List of dams and reservoirs in the United States facts for kids

The nearly 8100 major dams in the United States in 2006. The National Inventory of Dams defines a major dam as being 50 feet (15 m) tall with a storage capacity of at least 5,000 acre-feet (6,200,000 m³), or of any height with a storage capacity of 25,000 acre-feet (31,000,000 m³).

The following is a partial list of dams and reservoirs in the United States. There are an estimated 84,000 dams in the United States, impounding 600,000 mi (970,000 km) of river or about 17% of rivers in the nation.

By state

Alabama

Alaska

Arizona

Arkansas

California

Colorado

• Aurora Reservoir
• Barker Dam – Barker Reservoir
• Blue Mesa Dam – Blue Mesa Reservoir
• Chatfield Reservoir
• Cherry Creek Reservoir
• Dillon Reservoir
• Electra Lake
• Elkhead Reservoir
• Englewood Dam
• Green Mountain Reservoir
• Gross Dam – Gross Reservoir
• Horsetooth Dam – Horsetooth Reservoir, built as part of the Colorado-Big Thompson project
• John Martin Reservoir
• McNulty Reservoir Dam
• McPhee Dam – McPhee Reservoir
• Morrow Point Dam – Morrow Point Reservoir
• Mount Elbert Forebay Dam
• Navajo Reservoir
• Olympus Dam in Estes Park, Colorado, built as part of the Colorado-Big Thompson project
• Quincy Reservoir, in Aurora
• Ralston Dam
• Ridgway Dam – Ridgway Reservoir, built as part of the Dallas Creek Project
• Silver Jack Dam – Silver Jack Reservoir, part of the Bostwick Park Project
• Trinidad Dam
• Vallecito Reservoir
• Williams Fork Reservoir
• Wolford Mountain Reservoir

Connecticut

• Beseck Lake Dam
• Candlewood Lake
• Leesville Dam – Salmon River
• Mansfield Hollow Dam – Mansfield Hollow Lake
• Saville Dam – Barkhamsted Reservoir
• Stevenson Dam – Lake Zoar, on the Housatonic River
• West Thompson Dam – Quinebaug River

Delaware

Florida

Georgia

• Allatoona Dam – Lake Allatoona
• Bartlett's Ferry Dam – Lake Harding
• Blue Ridge Dam – Blue Ridge Reservoir; on the Toccoa River; finished in 1930; acquired by the TVA in 1939
• Buford Dam – Lake Lanier
• Carters Dam – Carter's Lake
• Chatuge Dam – Chatuge Reservoir; on the Hiwassee River; finished in 1942 by the TVA
• Lake Delano
• Lake Dorene
• Clark Hill Dam (J. Strom Thurmond Dam) – Lake Strom Thurmond, also in South Carolina
• Goat Rock Dam – Goat Rock Lake
• Hartwell Dam – Lake Hartwell, also in South Carolina
• Hickory Log Creek Dam – Hickory Log Creek Reservoir (under construction until Oct 2007)
• Jim Woodruff Dam – Lake Seminole; on Apalachicola River; built by USACE
• Kelly Barnes Dam – Toccoa Falls, failed in 1977 killing 39 people
• Lake Blackshear Dam – Lake Blackshear
• Morgan Falls Dam – Bull Sluice Lake
• Nottely Dam – Nottely Reservoir; on the Nottely River; finished in 1942 by the TVA
• Oliver Dam – Lake Oliver
• Richard B. Russell Dam – Richard B. Russell Lake, also in South Carolina
• Sinclair Dam – Lake Sinclair
• Wallace Dam – Lake Oconee
• Walter F. George Lake – on the Chattahoochee River; built by USACE
• West Point Dam – West Point Lake

Hawaii

Idaho

Illinois

• Fordham Dam
• Kaskaskia Lock and Dam
• Lake Holiday Dam, Lake Holiday
• Lock and Dam#27
• McHenry Dam
• Melvin Price Locks and Dam, Alton

