A red sun low over Slim Lake through wildfire haze, its reflection a column of orange on the water

Reservoirs in North Carolina

107 of 153 graded North Carolina lakes (70%) are man-made reservoirs in the USACE National Inventory of Dams. 95 carry a High or Significant hazard rating.

Reading the North Carolina reservoir landscape

North Carolina hosts 107 man-made reservoirs in the USACE National Inventory of Dams — a dense reservoir landscape that reflects significant federal, state, and utility-led impoundment construction over the 20th century. Reservoir lakes behave differently than natural lakes: water levels are managed for the dam's primary purpose, residence time depends on inflow and release schedules, and depth profiles follow the original river-valley topography rather than the bowl shape of glacial lakes.

Recreation is the headline purpose for the largest share of North Carolina's reservoirs — lakes where the dam exists explicitly to create surface water for fishing, boating, and adjacent shoreline development. Pool levels are typically maintained more stably than at flood-control or hydro reservoirs, which supports fixed-dock access, consistent boat ramps, and the kind of shoreline economy that natural-lake counterparts in the state share.

The USACE National Inventory of Dams (NID) catalogs every dam in the United States above a size threshold — typically 25 feet in height or 50 acre-feet in maximum storage, plus all dams classified as high-hazard regardless of size. The reservoir records below pull NID fields (year built, hazard class, maximum storage, surface area at normal pool, dam length, primary purpose) and pair them with water-quality data where the impoundment also appears in EPA's lake-monitoring inventory.

Why these North Carolina reservoirs were built

Recreation

Water Supply

Hydroelectric

Other

Flood Risk Reduction

Fish and Wildlife Pond

107

Total reservoirs

124,152

Total surface acres

4,161,033

Normal storage (ac-ft)

High or Significant hazard

All 107 North Carolina reservoirs (by surface area)

