According to Littleton, construction on the dam lasted for 20 months with the construction contract signed with McArthur Brothers on Aug. 1, 1912 to begin construction on Dec. 28, 1913.

The gates to the dam were closed ending McArthur Brothers part of the contract and water crested the top of the dam on Jan. 1, 1914. The first powerhouse was completed and producing electricity on April 12, 1914.

Future plans for uncovering the past

Although the property is now private and the Cagles plan to build a cabin that will sit in front of the quarry with the back portion of the home against Blue Gut Creek, they hope to continue uncovering history about the property.

“I have grown up coming to this area,” Chuck Cagle said. “When I was a kid I never imagined the depth of this place. Now, all I want to do is find out more about it.”

Cagle stressed that the property is under constant video surveillance to find trespassers.

“I know we used to sneak into property that was supposed to be private but I hope people will respect our privacy and not do that,” Cagle said. “We would however love to hear from anyone who might have known someone or have more information about who worked at the site during the dam construction.”

Littleton will continue to research the property with Cagle and hopes to one day have someone dive to the bottom of the 65-foot quarry and discover what might remain at the bottom.

Littleton speculates when the work was finished at the quarry, the workers might have put a Derrick crane in the quarry.

“There were always so many rumors and legends you heard as a kid about what might be at the bottom of the quarry and I think it would be neat to find out,” Littleton said. “I think for a lot of people, finding out this information on this site that was a popular place for many people spanning several decades, kind of ties up the mystery of everyone’s childhood that always wondered about the swimming hole we all enjoyed.”