Red Bluff Dam is a dam in the Pecos River, situated about 40 mi north of Pecos, Texas. Its Red Bluff Reservoir was formed in 1936 by the dam construction, organized by the Red Bluff Water Control District to provide water for irrigation and hydroelectric power.

Planning and construction

A water user's association was formed to promote the dam in 1916, and surveying began in 1921. In 1924 the states of Texas and New Mexico agreed to allow construction, and in 1926 President Calvin Coolidge approved the plan. In 1927 the Red Bluff Water Control District was formed to manage the project from seven existing water districts. In 1934 the loan for construction was approved by the Public Works Administration. The dam was completed in September 1936, and started to supply water in 1937.

Structure

The dam is an earthfill structure 9200 ft long, 102 ft high and with a crest width of 25 ft. Crest length is 790 ft. Crest elevation is 2828 ft above sea level. Spillway width is 1233 ft. The spillway is concrete ogee controlled by 12 tainter gates, each 25 by. The dam includes two hydroelectric plants with a combined capacity of 2,300 kilowatts. The reservoir can safely store 307000 acre.ft.The surface area of the reservoir is 7507 acre. Maximum discharge is 389749 ft3 per second. Water from the dam irrigates 145000 acre of farmland.