The History of Tega Cay
The Ervin Company purchased and broke ground on 1,600 acres on Lake Wylie in 1970 and named the impending development "Tega Cay". The development was named "beautiful Peninsula" in Polynesian and many of the streets also carry those names. Several of the original homes were built in the Polynesian style, along with other buildings in the development. In 1982 Tega Cay petitioned for and was incorporated as a city. This was due to a bankruptcy that the developer entered into and the residents of Tega Cay sought protection for their community. The initial development was conceived as being like a vacation spot year round, with low monthly homeowner's fees that provided many services. This was the reason the developer had to enter into bankruptcy. During the initial development of the site, interested parties were shown property in many ways, which included a riverboat to show property along with jeeps and other off-road vehicles.
With the Catawba Dam and Power Plant finishing construction in 1904 electricity began to flow from Lake Wylie. The construction on the dam began in 1900 and took 4 years for it to become operational. In 1899 William Whitner and the Wylie brothers (Gill and Robert) purchased the property and started the construction of this dam. The construction of the dam was slow due to the flooding and terrain type for which the dam was being built on. Once this project was completed it was one of the most important engineering projects in the southeast at that time. This led to the creation of the Duke Power Company. The original dam was rebuilt in 1924 and due to the rebuilding the surface area of the dam increased. This increase allowed the shoreline to grow to 325 miles. Also as a result of the increased shoreline, prime lakefront property was created and this led to the expensive prime development known as "Tega Cay". Every year on the 4th of July, Tega Cay celebrates when they became a city.
