Fontana Dam North Carolina Map
Explore Fontana Dam, North Carolina, with this interactive street and satellite map.
This page also offers TOPO MAPS — the official USGS topographic sheets — plus USGS aerial imagery, a labelled USNG grid overlay, a distance and bearing tool, and a GPS grid-reference readout. See How to Use This Map below.
Interactive Map of Fontana Dam, North Carolina
How to Use This Fontana Dam, North Carolina Map
This interactive map shows the street layout and satellite imagery for Fontana Dam, North Carolina. Use the Map and Satellite buttons above to switch between street map and aerial imagery views. Use the + and − buttons to zoom in or out, or scroll your mouse wheel while holding the Control key to zoom. On a touchscreen, use a two-finger pinch gesture. Drag the map to pan to any area of North Carolina or beyond.
Click ⛶ Fullscreen to expand the map to fill your screen. To return to the normal page view, press the Escape key, click the ✕ Exit Fullscreen button that appears above the map, or on a mobile device tap the back button (Android) or the close icon (iOS).
TOPO MAPS — NEW. Click the green 🔍 Search Maps button below the map to open a second map with a Base map row offering three choices. OSM is the standard OpenStreetMap street map. Topo shows the official USGS topographic maps from The National Map — contours, hydrography, land cover and shaded relief, the same mapping used for hiking, hunting and back-country navigation in the Adirondacks, the Catskills and the Finger Lakes. Imagery shows USGS aerial photography, mostly 1-metre NAIP. The search box finds any US town, county or landmark by name, so you are not limited to Fontana Dam.
Reading the map like a paper quad. Click Grid to overlay the U.S. National Grid (USNG), labelled along the edges exactly as a printed topographic sheet is — at normal zoom the squares are one kilometre across, so you can read a six-figure grid reference by eye and judge distance directly off the map. Click Measure, then tap two points, to get the distance between them together with the grid bearing in degrees and mils, the true bearing, and the magnetic bearing to set on a compass.
Click 📍 My position to take a single GPS reading from your device. It marks where you are and reports your position as a USNG grid reference as well as plain latitude and longitude — USNG being the format FEMA and US search and rescue teams work from — with a Copy position button so you can paste it straight into a text message. It takes one reading and stops, rather than tracking continuously, to conserve your battery. Note that map tiles need cell coverage, but a GPS reading does not — your coordinates stay correct even where the map itself cannot load.
| City | Fontana Dam |
| State | North Carolina (NC) |
| County | Graham County |
| Country | United States of America |
| Timezone | Eastern Time (America/New_York) |
| Latitude | 35.4328 |
| Longitude | -83.8248 |
| Population | 13 |
| Density | 8.0 /km² |
| Incorporated | Yes |
| ZIP Code | 28733 |
| Area Code | 828 |
| County Seat | Robbinsville |
| School District | Graham County Schools |
About Fontana Dam, North Carolina
Fontana Dam is a locality in Graham County, North Carolina, United States. It is a small community with a population of 13. The population density is 8.0 people per km². Fontana Dam is located at 35.4328°N, 83.8248°W. It observes the Eastern Time (America/New_York) timezone. Fontana Dam is an incorporated locality. ZIP code: 28733.Fontana Dam anchors the rugged spine of the earth where the Welch Cove Branch carves its narrow, restless path through the steep terrain of Brooks Cove. It lies 33.7 miles west of Cherokee Indian Reservation, NC (from Cherokee Indian Reservation, NC: bearing 264°T), and is situated 16.5 miles south of Blount. This inland landscape is defined by the dense, verdant expanse of the Nantahala National Forest, a vast woodland that holds the morning mist in its heavy, hemlock-scented folds long after the sun has crested the distant Great Smoky Mountains. The air here carries a sharp, metallic clarity, and the light at dusk fractures against the steep slopes, casting long, bruised shadows that swallow the undergrowth until only the highest ridges remain gilded in amber.
Fontana Dam stands as a monumental intervention in this wild, vertical country, a testament to the mid-century drive to harness the kinetic energy of the highlands for industrial advancement. The construction of the dam fundamentally altered the valley, creating the expansive, deep-water basin of Fontana Lake, which now serves as a quiet, reflective mirror for the surrounding canopy. While the local economy has shifted from the frantic industry of the war years toward the quieter rhythms of forest management and outdoor recreation, the legacy of the project remains etched into the human geography of the place. Travelers occasionally seek the distant challenge of the Long Hungry Ridge Trail, or venture further toward the rushing solitude of Lower Falls, yet the true character of Fontana Dam is found in the persistent, unhurried flow of the water and the way the forest slowly reclaims the margins of the cleared land.
