Dams in Nebraska

2,954 damsAvg age: 51 years

155

High Hazard

215

Significant

2,583

Low Hazard

Dam Safety in Nebraska

Nebraska has 2,954 dams tracked in the National Inventory of Dams. Of these, 155 (5%) are classified as high hazard — meaning failure would probably cause loss of human life — and 215 are classified as significant hazard. Currently, 812 dams in the state have a condition assessment of poor or unsatisfactory, indicating recognized safety deficiencies.

The average dam in Nebraska is 51 years old. The most common purpose for dams in Nebraska is flood risk reduction, accounting for 1,199 of the state's dams.

The federal inventory is not every dam in Nebraska. It includes dams rated high or significant hazard, plus low-hazard dams above a size threshold (taller than 25 feet holding more than 15 acre-feet, or taller than 6 feet holding more than 50 acre-feet). Small, older dams below that line are usually left out, even though they can still shape the streams around them. The state's own dam safety program often tracks many more, and it is the agency that inspects most of them.

Use the search above to find dams near any address in Nebraska, or browse by county below. Each dam listing includes its hazard potential classification, condition assessment, physical characteristics, and inspection history from the NID.

Nebraska Dam Facts

Total Dams	2,954
High Hazard Dams	155
Average Dam Age	51 years
Tallest Dam	165 ft
Largest Reservoir	1,900,600 acre-ft
Poor/Unsatisfactory Condition	812

Notable Dams in Nebraska

Medicine Creek Dam165 ftHigh Kingsley162 ftHigh Davis Creek Dam144 ftHigh Trenton Dam144 ftHigh Sherman Dam134 ftHigh

Explore Nebraska Dams

Oldest DamsEarliest dams in Nebraska Tallest DamsHighest dams in Nebraska

Counties in Nebraska

Adams25 dams2 high hazard Antelope30 dams Arthur1 dams Banner22 dams Blaine1 dams Boone26 dams1 high hazard Box Butte8 dams Boyd23 dams Brown8 dams Buffalo49 dams7 high hazard Burt37 dams3 high hazard Butler54 dams Cass66 dams8 high hazard Cedar13 dams2 high hazard Chase10 dams1 high hazard Cherry30 dams2 high hazard Cheyenne21 dams5 high hazard Clay26 dams2 high hazard Colfax10 dams2 high hazard Cuming23 dams Custer30 dams Dakota15 dams3 high hazard Dawes47 dams1 high hazard Dawson84 dams2 high hazard Deuel3 dams Dixon43 dams Dodge12 dams2 high hazard Douglas35 dams16 high hazard Dundy7 dams Fillmore9 dams1 high hazard Franklin49 dams Frontier65 dams2 high hazard Furnas72 dams Gage205 dams6 high hazard Garden8 dams1 high hazard Garfield2 dams1 high hazard Gosper72 dams2 high hazard Greeley10 dams1 high hazard Hall8 dams Hamilton20 dams Harlan49 dams1 high hazard Hayes22 dams1 high hazard Hitchcock16 dams1 high hazard Holt52 dams Howard32 dams Jefferson65 dams Johnson78 dams1 high hazard Kearney15 dams Keith11 dams5 high hazard Keya Paha26 dams Kimball22 dams2 high hazard Knox30 dams Lancaster141 dams22 high hazard Lincoln23 dams3 high hazard Loup1 dams Madison15 dams2 high hazard McPherson1 dams Merrick1 dams Morrill19 dams2 high hazard Nance13 dams Nemaha35 dams Nuckolls78 dams Otoe141 dams2 high hazard Pawnee92 dams1 high hazard Perkins2 dams Phelps7 dams Pierce3 dams1 high hazard Platte15 dams Polk36 dams Red Willow44 dams1 high hazard Richardson55 dams1 high hazard Rock3 dams Saline70 dams4 high hazard Sarpy38 dams14 high hazard Saunders59 dams3 high hazard Scotts Bluff23 dams6 high hazard Seward53 dams2 high hazard Sheridan28 dams2 high hazard Sherman6 dams1 high hazard Sioux67 dams1 high hazard Stanton23 dams1 high hazard Thayer40 dams1 high hazard Thomas2 dams Valley9 dams Washington36 dams1 high hazard Wayne5 dams Webster53 dams Wheeler6 dams York14 dams

