Origin of Rufus Rock Piles and sloped shore line

homerun · Since 12 Jul 2008 22 Posts

Does anyone know when and why the Rufus site came to be as we see and use it today? Was it related to dam construction? I found nothing with a brief Web search.

forrest · Tue Jul 29, 08 7:32 am

Interesting question, I was wondering that myself. Let me know what you dig up!

tekko · Since 20 Feb 2006 376 Posts White Salmon Liquid Force

Haven't verified this.. but was told by a lifelong Rufus local on day...

that the rock piles are material that was removed from the river when they built the dam... the rocks.. and various types and colors were brought by the glacial floods that carved the Gorge, and represent various types of bedrock in Montana.. their place of origin.

At least that is what I was told...

brass · Since 15 Jul 2006 152 Posts Stoked

Well here is what I know. The site was constructed and is maintained by the Army Corp of Engineers. Construction on the dam was started in 1958 and finished in 1968, 1971 or 1975, depending on how you look at it, making it the newest dam on the Columbia and the "final step in harnessing the lower waters of the Columbia." At some point late in the construction it was necessary to provide detours for the railroad and Hwy 30. The rock pile itself may have been a part of this but it's hard to tell.

The following is an excerpt from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers History of the Walla Walla District, Part II, 1970-1975, 158-163

During the construction period for the north half of the river, preparations were underway on the south shore to tailor it for initiation of the second phase of construction. It was necessary to put the Union Pacific Railroad and highway onto a shoofly and detour riverward in order to prepare the narrow ledge on that side of the river for the permanent alignment for both traffic routes. This was initiated in June 1960. The railroad operates approximately 20 trains a day on its single-track line and Highway 30, a transcontinental system, carries heavy truck and auto traffic. Accordingly, heavy duty, adequate detours were a must. In addition, the state was in the process of converting the route into a four-lane section of Interstate 80N, necessitating extensive modification of design criteria for the permanent realignment. This change applied to all of the highway relocation work on the south shore.

The necessary low-level temporary traffic facilities were completed in the fall of 1961, making way for some of the permanent dam nonoverfiow structure against the cliff landward of the detours. This was started in June 1961 and completed in May 1962. That short section of dam structure, in turn, made it practical to start the grading for the permanent railroad and highway alignment over it and in the reach past the dam eastward to the mouth of the John Day River. That highway and railroad work was combined with the construction of the second-step cofferdam on the south shore, all in one package, which was started in August 1962, extending to June 1964.

and here's where I found that...
http://www.ccrh.org/comm/umatilla/primary/jdconstr.htm