Garrison Dam Tribes. Construction on the $300-million dam project began in 1947, and its embankment was enclosed in April 1953. The dam was dedicated by President Eisenhower two months later. The Corps of Engineers completed earthwork in the fall of 1954. Garrison Dam is one of six Missouri River Main stem dams operated by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Omaha District. The dam upstream of Garrison Dam is Fort Peck Dam (near Fort Peck, Montana). The dams downstream of Garrison Dam are: Oahe Dam (near Pierre, South Dakota), Big Bend Dam (near Fort Thompson, South Dakota), Fort Randall Dam (near Pickstown,
Norris Dam State Park the Norris Project in the 1930s, is located a few miles south of the dam. Norris Dam State Park is located entirely within the Appalachian Ridge-and-Valley Range, which is characterized by narrow elongated ridges flanked by broad, fertile river valleys. The low rolling hills that dominate the park's terrain are underlain by sedimentary rocks— namely limestone, dolomite, shale, and sandstone— which were formed roughly 400-500 million years ago during the Paleozoic Era. Most of Norris Dam State Park is coated by an Appalachian oak-pine forest, much of which is second-growth, although significant old growth stands remain in nearby Chuck Swan