Oldest Dams in Tennessee

Tennessee has 1127 dams with recorded construction dates. The oldest dates to 1800 — 226 years ago. Tennessee's earliest dams were built in the 19th century, an era of westward expansion, irrigation development, and early water infrastructure. Older dams require particular attention for safety, as many were built before modern engineering standards.

#	Dam	County	Year Built	Age	Height (ft)	Hazard	Condition
1	Lake Lookout Dam	Hamilton	1800	226 yrs	23	High	Not assessed
2	Oostanaula Creek Dam	McMinn	1869	157 yrs	18	Low	Not assessed
3	Hava-lakatu #1 Dam	Dickson	1875	151 yrs	25	Low	Not assessed
4	Paradise Lake Dam	Marshall	1900	126 yrs	30	Low	Satisfactory
5	Mcminnville Water Supply Dam	Warren	1900	126 yrs	18	Significant	Satisfactory
6	Hills Mill Dam	Robertson	1903	123 yrs	19	Low	Not assessed
7	Porters Creek #3 Dam	Hardeman	1906	120 yrs	27	Significant	Satisfactory
8	Delano Mill Pond Dam	Polk	1908	118 yrs	17	Significant	Not assessed
9	Mayland Lake Dam	Cumberland	1910	116 yrs	31	Low	Satisfactory
10	Ocoee No. 1 Dam	Polk	1911	115 yrs	135	High	Not assessed
11	Wilbur Dam	Carter	1912	114 yrs	76	High	Not assessed
12	Meade Lake Dam	Tipton	1912	114 yrs	13	Significant	Not assessed
13	Nolichucky Dam	Greene	1913	113 yrs	94	High	Not assessed
14	Ocoee No. 2 Forebay Dam	Polk	1913	113 yrs	40	Low	Not assessed
15	Ocoee No. 2 Dam	Polk	1913	113 yrs	27	High	Not assessed
16	Tellico Dam	Monroe	1914	112 yrs	62	High	Unsatisfactory
17	Bays Mountain Dam	Sullivan	1915	111 yrs	35	High	Fair
18	Great Falls Dam	White	1916	110 yrs	92	High	Not assessed
19	Radnor Dam	Davidson	1917	109 yrs	54	High	Fair
20	Walter Hill Lake Dam	Rutherford	1918	108 yrs	14	Significant	Fair
21	Robertson Dam	Shelby	1919	107 yrs	14	Low	Not assessed
22	Linger Lake Dam	Cumberland	1920	106 yrs	15	Low	Fair
23	Columbia Dam	Maury	1920	106 yrs	25	Significant	Satisfactory
24	Arrow Lake Dam	Maury	1921	105 yrs	30	High	Satisfactory
25	Monterey Lake #2 Dam	Putnam	1921	105 yrs	33	Low	Not assessed
26	New Shoal Creek Dam	Lawrence	1924	102 yrs	45	Significant	Satisfactory
27	New Lewisburg Lake Dam	Marshall	1925	101 yrs	34	High	Satisfactory
28	Nelson Elam #2 Dam	Williamson	1925	101 yrs	21	High	Not assessed
29	Polk Dam	Sumner	1926	100 yrs	25	High	Not assessed
30	Spain Lake Dam	White	1926	100 yrs	14	Low	Satisfactory
31	Cheek Lake Dam	Davidson	1927	99 yrs	33	Low	Satisfactory
32	Napier Dam	Lewis	1927	99 yrs	10	Low	Not assessed
33	Napier Diversion Dam	Lewis	1927	99 yrs	20	Significant	Not assessed
34	Lillard Mill Dam	Marshall	1928	98 yrs	16	Significant	Satisfactory
35	Burgess Falls Dam	Putnam	1928	98 yrs	40	Significant	Fair
36	Benedict's Pond Dam	Tipton	1929	97 yrs	24	Low	Not assessed
37	Calderwood	Blount	1930	96 yrs	230	High	Satisfactory
38	Wildwood #2 Dam	Bradley	1930	96 yrs	23	Significant	Fair
39	Jackson Dam	Lewis	1930	96 yrs	19	Low	Not assessed
40	Duncan Dam	Madison	1930	96 yrs	16	Low	Not assessed
41	Todd's Lake Dam	Rutherford	1930	96 yrs	14	Significant	Satisfactory
42	River Oaks Dam	Shelby	1930	96 yrs	16	High	Fair
43	Clement Lake Dam	Williamson	1930	96 yrs	32	Low	Not assessed
44	Lakeview #1 Dam	Franklin	1931	95 yrs	21	Low	Not assessed
45	Lake Laura Dam	Cumberland	1933	93 yrs	22	Significant	Satisfactory
46	Grundy #1 Dam	Grundy	1934	92 yrs	19	High	Satisfactory
47	Pickett Lake Dam	Pickett	1934	92 yrs	21	Low	Satisfactory
48	Presley Dam	Carroll	1935	91 yrs	9	Low	Not assessed
49	Lake Placid Dam	Chester	1935	91 yrs	25	Significant	Satisfactory
50	Woodhaven Dam	Dickson	1935	91 yrs	40	High	Satisfactory

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