Oldest Dams in Virginia

Virginia has 149 dams with recorded construction dates. The oldest dates to 1842 — 184 years ago. Virginia'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	Moomaws	Buena Vista	1842	184 yrs	20	Low	Satisfactory
2	Bedford - Canal Embankment	Amherst	1850	176 yrs	18	Low	Satisfactory
3	Holcomb Rock	Amherst	1850	176 yrs	39	Low	Satisfactory
4	Big Island	Bedford	1850	176 yrs	18	Low	Satisfactory
5	Swift Creek Mill Dam	Chesterfield	1850	176 yrs	10	Undetermined	Not assessed
6	Coleman Falls	Bedford	1851	175 yrs	20	Low	Satisfactory
7	Garland Millpond Dam	Richmond	1890	136 yrs	16	Significant	Not assessed
8	Murcielago Lake Dam	Albemarle	1900	126 yrs	41	High	Not assessed
9	Chopping Branch Dam	Albemarle	1900	126 yrs	22	Undetermined	Not assessed
10	Flippen Dam	Cumberland	1900	126 yrs	20	Undetermined	Not assessed
11	Lower Stonehorse Dam	Goochland	1900	126 yrs	41	High	Satisfactory
12	Kings Pond Dam	Hanover	1900	126 yrs	19	Undetermined	Not assessed
13	Spotsylvania County Dam #8	Spotsylvania	1900	126 yrs	18	Undetermined	Not assessed
14	Gregory's Pond Dam	Chesterfield	1901	125 yrs	14	Undetermined	Not assessed
15	Fries, Canal Embankment	Grayson	1902	124 yrs	33	High	Poor
16	Reusens	Lynchburg	1903	123 yrs	40	High	Satisfactory
17	Schoolfield	Danville	1904	122 yrs	33	Significant	Satisfactory
18	Burnshire	Shenandoah	1904	122 yrs	14	Low	Satisfactory
19	Williams Island Dam	Richmond City	1905	121 yrs	7	Undetermined	Not assessed
20	Niagara	Roanoke	1906	120 yrs	60	High	Satisfactory
21	Emporia	Emporia	1908	118 yrs	43	High	Satisfactory
22	Slagles Dam	Greensville	1910	116 yrs	16	Undetermined	Not assessed
23	Walker Mill Dam	Nelson	1910	116 yrs	32	Low	Satisfactory
24	Chapman	Shenandoah	1910	116 yrs	17	Low	Poor
25	Buck Spillway	Carroll	1912	114 yrs	45	High	Satisfactory
26	Byllesby	Carroll	1912	114 yrs	63	High	Fair
27	Harwood's Mill Dam	York	1919	107 yrs	27	High	Poor
28	Harrison Lake Dam	Charles City	1920	106 yrs	17	Low	Poor
29	Lakeview	Colonial Heights	1920	106 yrs	39	High	Fair
30	Spring Hill Dam	Sussex	1920	106 yrs	12	Undetermined	Not assessed
31	Halifax	Halifax	1921	105 yrs	37	Significant	Satisfactory
32	Newport	Page	1923	103 yrs	28	Low	Satisfactory
33	Warren	Warren	1924	102 yrs	18	Low	Satisfactory
34	Shenandoah	Page	1925	101 yrs	15	Low	Satisfactory
35	Luray	Page	1927	99 yrs	22	Low	Satisfactory
36	Queens Lake Dam	York	1928	98 yrs	12	Low	Poor
37	Cushaw	Amherst	1930	96 yrs	26	Low	Satisfactory
38	Lion's Bridge Dam	Newport News	1931	95 yrs	14	Significant	Not assessed
39	Lower Sherando Dam	Augusta	1934	92 yrs	38	High	Not assessed
40	Radford	Montgomery	1934	92 yrs	52	High	Satisfactory
41	Cave Mountain	Rockbridge	1934	92 yrs	30	High	Not assessed
42	Townes	Patrick	1938	88 yrs	133	High	Satisfactory
43	Talbott	Patrick	1938	88 yrs	144	High	Satisfactory
44	Bear Creek Dam	Cumberland	1939	87 yrs	32	Significant	Satisfactory
45	Claytor	Pulaski	1939	87 yrs	139	High	Satisfactory
46	Whites Lake	Caroline	1940	86 yrs	17	Significant	Unsatisfactory
47	Bowies Pond	Caroline	1940	86 yrs	14	High	Unsatisfactory
48	Travis Lake Upper	Caroline	1940	86 yrs	8	Low	Fair
49	Breckinridge Dam	Stafford	1940	86 yrs	58	High	Poor
50	Fort Pickett Reservoir	Brunswick	1942	84 yrs	36	Significant	Not assessed

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