Wirtz Dam

Wirtz Dam (formerly Granite Shoals Dam) was constructed from 1949 to 1950 in tandem with Max Starcke Dam to provide hydroelectric power and to form Lake LBJ, one of the Texas Highland Lakes. Lake LBJ provides cooling water for LCRA's Thomas C. Ferguson Power Plant along Horseshoe Bay. Originally the Whitz dam was called Granite Shoals Dam, but was was renamed in 1951, in honor of Alvin J. Wirtz, who had been instrumental in the formation of the Lower Colorado River Authority. The lake was renamed in 1965 for another advocate of LCRA, President Lyndon B. Johnson. The dam is near the city of Marble Falls, Texas.