Lake Gladewater
Upshur County, Texas435 acresView mapDirections
TCEQ publishes the water-quality measurements for Lake Gladewater. Here is what has been measured.
- Eutrophic
- 47 ft max depth
- Public access
Lake Gladewater in Upshur County, Texas has water-quality measurements published by TCEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 35 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 28.2 µg/L. Surface area: 435 acres.
Lake Gladewater is a 435-acre productive, nutrient-rich eutrophic lake in Upshur County, Texas with an estimated average depth of about 47 feet. Overall water quality is declining over recent sampling years. Limited fish-species data available. Public access is available with 2 public boat landings. Compared to the 1 other monitored lakes in Upshur County, Lake Gladewater ranks #2 for water quality.
Source: EPA Water Quality Portal sampling records, TCEQ, last sampled 2025-09-03. Methodology: how these readings are compared.
Lake Gladewater covers about 440 acres in Upshur County. It has 2 public boat landings, so a lakefront rental is not the only way to get a boat on the water. Vrbo is where to look for cabins and lake homes around Lake Gladewater, and Booking.com and Expedia search hotels near the lake for your dates.
What Lake Gladewater is good for
From access and monitoring records, not editorial picks.
- Boat launch2 documented ramps
Swimming conditions
Readings onlyAlgae risk
Based on clarity and algae readings from past sampling — there is no live water temperature and a current cyanobacteria reading for this lake. Check your state or county health department before you swim.
Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
Whether Lake Gladewater is safe to swim in today is a call for the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality and the county health department, who post current advisories. LakeQuality does not issue swimming clearances.
Water quality measurements for Lake Gladewater
These are the measurements TCEQ publishes for Lake Gladewater, shown as reported. The condition class beside each reading is the EPA National Lakes Assessment class for this lake’s ecoregion.
Very murky, less than 3 ft of visibility. Phosphorus 35 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a 28.2 µg/L. TSI 60.
| Measure | Reading | Where it sits |
|---|---|---|
| Water clarity (Secchi depth) | 3ft | Measured, not scored How deep a black-and-white disk stays visible from the surface. Higher is clearer. |
| Total phosphorus | 35µg/L | Good GoodFairPoor |
| Chlorophyll-a (algae) | 28.2µg/L | Poor GoodFairPoor |
| Trophic state (TSI)Carlson's 0–100 index of how much algae a lake can support, from clarity, phosphorus and chlorophyll-a. | 60 | Eutrophic OligotrophicMesotrophicEutrophicHypereutrophic |
High nutrients, frequent algae, reduced clarity
Ask about Lake Gladewater
Answers come straight from the public measurements and survey records on this page.
Lake Details
Max depth
~47 ft est.
Surface area
435 acres
Public access
Yes
Listed by TCEQ
Depth marked “est.” is a modeled maximum from GLOBathy (Khazaei et al. 2022, CC0), not a measured survey. Texas has not published bathymetry for Lake Gladewater.
Lake Size & Watershed
Watershed (drainage) area
44 sq mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Shoreline
7.1 mi
HydroLAKES / HydroSHEDS
Elevation
318 ft
Size, shoreline, and watershed area from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS). Mean depth here is modelled, not surveyed — HydroLAKES v1.0 estimates lake depth from surrounding terrain rather than from soundings. Treat it as an approximation, and prefer a state bathymetric survey where one exists.
Recreation & Access
- City Park #1Public
- City Park #2Public
Named access points in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory, within about 3 miles. More lakes with boat ramps
Stays via Stay22
Stays near Lake Gladewater
Compare lakeside cabins, hotels, and vacation rentals near Lake Gladewater in Upshur County, Texas — live availability and prices for your trip. Switch the map to Satellite to see the lake and how close each stay is to the water. The water-quality readings cover nutrients and algae, not lodging. Cabins and rentals around Lake Gladewater are listed below.
Top-rated places to stay near Lake Gladewater
Prices for Oct 30–Nov 1, 4 adults. Change dates on the map below.
Availability and prices from Stay22 partners (Booking.com, Vrbo, Expedia). We may earn a commission from bookings, at no extra cost to you.
Planning a trip? Cabins and lodging at Lake Gladewater → · more Texas lake trips
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Fishing Lake Gladewater
Water Quality Trend: Worsening
Based on 5 years of monitoring (2020–2025).
Water clarity
Worsening5 years
Phosphorus
Worsening+2.03 µg/L/yr5 years
Chlorophyll-a
Worsening+6.43 µg/L/yr5 years
Reservoir Info (USACE NID)
Lake Gladewater is a man-made reservoir impounded by the Lake Gladewater Dam (completed 1952), built primarily for water supply on the Glade Creek; earth-type dam, 38 ft tall and 1,203 ft long.
- Surface area
- 435 ac
- Normal storage
- 6,950 ac-ft
- Max storage
- 12,075 ac-ft
- Drainage area
- 43.7 sq mi
- Hazard class
- High
- Owner
- CITY OF GLADEWATER
Source: USACE National Inventory of Dams, NID ID TX03725 · Operator website
Nearby Lakes in Upshur County
Frequently asked questions about Lake Gladewater
Where is Lake Gladewater?
- Lake Gladewater is a lake in Upshur County, Texas. Its water-quality measurements are published by TCEQ and shown on this page as reported.
What is the water quality of Lake Gladewater?
- Lake Gladewater in Upshur County, Texas has water-quality measurements published by TCEQ, shown here as reported. Water clarity: 3 ft visibility. Phosphorus: 35 µg/L. Chlorophyll-a (algae): 28.2 µg/L. Surface area: 435 acres.
Is Lake Gladewater safe to swim in?
- Nutrient and algae readings are not a swimming clearance. Check local advisories before you swim.
How deep is Lake Gladewater?
- No published bathymetric survey covers Lake Gladewater, so its depth has not been measured. The HydroLAKES global model estimates an average depth of about 47 feet, but that is a modelled estimate derived from surrounding terrain rather than a measurement on the water, so treat it as approximate. The lake covers 435 acres.
Are there boat ramps on Lake Gladewater?
- Lake Gladewater has 2 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Named access points include City Park #1, City Park #2. Public access is listed as yes.
Can I fish at Lake Gladewater?
- Lake Gladewater has 2 documented boat landings in the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory. Seasons, size and bag limits, and whether you need a license are set by Texas's fish and wildlife agency, so check its current regulations before you go.
Explore Lake Gladewater across LakeQuality
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Where this data comes from
60 measurements from 1 monitoring station, 2020–2025. Retrieved from the EPA Water Quality Portal on 2026-08-02.
Collected and reported by
- Texas Commission on Environmental Quality
TCEQMAIN60 samples · 2020–2025
Monitoring station identifiers (1)
EPA condition classes from the National Lakes Assessment (EPA 841-R-24-006, Table 6-3), applied by ecoregion. See where the data comes from and data sources.
Other records on this page
Lake size & watershed from HydroLAKES (HydroSHEDS)
Named boat-access points from the USGS National Boat Ramps inventory