By JASON DAVIS

news@norrislife.com

One of the most popular summer tourist attractions in East Tennessee, Norris Lake traces its beginnings back over 70 years to the inception of the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA).

The TVA was set up in 1933 as an  independent U.S. government corporate agency charged with the responsibility for the integrated development of the Tennessee River basin.

The need for cheap energy combined with the ability to help minimize flooding down river hastened the construction of Norris Dam to begin in October, 1933, only months after TVA’s creation.

The building project, which took almost three years, cost taxpayers over $32 million and the lives of eight workers.  An estimated 2,900 families were displaced by the creation of the lake, and over 5,000 gravesites had to be moved.

Norris Lake, the reservoir created by the dam, extends over 34,000 acres -- creating almost 800 acres of shoreline.

Named for Senator George W. Norris (R – Neb.), the “father of TVA,” Norris Lake provides numerous recreational activities for tourists while providing a cornerstone to TVA’s hydroelectric power supply, which helps TVA get electricity to it’s eight million customers.

An excellent place for boating, fishing, swimming and other water sports, Norris Lake’s shorelines are also the home to three Tennessee State Parks.  Norris Dam State Park, Big Ridge State Park and Cove Lake State Park provide good sources of recreation, and served as the beginning to Tennessee’s state park system.