Page 24: of Marine News Magazine (July 2011)

24MNJuly 2011The Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway (more commonly referred to as the Tenn-Tom) is a 234-mile long artificial waterway connecting the Tennessee River and the Tombigbee River. The north end connects to the Tennessee River near where the borders of Tennessee, Alabama, and Mississippi coincide. The south end con- nects to the Tombigbee River near its confluence with the Black Warrior River at Demopolis, Ala. A waterway from the Tennessee River to the Gulf of Mexico was first sug- gested during the colonial era and again in the 1870s.Initial funding for the project was first provided to the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in 1971. The work was completed and the waterway opened for business in 1984. It includes ten locks and dams. Near the north end of the waterway is the Divide Cut, where large quantities of earth were excavated to provide access between the two watersheds. It is also where the community of Holcut, Miss. was previously located. Holcut was the only com- munity that was entirely acquired and removed during the construction of the waterway. When finished, the water- way was the largest earth-moving project in history, requiring excavation of more than 300 million cubic yards of rock and soil. The south end of the waterway is 341 feet lower than the northern end. There are 17 public ports and terminals located along the Tenn-Tom waterway. The major cargoes carried on the waterway are coal and timber products. The Tennessee-Tombigbee ships as much as 1.2 billion ton-miles of commerce each year at an annual sav- ings of nearly $100m in transportation costs. A MaritimeProfessional.com post by Dennis Bryant BLOGS @ MARITIMEPROFESSIONAL.COM Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway Photo courtesy USACE Two-way passing traffic in the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway.