In January 2006, Jason and Wendy purchased a home on Lake Hartwell in Hartwell, Georgia. The house was built in 1986 and the previous owner added a two car garage and master bedroom in 2001. The house construction is solid, but the general layout definitely needed to be updated. We started work in February and are making good progress. Pictures of the House and Lake are loaded into the Photo Gallery. On this page we'll put "before and after" photos to remember where we started.

About Lake Hartwell

Hartwell Lake is a man-made lake bordering Georgia and South Carolina on the Savannah, Tugaloo, and Seneca Rivers. The lake is created by Hartwell Dam located on the Savannah River seven miles below the point at which the Tugaloo and Seneca Rivers join to form the Savannah. Extending 49 miles up the Tugaloo and 45 miles up the Seneca at normal pool elevation, Hartwell Lake comprises nearly 56,000 acres of water with a shoreline of 962 miles. The entire Hartwell “Project” contains 76,450 acres of land and water. The Lake is bisected by Interstate 85 as it crosses from Georgia into South Carolina and it is less than 2 hours from downtown Atlanta, GA, 2 hours from Charlotte, NC, or 1 hour from Greenville, SC.

Hartwell Lake and Dam is the second Corps of Engineers project to be built in the Savannah River Basin. The first, J. Strom Thurmond Lake and Dam, was completed in 1952. A third project, Richard B. Russell Lake and Dam was completed in 1985. Congress authorized Hartwell in 1950 and construction began in October 1955. The project was completed in 1963 at a cost of more than $89 million. Hartwell Dam is constructed of concrete and earth and spans some 18,000 feet (over 3 miles), crossing the Savannah River. The concrete section is 1,900 feet long and rises 204' above the riverbed at its highest point. Earthen embankments and dikes lengthen the dam at both ends. The spillway contains 12 large gates, each 40 feet by 35.5 feet high, for the quick release of water from the lake. Water level predictions.

Lake Hartwell's 962 miles of shoreline and 56,000 acres feature over 80 public boat launch, recreation, and park areas with some of the best boating, water-skiing, and fishing in Georgia or South Carolina. You can gold one of many nearby courses, fish for one of Lake Hartwell's 50+ pound Striped Bass, or just relax on a quiet island or one of many natural sand beaches. Mountains and National Forests totaling 2 million acres are located within an hour of Hartwell Lake.