In Oregon's early days, emigrants settled along the Willamette River but soon faced its volatile flooding, which inundated the valley, destroyed property, and caused loss of life. In 1936, the Army Corps of Engineers was given responsibility for flood control, and its study found flooding to be a serious problem best managed by a series of dams known collectively as the Willamette Valley Project. In 1948, the Army Corps of Engineers arrived to build Lookout Point and Dexter Dams, two of the thirteen dams and reservoirs intended to manage floodwaters, and the project transformed Lowell as the town swelled during the construction boom, gained a water tank and sewer system, and saw several new businesses established. One of the dams' more significant long-term economic effects, however, was the relocation of the railroad and the state highway to the opposite side of the new reservoir, which cut Lowell off from the increased pace of the Willamette Valley, deprived the town's sawmill of its cost-efficient transportation route, and forced it to close.