High Hazard Dams in Nebraska

Dam	County	Height	Condition	Purpose
Medicine Creek Dam	Frontier	165 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Kingsley	Keith	162 ft	Fair	Hydroelectric
Trenton Dam	Hitchcock	144 ft	Not assessed	Irrigation
Davis Creek Dam	Greeley	144 ft	Not assessed	Irrigation
Sherman Dam	Sherman	134 ft	Satisfactory	Irrigation
Merritt Dam	Cherry	126 ft	Not assessed	Irrigation
Red Willow Dam	Frontier	126 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Elwood Dam	Gosper	118 ft	Fair	Irrigation
Minatare Dam	Scotts Bluff	114 ft	Not assessed	Irrigation
Beaver Lake Dam	Cass	108 ft	Poor	Recreation
Harlan County Dam	Harlan	107 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Virginia Smith Dam	Garfield	96 ft	Not assessed	Irrigation
Jeffrey Dam	Lincoln	90 ft	Satisfactory	Irrigation
Zorinsky Dam	Douglas	90 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Newport Landing Dam	Douglas	87 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Box Butte Dam	Dawes	87 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Wehrspann Dam	Sarpy	87 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Pigeon-jones Creek 12-a	Dakota	82 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Gering Valley E	Scotts Bluff	81 ft	Poor	Flood Risk Reduction
Willow Creek Dam	Pierce	80 ft	Poor	Flood Risk Reduction
Branched Oak Dam	Lancaster	80 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Tekamah-mud Creek 5-a	Burt	76 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Lonergan Dam	Douglas	75 ft	Satisfactory	Recreation
Blackwood Creek 11-a	Hayes	74 ft	Poor	Flood Risk Reduction
Gering Valley B	Scotts Bluff	74 ft	Poor	Flood Risk Reduction
Prairie Queen Main Dam	Sarpy	73 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Pawnee Dam	Lancaster	71 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Long Branch 21	Richardson	69 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Pigeon-jones Creek 15	Dakota	69 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Brule Creek 1-a	Keith	69 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Papio Creek 13 - Youngman	Douglas	66 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Centurylink Dam (multi-purpose Dam 1989-1)	Cass	65 ft	Satisfactory	Recreation
Conestoga Dam	Lancaster	65 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Silver Creek 11	Burt	64 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Papio Creek 15-a	Douglas	64 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Gering Valley a	Scotts Bluff	63 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Cottonwood Creek 7-a	Saunders	62 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Papio Creek 21 - Walnut Creek	Sarpy	62 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Candlewood Dam	Douglas	62 ft	Satisfactory	Recreation
Antelope Creek Dam	Lancaster	61 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Middle Big Nemaha 96	Johnson	60 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Spring Creek 19-b	Dawson	60 ft	Poor	Flood Risk Reduction
Yankee Hill Dam	Lancaster	60 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Lake Wanahoo Dam	Saunders	59 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Upper Little Nemaha 21	Lancaster	59 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Papio Creek S-32	Sarpy	58 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Swan Creek 20	Saline	55 ft	Poor	Flood Risk Reduction
Maple Creek Recreation Area Dam	Colfax	55 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Skyview Lake Dam	Madison	54 ft	Satisfactory	Recreation
Papio Creek Wp-7	Sarpy	54 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
North Oak Creek 1-a	Lancaster	54 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Papio Creek S-31	Sarpy	54 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Maskenthine Dam	Stanton	53 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Papio Creek Wp-6	Sarpy	53 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Papio Creek S-27	Sarpy	53 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Upper Salt Creek 3-a	Lancaster	52 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Tekamah-mud Creek 22-a	Burt	52 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Ogallala 7 (east Dam)	Keith	51 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Prairie Creek Upland Dam 1 (pcul 1)	Buffalo	51 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Plum Creek 4-f	Pawnee	50 ft	Poor	Flood Risk Reduction
Upper Big Nemaha 25-c	Gage	50 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Big Sandy Creek 35-5-2 (bruning Dam)	Fillmore	50 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Zorinsky Basin 2	Douglas	49 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Mill Creek Road Dam 7	Cass	49 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Thirty-two Mile Creek H	Adams	49 ft	Fair	Flood Risk Reduction
Papio Creek W-3	Washington	49 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Oliver Dam	Kimball	48 ft	Satisfactory	Irrigation
Stagecoach Dam	Lancaster	48 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Bluestem Dam	Lancaster	48 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Waterford Estates Dam	Lancaster	47 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Johnson Lake Dam	Gosper	47 ft	Not assessed	Hydroelectric
Zorinsky Basin 3 - Whitehawk	Douglas	47 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Hebron Dam	Thayer	46 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Ogallala 6 (west Dam)	Keith	46 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
MUD Creek 2-a	Gage	46 ft	Fair	Flood Risk Reduction
Prairie Creek Upland Dam 2 (pcul 2)	Buffalo	46 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Olive Creek Dam	Lancaster	46 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Wildhorse 14-a	Morrill	45 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Legacy Dam	Douglas	45 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Stevens Creek A17-1	Lancaster	45 ft	Fair	Flood Risk Reduction
Big Indian Creek 14-b	Gage	45 ft	Fair	Flood Risk Reduction
Big Sandy Creek 20-6-7	Clay	45 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Oak-middle 82-b	Seward	45 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Twin Lakes Dam	Seward	45 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Wagon Train Dam	Lancaster	45 ft	Not assessed	Flood Risk Reduction
Plattsmouth 10-a	Cass	44 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Maloney	Lincoln	44 ft	Satisfactory	Hydroelectric
Upper Salt Creek 10-a	Lancaster	44 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Lake Alice Dam 1	Scotts Bluff	44 ft	Not assessed	Irrigation
Hanson Lake Dam	Sarpy	43 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Valentine Mill Pond Dam	Cherry	43 ft	Poor	Recreation
Wilson Creek 8-h	Otoe	43 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Wildhorse 5-a	Morrill	42 ft	Fair	Flood Risk Reduction
Cottonwood Creek 21-a	Saunders	42 ft	Poor	Flood Risk Reduction
Upper Big Nemaha 7-a	Gage	42 ft	Fair	Flood Risk Reduction
Shadow Lake Dam	Sarpy	41 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Upper Salt Creek 35-a	Lancaster	41 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Korver Dam	Lancaster	40 ft	Satisfactory	Other
Cure Creek 1-a	Keith	40 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction
Sachs-palmer Dam	Douglas	40 ft	Satisfactory	Flood Risk Reduction