Nearby Outdoor Places
- Nantahala National Forest (National Forest) — 0.2 mi, 301° NW · 533k acres
- Lookout Rock (Viewpoint) — 0.8 mi, 208° SW
- Great Smoky Mountains National Park (National Park) — 1.3 mi, 358° N · 521k acres
- Tree of Shame (Attraction) — 5.8 mi, 294° NW
- Foothills Wildlife Management Area (State Conservation Area) — 6.1 mi, 299° NW
- Joyce Kilmer-Slickrock Wilderness (Wilderness Area) — 6.1 mi, 240° SW · 19k acres
- Cherokee National Forest (National Forest) — 7.5 mi, 299° NW · 662k acres
- Graham County Historical Association (Museum) — 7.7 mi, 173° S
- Junaluska Memorial (Monument) — 7.8 mi, 173° S
- Joyce Kilmer Memorial Forest (Attraction) — 7.9 mi, 229° SW
- Mainspring Conservation Trust - Simp Gap Preserve (Conservation Area) — 8.1 mi, 135° SE
- Citico Creek Wilderness (Wilderness Area) — 10.7 mi, 254° W · 16k acres
- South Cherokee Wildlife Management Area (State Conservation Area) — 11.7 mi, 304° NW
- Town of Andrews Open Space (Local Conservation Area) — 12.2 mi, 181° S
- Snowbird Wilderness Study Area (Wilderness Study Area) — 12.6 mi, 208° SW · 8,491 acres
- Flat Branch boat launch (Attraction) — 15.4 mi, 088° E
- Tellico Lake - Chota Unit (National Conservation Area) — 15.7 mi, 299° NW · 262 acres
- Tuckaleechee Caverns (Attraction) — 15.8 mi, 010° N
- The Little River Railroad and Lumber Company Museum (Museum) — 17.4 mi, 014° N
- Tanasi Monument (Monument) — 18.8 mi, 295° NW
- Tanasi;ᏔᎾᏏ (Historic Ruins) — 19.0 mi, 295° NW
- Chota;ᎢᏣᏘ (Historic Ruins) — 19.1 mi, 296° NW
- Swain County War Dead Memorial (Monument) — 21.4 mi, 091° E
- Swain County Visitor Center and Heritage Museum (Museum) — 21.4 mi, 091° E
- Fort Loudon (State Park) — 23.1 mi, 297° NW
- Sequoyah Birthplace Museum (Museum) — 24.2 mi, 295° NW
- Fort Harry (Historic Castle / Fort) — 24.3 mi, 054° NE
- Hollywood Star Cars Museum (Museum) — 25.8 mi, 042° NE
- WildSide (Theme Park) — 26.0 mi, 032° NE
- Cowee School Arts & Heritage Center (Arts Centre) — 26.5 mi, 117° SE
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About This Fontana Dam Map Page
This page provides an embedded street and satellite map of Fontana Dam, North Carolina. Coordinates: 35.4328, -83.8248. Live weather conditions are sourced directly from the National Weather Service. Real-time local and world news feeds keep the page current.
Detailed location data for Fontana Dam includes the ZIP code (28733), telephone area code (828), county seat of Graham County (Robbinsville), and school district assignment (Graham County Schools).
Search Maps opens a second, independent map. It searches OpenStreetMap for any US town, county or landmark by name; offers USGS topographic maps and USGS aerial imagery as base layers; overlays a labelled U.S. National Grid (USNG) so the map can be read like a printed topographic quad; measures distance and grid, true and magnetic bearings between any two points; and takes a single GPS fix reporting your position as a USNG grid reference and as latitude and longitude. Map tiles require cell coverage, but a GPS position does not, so the coordinates remain correct even where the map cannot load.
Location data is drawn from the USGS Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) and cross-verified against 2020 US Census records by coordinate proximity. Population figures are sourced from the 2020 US Census.
| Page generated | September 2026 |
| Location data | SimpleMaps US Cities Database; coordinates matched to USGS GNIS definitive data |
| Map layers | Google Maps; © OpenStreetMap contributors; USGS The National Map topographic and aerial imagery (public domain); magnetic declination from NOAA NCEI (World Magnetic Model) |
| Wikipedia validation | Article content matched to USGS GNIS coordinates via Wikipedia geosearch API. |