Indiana

Iowa

Kansas

Kentucky

Louisiana

• Bailey's Dam
• Sibley Lake Dam
• Toledo Bend Reservoir

Maine

Maryland

Massachusetts

Michigan

Minnesota

Mississippi

• Aberdeen Lock and Dam – Aberdeen Lake
• Jamie Whitten Lock and Dam
• John C. Stennis Lock and Dam – Columbus Lake
• Okatibbee Dam
• Ross Barnett Reservoir and Spillway
• Grenada Lake

Missouri

Montana

Nebraska

Nevada

New Hampshire

New Jersey

New Mexico

• Abiquiu Lake
• Bluewater Lake
• Cochiti Dam
• Conchas Lake
• Elephant Butte Dike
• El Vado Lake
• Galisteo Dam
• Heron Lake
• Jemez Canyon Dam
• Navajo Lake
• Santa Rosa Dam
• Two Rivers Dam
• Ute Dam

New York

North Carolina

• Lake Adger - Green River (North Carolina); completed in 1925
• Apalachia Dam – Apalachia Reservoir; on the Hiwassee River; finished in 1943 by the TVA
• Lake Blue Devil – Duke Power
• Cheoah Dam – built in 1919 and owned by Alcoa
• Cowans Ford Dam and Lake Norman – Duke Power
• Falls Lake – USACE
• Fontana Dam – Fontana Reservoir; on the Little Tennessee River; finished in 1944 by the TVA
• Gaston Dam – Lake Gaston; on the Roanoke River; built by the Virginia Electric Power Company (VEPCO)
• High Rock Lake – on the Yadkin River; built in 1927 by USACE and operated today by Alcoa
• Hiwassee Dam – Hiwassee Reservoir; on the Hiwassee River; finished in 1940 by the TVA
• B. Everett Jordan Lake – on the Haw River; built by USACE
• Little River Reservoir – finished in 1987
• Lake Lure – Duke Power
• Lake Michie – finished in 1926, on the Flat River
• Mountain Island Dam and Mountain Island Lake – Duke Power
• Lake Nottely – on the Nottely River; built 1941–1942; operated by the TVA
• Randleman Lake Dam, completed in 2003
• Rocky Mount Mills Dam - built in the early 1800s at a rocky outcrop for which the city is named; designed to accommodate the needs of the cotton mill
• Santeetlah Dam – built in 1928 and owned by Alcoa
• Tar River Reservoir - Owned by the City of Rocky Mount and used for the city's water supply
• Tuxedo Dam - Lake Summit on the Green River (North Carolina); completed in 1920

North Dakota

Ohio

Oklahoma

Oregon

Pennsylvania

Rhode Island

South Carolina

• Conestee Mill Dam – Conestee Lake
• Hartwell Dam – Lake Hartwell, also in the U.S state of Georgia
• Clark Hill Dam (J. Strom Thurmond Dam) – Lake Strom Thurmond, also in the U.S state of Georgia
• Jocassee Dam – Lake Jocassee
• Keowee Dam
• Monticello Reservoir – Jenkinsville, South Carolina
• Pinopolis Dam – Lake Moultrie
• Richard B. Russell Dam – Richard B. Russell Lake, also in the U.S state of Georgia
• Saluda Dam – Lake Murray

