You would find few people today who wouldn’t say Lake Lanier has been a blessing to Northeast Georgia, a bonus for people living here, a big draw for tourism, recreation and economic development. Skeptics and downright opponents to building Buford Dam, however, were not uncommon in the 1950s before construction began. They included those who didn’t want the federal government to take land that had been in their families for generations and Hall County business people who feared the flooding of roads and abandoning of bridges would cut into their traffic, especially from the west.