Edwards Dam was a hydroelectric dam on the Kennebec River in the U.S. state of Maine. It was located in Augusta, Maine, about upstream from the Atlantic Ocean. Built in 1837 of timber and concrete, it was long and high. It is most famous for its removal in 1999, the first removal of a hydroelectric dam by the government against the wishes of the dam owner. The dam originally had a fish ladder, but it was destroyed by a flood shortly after construction. It suffered catastrophic breaches in 1839, 1846 and 1855. In 1999, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) refused the renewal of the dam license due to excessive negative environmental impacts, and the dam was removed, freeing a stretch of the Kennebec River that had been submerged for 162 years. Geography The dam was located on the Kennebec River, a river that flows south from Moosehead Lake, draining roughly one-fifth of the state of Maine. Most of the river's watershed consists of smooth and lightly to moderately developed land, encompassing many small and large lakes. Notable cities along the river include Skowhegan, Waterville, Augusta, Gardiner, and Bath. The Kennebec is tidal as far north as Augusta. History Pre-dam The Kennebec River before the construction of Edwards Dam was extremely important as a spawning ground for Atlantic fish. Its importance, at that time, could be compared to that of the Hudson River and Chesapeake Bay. The estuary at the mouth of the Kennebec was a congregation of islands and salt marshes that provided excellent spawning ground for young fish, namely sturgeon and salmon. Construction and impacts In 1837, the Edwards Dam was built across the Kennebec River, just shy of the limit of tidal influence. Made of timber and concrete, it extended across the river and high. Its reservoir stretched upstream, and covered . Immediately after its construction, the population of spawning fish, including but not limited to, Atlantic salmon, river herring, striped bass and sturgeon, plummeted. The local fishing industry was the most heavily hit, and completely disappeared by 1867, 30 years after the construction of Edwards Dam. A series of fish ladders intended to help fish migrate past dams was installed, but were useless causing the anadromous fish population to practically vanish. However, despite the disappearance of fish populations upstream of the dam, tiny remaining populations existed below the dam. A commercial eel fishery (similar to a