[1] Apalachia Dam is located nearly 66 miles (106 km) upstream from the mouth of the Hiwassee River, which flows northwestward through Northern Georgia and Western North Carolina before emptying into Chickamauga Lake in East Tennessee.

The dam is situated near the center of a scenic and relatively isolated valley sliced by the river as it winds its way through the southwestern fringe of the Blue Ridge Mountains.

The conduit emerges from a cliffside overlooking the dam's powerhouse, where it splits into two smaller tunnels which carry the water to a valve house.

By 1941, the outbreak of World War II in Europe brought a drastic increase in the demand for electricity— especially to support aluminum production in the Tennessee Valley— and TVA quickly put together a plan to build several new dams, including Apalachia, all of which were authorized July 16, 1941.

After the initial purchase, the Hiwassee-Nolichucky Power Company sold TVA an additional 8,100 acres (3,300 ha), nearly tripling the reservation size.

The conduit's tunnel was built using blasting and a drill jumbo, and its 235-foot (72 m) surge tank was excavated into the rock near the valve house.

[5] The construction of the Apalachia Dam eliminated the natural water flow on the Hiwassee River, causing the decline of Ruth's golden aster (Pityopsis ruthii), a major reason why the plant was placed on the Endangered Species List in 1985.