South Dakota

Tennessee

• Boone Dam — Boone Lake; on the South Fork Holston River; finished in 1952 by the TVA
• Burgess Falls Dam; on the Falling Water River; built by City of Cookeville for electric generation after the flood of 1928 destroyed a previous earthen dam
• Calderwood Dam; on the Little Tennessee River; built in 1930 and owned by Alcoa
• Cedar Dam — Cedar Reservoir; on Haley Creek, tributary of the Beech River; finished in 1963 by the TVA
• Center Hill Dam — Center Hill Lake; on the Caney Fork; finished in 1948 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers
• Cheatham Dam — Cheatham Lake; on the Cumberland River; finished in 1952 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers
• Cherokee Dam — Cherokee Lake; on the Holston River; finished in 1941 by the TVA
• Chickamauga Dam — Chickamauga Lake; on the Tennessee River; built 1940 by the TVA
• Chilhowee Dam; on the Little Tennessee River; built in 1957 and owned by Alcoa
• Cordell Hull Dam — Cordell Hull Lake; on the Cumberland River; finished in 1973 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers
• Dale Hollow Dam — Dale Hollow Reservoir on the Obey River completed in 1943 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers
• Dogwood Dam — Dogwood Reservoir; on Big Creek, tributary of the Beech River; finished in 1965 by the TVA
• Douglas Dam — Douglas Lake; on the French Broad River; finished in 1943 by the TVA
• Elk River Dam — Woods Reservoir; on the Elk River; finished in 1952 by the Corps of Engineers, to provide cooling water for the U.S. Air Force's Arnold Engineering Development Center
• Fall Creek Falls Dam — Fall Creek Falls Reservoir; on Falls Creek; finished in 1970 by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation
• Fort Loudoun Dam — Fort Loudoun Lake; on the Tennessee River; finished in 1943 by the TVA
• Fort Patrick Henry Dam — Fort Patrick Henry Lake; on the South Fork Holston River; finished in 1953 by the TVA
• Great Falls Dam — Great Falls Reservoir; on the Caney Fork; finished in 1916 by the Tennessee Electric Power Co.; acquired by the TVA in 1939
• Hales Bar Dam; on the Tennessee River, TVA dam mostly demolished in 1968, replaced by Nickajack Dam
• Herb Parsons Dam — Herb Parsons Lake; on Mary's Creek
• J. Percy Priest Dam — Percy Priest Lake; on the Stones River; finished in 1968 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers
• Lost Creek Dam; flood control dam with no permanent reservoir; on Lost Creek, tributary of the Beech River; finished in 1963 by the TVA
• Melton Hill Dam — Melton Hill Lake; on the Clinch River; finished in 1963 by the TVA
• Nickajack Dam — Nickajack Lake; on the Tennessee River; finished in 1967 by the TVA
• Nolichucky Dam — Davy Crockett Lake; on the Nolichucky River; finished in 1913 by the Tennessee Eastern Electric Co.; acquired by the TVA in 1945; taken out of service in 1972
• Normandy Dam — Normandy Reservoir; on the Duck River; finished in 1976 by the TVA
• Norris Dam — Norris Lake; on the Clinch River; finished in 1936 by the TVA
• Ocoee Dam No. 1 — Parksville Reservoir; on the Ocoee River; finished in 1911 by the Eastern Tennessee Power Co.; acquired by the TVA in 1939
• Ocoee Dam No. 2 — Ocoee Reservoir No. 2; on the Ocoee River; finished in 1913 by the Eastern Tennessee Power Co.; acquired by the TVA in 1939
• Ocoee Dam No. 3 — Ocoee Reservoir No. 3; on the Ocoee River; finished in 1942 by the TVA
• Old Hickory Lock and Dam — Old Hickory Lake; on the Cumberland River; finished in 1957 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers
• Pickwick Landing Dam — Pickwick Lake; on the Tennessee River; finished in 1938 by the TVA
• Pin Oak Dam — Pin Oak Reservoir; on Browns Creek, tributary of the Beech River; finished in 1964 by the TVA
• Pine Dam — Pine Reservoir; on Piney Creek, tributary of the Beech River; finished in 1964 by the TVA
• Raccoon Mountain Pumped-Storage Plant — Raccoon Mountain Reservoir; on McNabb Branch but discharges into the Tennessee River; finished in 1978 by the TVA
• Radnor Dam — Radnor Lake; on Otter Creek; built by the Louisville and Nashville Railroad Company in 1914, for watering steam locomotives and supplying water for shipped livestock
• Redbud Dam — Redbud Reservoir; on Dry Creek, tributary of the Beech River; finished in 1965 by the TVA
• South Holston Dam — South Holston Lake; on the South Fork Holston River; finished in 1950 by the TVA
• Sycamore Dam — Sycamore Reservoir; on Dry Branch, tributary of the Beech River; finished in 1965 by the TVA
• Tellico Dam — Tellico Lake; on the Little Tennessee River; finished in 1979 by the TVA
• Tims Ford Dam — Tims Ford Lake; on the Elk River; finished in 1970 by the TVA
• Watauga Dam — Watauga Lake; on the Watauga River; finished in 1948 by the TVA
• Watts Bar Dam — Watts Bar Lake; on the Tennessee River; finished in 1942 by the TVA
• Walterhill Dam — Walterhill Floodplain State Natural Area; on Stones River; finished in early 1900s.
• Wilbur Dam — Wilbur Lake (tennessee); on the Watauga River; finished in 1912 by the Watauga Power Co.; acquired by the TVA in 1945
• New Shoal Creek Dam; on Shoal Creek (Sycamore River), (Lawrence County, Lawrenceburg, Tennessee)

