Center Hill Lake nowChecking…Live lake details

Center Hill Lake now

Weather and water, in one read.

Loading current conditions…
Checking official feeds…
Pool elevationLoading…Waiting for USACE
24-hour trendLoading…Change in pool elevation
Total releaseLoading…Waiting for USACE
WeatherLoading…Waiting for Open-Meteo
Proposed hydropower schedule · checking…Loading the official schedule…
Tony’s read

Checking the official lake and weather feeds. This usually takes a few seconds.

Water-safety note: Generation and release schedules can change without notice, and a large amount of water may be discharged without warning. Verify official USACE and TVA information before approaching dam or tailwater areas, and obey every posted warning.

What these numbers mean →USACE Center Hill data ↗USACE generation schedule ↗TVA Center Hill information ↗National Weather Service forecast ↗Weather: Open-Meteo

Half or full day · Respectful travel

Black History & Institution Building

This route is about places where Black communities taught, worshiped, organized and preserved memory. The short version stays with the Alexandria landscape Du Bois documented. The full version extends to Free Hill and must be treated as a long, permission-conscious regional journey—not a sightseeing scavenger hunt.

Best for
Visitors willing to read before arriving and approach living community places with restraint
Before leaving
Several stops are active, sacred or community-managed places. Exterior observation from public ground is the default unless public access or an invitation is confirmed.

Choose the day you actually have

Essential, full or fallback?

Route map

See the road before you commit to the day.

  1. 1Alexandria town centerDeKalb County
  2. 2Seay Chapel and cemetery landscapeAlexandria

The embedded map begins at The Little Lake House. Use “Start from where I am” above when your actual starting point is somewhere else.

1
Rail line passing through the rural Middle Tennessee landscape
Transportation corridors help explain how small communities connected to the wider region.

DeKalb County · 30–45 minutes

Alexandria town center

Why it belongs

Du Bois named and described Alexandria in his Tennessee writing, making the present town a place for careful comparison rather than reenactment.

What I want you to notice

Ask what remains visible, what has changed and which parts of Black community life are not marked on the landscape.

Effort and access

Public streets. Park legally; observe from public ground.

Directions from where I am ↗From the lake house ↗Read the deeper guide →

2

Alexandria · 30–45 minutes

Seay Chapel and cemetery landscape

Why it belongs

Church, school and burial ground help explain how Black communities built institutions after emancipation.

What I want you to notice

Look for relationships among worship, education, burial and settlement. Do not photograph people, services or graves intrusively.

Effort and access

Brief, respectful stop. Sacred or active property; exterior observation unless invited.

Directions from where I am ↗From the lake house ↗Read the deeper guide →

Tony’s judgment

The choices that keep this route honest.

I would not miss

The reading. Without the primary source and community context, Alexandria can look like an ordinary small town and the route loses its purpose.

I would cut

Cut Free Hill when access is uncertain or the day starts late. A respectful half day in DeKalb County is better than arriving unannounced at dusk.

Food plan

Plan food before the long Free Hill leg. Rural hours can be limited, and this is not the day to improvise around a community visit.

My turn-back point

If worship, a funeral, private activity or a closed property changes the situation, leave quietly. The history does not entitle us to access.