In an effort to put people back to work during the Great Depression, several public works and conservation programs were set in motion. One of these, the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA), was established in 1933 to protect the Tennessee River basin, its water, soil, forests, and wildlife. TVA initiated many projects to meet these agency goals, but also to provide employment to this impoverished area and to slow the emigration of the region's youth. Many of the projects completed and operated by TVA were dams and reservoirs along the Tennessee River and its tributaries. In 1936 one such project site was identified on the lower end of the Little Tennessee River. This proposal for Tellico Dam was reviewed, but it was abandoned because the cost was too high and the returns too low. The project was reconsidered in 1942, and plans were drawn up for its construction; however, World...