From Washington to you
Ice Harbor Dam
Ice Harbor Dam · Franklin County · construction began 1956
The first of four Lower Snake dams sits at river mile 9.7 near Pasco and backs up 32-mile Lake Sacajawea.
Ice Harbor Lock and Dam was the first of four dams in the Lower Snake River Project, authorized in the Rivers and Harbors Act of 1945. Construction began in 1956. Three turbine units were operating in 1961. Three more came online in 1976. The Corps lists the project completed in 1962.
The dam stands at Snake River mile 9.7 near Pasco. It is 141 feet high and 2,822 feet long. Lake Sacajawea extends 32 miles upstream to Lower Monumental Dam. Six units — three at 90 megawatts and three at 111 megawatts — total 603 megawatts.
The dam is one of the eight locks on the Columbia–Snake inland waterway. The source below is the Corps Northwestern Division fact sheet.
- Geography & Geology
- History
Sources (1)
government · Tier S
U.S. Army Corps of EngineersIce Harbor Dam and Lake Sacajawea
Last reviewed: September 20, 2026
Keep wandering
same arc
Bonneville DamThe first federal lock and dam on the Columbia and Snake spans the river between Oregon and Washington at river mile 146.1.
same arc
Columbia River ChinookChinook are the largest Pacific salmon. NOAA lists several Columbia River populations as threatened or endangered, and they are primary prey for Southern Resident killer whales.
nearby
McNary DamThe Corps places this Columbia River dam at Umatilla, Washington, river mile 292, with a 64-mile reservoir that reaches Hanford.