Tims Ford Reservoir is located in south central Tennessee in Franklin and Moore Counties. The dam for Tims Ford is located on the Elk River at river mile 133.3 in Franklin County, TN, 36.7 miles downstream from Elk River Dam.
Construction started on Tims Ford Dam March 28, 1966. The dam was closed and the reservoir began filling December 1, 1970 and March 1, 1972 the power units went into commercial operation for generation of electricity. The total initial cost of the Tims Ford Project, including one generating unit and switchyard, totaled $52,277,635.
To create the reservoir 4,085 acres of land had to be cleared, 215 families were relocated, and 318 grave sites had to be removed. The total length of Tims Ford Dam is 1,580 feet; 159 feet of that being spillway, and the balance consisting of earth and embankment (left of spillway is 50 ft, right of spillway is 1,371 ft). The maximum height of the embankment is 175 feet.
The watershed area (the area of land from which the rainwater feeds the lake) above the dam is 529 square miles. At full pool (elevation 895 feet above sea level) Tims Ford Reservoir covers an area of 11,950 acres. At normal pool (888 feet above sea level) the reservoir covers an area of 10,600 acres. At maximum pool the reservoir holds 530,000 acre feet of water. The shoreline of Tims Ford Lake totals 246 miles, with five miles of that belonging to islands in the lake.
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