Texas

Utah

Vermont

Virginia

• Beaver Creek Dam – flood control dam with no permanent reservoir; on Beaver Creek; finished in 1965 by the TVA
• Bosher's Dam (also called Bosher Dam) – on the James River; first built in 1823
• Clear Creek Dam and Clear Creek Reservoir – on Clear Creek; finished in 1965 by the TVA
• Claytor Dam (hydroelectric) – on the New River; home of Claytor Lake State Park; between Dublin and Radford
• John H. Kerr Dam and John H. Kerr Lake – on the Roanoke River; built by USACE; reservoir covers parts of Virginia/North Carolina border
• Lake of The Woods Dam – near Fredericksburg
• Lake of the Woods Dam Number Two – near Fredericksburg
• Leesville Dam – on the Roanoke River; operated by Appalachian Power as part of the Smith Mountain pumped storage project
• Little River Dam (hydroelectric) – on the Little River; owned by the city of Radford
• Martinsville Dam – on the Smith River
• Martinsville Fish Dam – NRHP landmark on the Smith River
• Niagara Dam (hydroelectric) – on the Roanoke River near Vinton, Virginia; built in 1904
• Philpott Lake – near Roanoke
• Smith Mountain Dam (hydroelectric) and Smith Mountain Lake – on the Roanoke River; operated by Appalachian Power (American Electric Power)
• Walker's Dam – on the Chickahominy River; forms Chickahominy Lake; operated by Newport News Waterworks

Washington

• Blue Gulch Reservoir Dam
• Bonneville Dam – Lake Bonneville (between Washington and Oregon)
• Boundary Dam – Pend Oreille River
• Box Canyon Dam – Pend Oreille River
• Casad Dam – Union River
• Chief Joseph Dam – Rufus Woods Lake
• Culmback Dam – Spada Lake, Jackson Hydro Project
• Dry Falls Dam – Banks Lake
• Diablo Dam and Diablo Lake – Skagit River, Seattle City Light
• Elwha Dam – Lake Aldwell
• Glines Canyon Dam – Lake Mills
• Gorge Dam – Skagit River, Seattle City Light
• Grand Coulee Dam, largest hydroelectricity plant in the U.S. – Franklin D. Roosevelt Lake
• Howard A. Hanson Dam – Green River, Howard A. Hanson Reservoir
• Ice Harbor Lock and Dam, Lake Sacajawea, lower Snake River
• John Day Dam – Lake Umatilla (between Washington and Oregon)
• Lake Lawrence Dam – Lake Lawrence
• Little Goose Lock and Dam, Lake Bryan, lower Snake River
• Lower Granite Lock and Dam, Lower Granite Lake, lower Snake River
• Lower Monumental Lock and Dam, Lake Herbert G. West, lower Snake River
• Masonry Dam, Chester Morse Lake, Cedar River
• McNary Dam – Lake Wallula (between Washington and Oregon)
• Merwin Dam – Lake Merwin
• Mossyrock Dam – Riffe Lake
• Priest Rapids Dam – Priest Rapids Lake
• Rock Island Dam – Rock Island Pool
• Rocky Reach Dam – Lake Entiat
• Ross Dam and Ross Lake – Skagit River, Seattle City Light
• Roza Dam – Yakima River
• Swift Dam – Swift Reservoir
• The Dalles Dam – Lake Celilo (between Washington and Oregon)
• Tieton Dam – Rimrock Lake
• Wanapum Dam – Lake Wanapum
• Wells Dam – Lake Pateros
• Wynoochee Dam – Lake Wynoochee
• Yale Dam – Yale Lake

West Virginia

Wisconsin

Wyoming

Other areas

District of Columbia

• Dalecarlia Reservoir
• Georgetown Reservoir
• McMillan Reservoir

Guam

Puerto Rico