Reservoir	County	Grade	Surface area	Year built	Purpose	Hazard
Lake Gaston	Northampton	C	20,300 ac	1963	Hydroelectric	High
High Rock Lake	Davidson	F	15,180 ac	1927	Hydroelectric	High
B Everett Jordan Lake	Chatham	D	13,940 ac	1974	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Fontana Lake	Graham	C	10,290 ac	1944	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Hiwassee Reservoir	Cherokee	C	5,870 ac	1940	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Roanoke Rapids Lake	Halifax	C	4,600 ac	1955	Hydroelectric	High
Hyco Lake	Person	C	4,015 ac	1963	Recreation	High
Belews Lake	Stokes	C	3,863 ac	1972	Other	High
Mountain Island Lake	Gaston	C	3,235 ac	1923	Hydroelectric	High
Randleman Lake	Randolph	D	3,070 ac	2002	Recreation	High
Santeetlah Lake	Graham	C	2,884 ac	1928	Hydroelectric	High
Mayo Reservoir	Person	C	2,800 ac	—	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Tuckertown Reservoir	Rowan	D	2,560 ac	1962	Hydroelectric	High
Blewett Falls Lake	Anson	D	2,560 ac	1912	Hydroelectric	High
Lake Cheoah	Graham	C	1,767 ac	1919	Hydroelectric	High
Lake Townsend	Guilford	D	1,635 ac	1969	Recreation	High
Nantahala Lake	Macon	C	1,605 ac	1942	Hydroelectric	High
Thorpe Reservoir	Jackson	C	1,462 ac	1941	Hydroelectric	High
Coddle Creek Reservoir	Cabarrus	F	1,300 ac	1993	Water Supply	High
Sutton Lake	New Hanover	A	1,185 ac	1972	Other	Low
Center of Sutton Lake	New Hanover	A	1,185 ac	1972	Other	Low
Lake Mackintosh	Guilford	D	1,125 ac	1992	Other	High
Apalachia Lake	Cherokee	C	1,100 ac	1943	Hydroelectric	High
Tar River Reservoir	Nash	F	1,000 ac	1971	Other	High
Lookout Shoals Lake	Catawba	C	835 ac	1915	Hydroelectric	High
Lake Brandt	Guilford	D	817 ac	1960	Recreation	High
Merchants Millpond	Gates	B	760 ac	—	Fish and Wildlife Pond	High
Lake Burlington	Alamance	D	757 ac	—	Other	High
Lake Lure	Rutherford	C	740 ac	1927	Hydroelectric	High
Reidsville Lake	Rockingham	D	680 ac	1974	Water Supply	High
Lake Thom-A-Lex	Davidson	F	650 ac	1957	Water Supply	High
Lake Wheeler	Wake	F	560 ac	1956	Recreation	High
Little River Reservoir	Durham	F	550 ac	1984	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Bear Creek Reservoir	Jackson	C	476 ac	1954	Hydroelectric	High
Lake Crabtree	Wake	F	473 ac	1988	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Lake Julian	Buncombe	A	470 ac	1962	Hydroelectric	High
Lake Benson	Wake	F	463 ac	1952	Other	High
Lake Michie	Durham	F	460 ac	1926	Other	High
Lake Adger	Polk	D	438 ac	1925	Hydroelectric	High
Farmer Lake	Caswell	D	390 ac	1983	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Lake Butner	Granville	D	340 ac	—	Recreation	High
Burnett Reservoir	Buncombe	A	334 ac	1954	Water Supply	High
Lake Twitty	Union	F	327 ac	1973	Water Supply	High
Salem Lake	Forsyth	D	297.5 ac	2012	Recreation	High
Lake Summit	Henderson	D	290 ac	1920	Hydroelectric	High
West Fk Eno R Reservoir	Orange	D	271.5 ac	2000	Water Supply	High
Kannapolis Lake	Rowan	D	267 ac	1940	Water Supply	High
Back Creek Lake	Randolph	D	236 ac	1947	Other	High
Lake Higgins	Guilford	D	226 ac	1956	Recreation	High
Lake Isaac Walton	Person	D	224 ac	1955	Recreation	High
University Lake	Orange	F	213 ac	1932	Water Supply	High
Falls Lake	Montgomery	C	204 ac	1919	Hydroelectric	High
Lake Junaluska	Haywood	D	195 ac	1913	Recreation	High
Lake Tabor	Columbus	F	172 ac	1999	Recreation	High
Lake Fisher	Cabarrus	D	169 ac	1948	Water Supply	High
Lake Hunt	Rockingham	D	160 ac	1966	Recreation	High
Lake Johnson	Wake	D	147.5 ac	1914	Water Supply	High
Lake Orange	Orange	F	140 ac	1969	Water Supply	High
Lake Lee	Union	F	122 ac	1925	Other	High
Lake Monroe	Union	F	118 ac	1955	Recreation	High
Rocky River Reservoir	Chatham	F	100 ac	1961	Other	Low
Sunset Lake	Wake	F	98.1 ac	1923	Recreation	High
Sandy Creek Reservoir	Randolph	F	90 ac	—	Water Supply	High
Lake Raleigh	Wake	D	88.1 ac	1914	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Lake Concord	Cabarrus	D	84 ac	1926	Recreation	High
Lake Wilson	Wilson	F	81.2 ac	1960	Water Supply	High
City Pond	Anson	D	80 ac	1920	Recreation	High
Roberdel Lake	Richmond	C	80 ac	—	Hydroelectric	Significant
Allen Creek Reservoir	Haywood	C	76.4 ac	1982	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Limestone Lake	Duplin	F	69 ac	1993	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Hope Mills Lake	Cumberland	B	68 ac	1921	Recreation	High
Old Town Reservoir	Moore	B	61 ac	1924	Recreation	High
Bass Lake	Wake	F	58.6 ac	1900	Recreation	High
Water Lake	Richmond	A	56 ac	1908	Recreation	High
Sycamore Lake	Wake	F	55 ac	1955	Recreation	Low
Lake Sequoyah	Macon	C	54 ac	1926	Hydroelectric	High
Wake Forest Reservoir @ Dam	Wake	NR	54 ac	1960	Recreation	High
Hamlet City Lake	Richmond	B	45 ac	1934	Other	High
Beetree Reservoir	Buncombe	C	41 ac	1927	Water Supply	High
Wolf Creek Reservoir	Jackson	C	40 ac	1955	Hydroelectric	High
Kernersville Lake	Forsyth	D	40 ac	1952	Water Supply	High
Pages Lake	Moore	B	34 ac	1945	Recreation	High
Big Lake	Wake	F	25 ac	1940	Recreation	Low
Bunch Lake	Randolph	D	25 ac	1942	Water Supply	High
Bessemer City Lake	Gaston	C	25 ac	1955	Water Supply	High
Asu Lake	Watauga	C	22 ac	1974	Water Supply	High
Turner Reservoir	Chatham	F	18 ac	1953	Recreation	Low
Newton City Lake	Catawba	C	15 ac	1936	Water Supply	High
Hanging Rock Lake	Stokes	C	11.9 ac	1938	Recreation	High
Glenville Lake	Cumberland	F	11 ac	1909	Water Supply	High
Carthage City Lake	Moore	C	9 ac	1945	Water Supply	Low
Cliffs of the Neuse Lake	Wayne	C	8.5 ac	1951	Recreation	Low
Reedy Creek Lake	Wake	F	7.5 ac	1955	Recreation	Low
Buckeye Lake	Watauga	C	6.5 ac	1987	Water Supply	High
Blowing Rock Town Pond	Watauga	D	5.7 ac	1958	Water Supply	High
Corporation Lake	Orange	C	5 ac	1968	Other	Low
Kings Mountain Reservoir	Cleveland	D	0.4 ac	—	Recreation	Significant
Buckhorn Dam Lake	Chatham	F	—	1915	Other	Low
Greenfield Lake	New Hanover	C	—	1800	Recreation	Low
Chatuge Lake	Clay	C	—	1942	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Wiggins Mill Reservoir	Wilson	D	—	—	Other	Significant
Lake Ben Johnson	Orange	C	—	1955	Other	Significant
Buckhorn Reservoir	Wilson	F	—	—	Water Supply	High
Lake Rogers	Granville	F	—	—	Recreation	High
Apex Reservoir	Wake	F	—	1968	Recreation	High
Lake Hampton	Yadkin	F	—	2010	Flood Risk Reduction	High
Lake Devin	Granville	D	—	—	Water Supply	High

