Thursday, January 18, 2024

Jan 3 Cedar Creek Dam

 


Cedar Creek near Asheboro is a tributary of Back Creek and eventually Uwharrie and Pee Dee Rivers. Waterways on the east side of Asheboro empty into Deep River which flows into the Cape Fear. 

Just downriver from this dam is a Carolina slate quarry which is likely the source of the stones used here. It appears the dam was built at a spot where river left sports a high bank anchored by a large rock outcrop. River right has a floodplain. The floodplain is about 200 feet before the terrain rises up. The stone portion of the dam is about 100 feet long and there is an earthen dam for another 100 feet. It's puzzling that there is an outlet, shown above. Behind the dam at this point is solid earth with trees. That leads me to wonder if that earth accumulated there after the dam was built. 

On river left where the dam joins the steep outcrop, there is a 6 foot opening. The creek no longer flows through it. It appears where the stone dam met the earthen dam, the creek breached the earthen dam. That is where the creek bed is now. 

Back of the dam 



Dam opening

Dam opening

The dam is offset here at the opening. My guess is that this is the original creek bed. I think this dam was built for water power and not like the Caraway Dams which controlled flooding and retained silt. 

Front of dam


This appears to be where the earthen dam was breached



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