The Falls Undergo a Change

A century after Lewis and Clark saw the waterfalls as an obstruction, others viewed the river’s rapid drop in elevation as a source of water power to spin turbines and generate electricity for the region. The Great Falls Power Company constructed the Ryan Dam and powerhouse between 1913 and 1915, building the 1,336-foot-long dam from each end and completing it in the middle of the river, with temporary railroads hauling materials to the site. Considered unique and cutting edge in its time, the completed structure was first called Volta Dam after Count Alessandro Volta, for whom voltage was also named. In 1940, the dam was renamed for John D. Ryan, the first president of Montana Power Company. North Western Energy purchased the Ryan Hydroelectric Development in 2014, and it is one of nine hydroelectric developments the company owns on the Missouri and Madison Rivers.

Montana · United States