Frequently Asked Questions

How many reservoirs are in North Carolina?

107 of 153 graded North Carolina lakes (70%) are man-made reservoirs in the USACE National Inventory of Dams. 95 are rated High or Significant hazard, meaning failure would put downstream lives or property at substantial risk. The oldest matched dam dates to 1800.

What's the largest reservoir in North Carolina?

The largest matched reservoir in North Carolina is Lake Gaston in Northampton County at 20,300 acres of normal surface area, impounded by the Gaston (completed 1963).

What's the difference between a reservoir and a natural lake?

A reservoir is a body of water impounded by a man-made dam — typically built for flood control, hydroelectric power, water supply, irrigation, or recreation. A natural lake formed without human intervention, usually from glacial scouring, volcanic activity, or river meandering. Reservoirs typically have shoreline that fluctuates with seasonal water level management, while natural lakes have more stable shorelines. The USACE National Inventory of Dams classifies every regulated dam in the United States, which is how we identify which LakeQuality lakes are actually reservoirs.

What does the hazard class mean?

USACE assigns each dam a hazard potential classification based on what would happen downstream if the dam failed — NOT how likely the dam is to fail. "Low" hazard means dam failure would cause no probable loss of life and only low economic loss. "Significant" means probable loss of life is unlikely but appreciable economic damage would occur. "High" means probable loss of life and significant economic damage. The classification is about consequence, not condition. Many High-hazard dams are perfectly safe; they're rated High because populated areas have grown downstream over time.

Where does this reservoir data come from?

Every reservoir record on this page is matched to the USACE National Inventory of Dams (NID), the federal database of all dams ≥25 ft tall or impounding ≥50 acre-feet, plus any dam that poses a Significant or High hazard regardless of size. The NID is published by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and updated annually. Surface area, storage capacity, dam height, and hazard classification come directly from NID records.

Where to stay near North Carolina reservoirs

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More on reservoirs and water quality

Are Reservoirs Cleaner Than Natural Lakes?

Dam-built reservoirs and natural lakes graded side by side on the same nutrient and algae measurements — the gap, the reasons behind it, and the exceptions.

Do Deeper Lakes Have Better Water Quality?

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Lake Water Quality Grades Explained: What A–F Means

How lakes are graded A–F on nutrients and algae using EPA ecoregion condition classes, what each letter means in the water, and why an A is not a clearance.

Why Lakes Turn Green: Phosphorus and Nutrient Pollution

How phosphorus and nutrient runoff drive algae growth and turn lakes green, where the nutrients come from, and what it means for a lake's grade.

Data source

Reservoir data from the USACE National Inventory of Dams (NID), the federal database of all regulated dams. Dam attributes (height, year completed, storage capacity, hazard class) are matched to LakeQuality lakes by proximity and dam-name similarity. Some lakes may be reservoirs that aren't matched if the dam record uses a name substantially different from our lake name.