the dam, Bartlett Lake, has a 178,186 acre.ft capacity at the normal surface water elevation of 1798 ft. It drains an area of 6160 sqmi and has a surface area of 2700 acre. The dam's outlet works have a discharge capacity of 2400 ft3/s. When the reservoir is at the maximum water elevation of 1821 ft, the service spillway has a 287500 ft3/s capacity while the auxiliary spillway can discharge up to 261700 ft3/s.

References

References

1. "Company Perspective: Salt River Project". Funding Universe.
2. "SRP Historic Timeline". Salt River Project.
3. (Feb 1939). "Multiple Arch Dam to Hold Vast Irrigation Lake in Check". Popular Mechanics.
4. "Bartlett Dam". Salt River Project.
5. "History of Maricopa County Flooding". The Flood Control District of Maricopa County.
6. "Bartlett Dam Overview". U.S. Bureau or Reclamation.
7. "DAMS buttress dams".
8. "Bartlett Dam dimensions". [[United States Bureau of Reclamation]].
9. "Bartlett Dam – Hydraulics & Hydrology". [[United States Bureau of Reclamation]].

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