Little Tennessee River

Little Tennessee River
Little Tennessee River in North Carolina
Little Tennessee River watershed
Location
Country	United States
State	Georgia, North Carolina, Tennessee
Physical characteristics
Source	Keener Creek
• location	Rabun County, Georgia
• coordinates	34°57′36″N 83°27′53″W / 34.96000°N 83.46472°W / 34.96000; -83.46472[1]
• elevation	3,240 ft (990 m)
2nd source	Billy Creek
• location	Rabun County, Georgia
• coordinates	34°55′17″N 83°27′04″W / 34.92139°N 83.45111°W / 34.92139; -83.45111[2]
• elevation	2,640 ft (800 m)
Source confluence
• location	Rabun County, Georgia
• coordinates	34°55′49″N 83°26′11″W / 34.93028°N 83.43639°W / 34.93028; -83.43639[3][4]
• elevation	2,169 ft (661 m)
Mouth	Tennessee River
• location	Lenoir City, Tennessee
• coordinates	35°46′57″N 84°15′28″W / 35.78250°N 84.25778°W / 35.78250; -84.25778[3]
• elevation	741 ft (226 m)[3]
Length	135 mi (217 km)[5]
Basin size	2,627 sq mi (6,800 km2)[6]
Discharge
• location	Tallassee, Tennessee (below Chilhowee Dam), 33 miles (53 km) above the mouth(mean for water years 1958–1979)[7]
• average	5,012 cu ft/s (141.9 m3/s)(mean for water years 1958–1979)[7]
• minimum	20 cu ft/s (0.57 m3/s)October 1974[7]
• maximum	41,500 cu ft/s (1,180 m3/s)May 1973[7]
Basin features
River system	Tennessee → Ohio → Mississippi
Tributaries
• left	Nantahala River, Cheoah River, Citico Creek, Tellico River
• right	Tuckasegee River, Hazel Creek, Abrams Creek

The Little Tennessee River (known locally as the Little T) is a 135-mile (217 km) tributary of the Tennessee River that flows through the Blue Ridge Mountains from Georgia, into North Carolina, and then into Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. It drains portions of three national forests— Chattahoochee, Nantahala, and Cherokee— and provides the southwestern boundary of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.

Numerous dams were erected on the river in the 20th century for flood control and hydropower generation. The river flows through five major impoundments: Fontana Dam, Cheoah Dam, Calderwood Dam, Chilhowee Dam, and Tellico Dam, and one smaller impoundment, Porters Bend Dam.