Lakes and Reservoirs
Filed Under:
Environment As late as 1913, Texas had only four major reservoirs with a total storage capacity of 277,600 acre-feet. By January 2011, Texas had 187 major reservoirs (those with a normal capacity of 5,000 acre-feet or larger), not counting four that are normally dry and six reservoirs made up of proximate impoundments.
According to the U.S. Statistical Abstract of 2010, Texas has 5,607 square miles of inland water, ranking it first in the 48 contiguous states, followed by Florida, with 5,373 sq. mi.; Minnesota, 4,782; and Louisiana, 4,433.
There are about 6,736 reservoirs in Texas with a normal storage capacity of 10 acre-feet or larger.
Reserviors having more than 5,000 acre-feet capacity are listed below. Date refers to the year that impoundment of water began. Multiple years refer to later, larger dams. Reservoirs normally dry are in italics.
Storage capacity and surface-area calculations are for conservation elevation. Because sediment deposition constantly reduces reservoir volumes over time, these are figures from the most recent surveys available. An acre-foot is the amount of water necessary to cover an acre with water one foot deep.
| Reservoir (other names) | Date | Surface area (acres) | Capacity (acre-feet) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Abilene, Lake | 1919 | 595 | 6,099 |
| Addicks Reservoir | 1948 | 16,423 | 200,840 |
| Alan Henry, Lake | 1993 | 2,741 | 94,808 |
| Alcoa Lake | 1952 | 914 | 15,650 |
| Amistad Reservior, International (Diablo) | 1969 | 65,597 | 3,274,057 |
| Amon G. Carter, Lake | 1961 | 1,540 | 27,500 |
| Anahuac, Lake (Turtle Bayou) | 1936, 1954 | 5,035 | 33,348 |
| Anzalduas Channel Dam | 1960 | 1,472 | 13,910 |
| Aquilla Lake | 1983 | 3,066 | 44,566 |
| Arlington, Lake | 1957 | 1,926 | 40,188 |
| Arrowhead, Lake | 1966 | 14,969 | 235,997 |
| Athens, Lake (Flat Creek) | 1962 | 1,799 | 29,475 |
| Austin, Lake | 1893, 1915, 1939 | 1,599 | 24,644 |
| (In 1900, the first dam broke. In 1915, a second dam was partially built but not completed. In 1939, the present Tom Miller Dam was built.) | |||
| Ballinger/Moonen, Lake | 1947 | 500 | 6,850 |
| Balmorhea Lake | 1917 | 573 | 6,350 |
| Bardwell Lake | 1965 | 3,138 | 46,472 |
| Barker Reservoir | 1945 | 16,739 | 209,013 |
| Bastrop, Lake | 1964 | 906 | 16,590 |
| Baylor Creek Lake | 1950 | 610 | 9,220 |
| Belton Lake | 1954 | 12,135 | 435,225 |
| Benbrook Lake | 1952 | 3,635 | 85,648 |
| Bivins Lake (Amarillo City) | 1927 | 397 | 5,122 |
| Bob Sandlin, Lake | 1977 | 9,004 | 201,733 |
| Bonham, Lake | 1969 | 1,012 | 11,038 |
| Brady Creek Reservoir | 1963 | 2,020 | 30,430 |
| Brandy Branch Reservoir | 1983 | 1,242 | 29,513 |
| Braunig Lake, Victor | 1962 | 1,350 | 26,500 |
| Brazoria Reservoir | 1954 | 1,865 | 21,970 |
| Bridgeport, Lake | 1932 | 11,954 | 366,236 |
| Brownwood, Lake | 1933 | 6,587 | 131,429 |
| Bryan Lake | 1977 | 829 | 15,227 |
| Buchanan, Lake | 1937 | 22,137 | 886,626 |
| Buffalo Lake | 1938 | 1,900 | 18,150 |
| Caddo Lake | 1873, 1914, 1971 | 26,800 | 129,000 |
| (In November 1873, the U.S. Army used nitroglycerin charges to remove the last portion of the Red River raft, a natural logjam. This resulted in the gradual depletion of Caddo water. In 1914, a dam was completed near Mooringsport, La. In 1971, a larger replacement dam was completed.) | |||
| Calaveras Lake | 1969 | 3,624 | 63,200 |
| Camp Creek Lake | 1949 | 750 | 7,000 |
| Canyon Lake | 1964 | 8,308 | 378,852 |
| Casa Blanca, Lake | 1951 | 1,680 | 20,000 |
| Cedar Creek Reservoir (Joe B. Hogsett) | 1965 | 32,873 | 644,785 |
| Champion Creek Reservoir | 1959 | 1,560 | 42,500 |
| Cherokee, Lake | 1948 | 3,467 | 43,297 |
| Choke Canyon Reservoir | 1982 | 25,989 | 695,271 |
| Cisco, Lake | 1923 | 10,450 | 26,000 |
| Cleburne, Lake Pat | 1964 | 1,558 | 26,008 |
| Clyde, Lake | 1970 | 449 | 5,748 |
| Coffee Mill Lake | 1939 | 650 | 8,000 |
| Coleman, Lake | 1966 | 1,811 | 38,094 |
| Coleto Creek Reservoir | 1980 | 3,100 | 31,040 |
| Colorado City, Lake | 1949 | 1,612 | 31,805 |
| Conroe, Lake | 1973 | 20,118 | 416,228 |
| Cooper, Lake/Olney (see Lake Olney) | 1953 | 446 | 6,650 |
| Cooper Lake (Jim Chapman) | 1991 | 17,958 | 298,930 |
| Corpus Christi, Lake | 1930 | 18,256 | 257,260 |
| Cox Creek Reservoir (Raw Water, Recycle) | n/a | 541 | 5,034 |
| Crook, Lake | 1923 | 1,060 | 9,210 |
| Cypress Springs, Lake | 1970 | 3,252 | 66,756 |
| Daniel, Lake | 1948 | 924 | 9,515 |
| Davis, Lake | n/a | 585 | 5,454 |
| Delta Lake, Units 1, 2 (Monte Alto) | 1939 | 2,371 | 14,000 |
| Diverson, Lake | 1924 | 3,133 | 40,000 |
| Dunlap, Lake | 1928 | 410 | 5,900 |
| Eagle Lake | 1900 | 1,200 | 9,600 |
| Eagle Mountain Lake | 1934 | 8,694 | 179,880 |
| Eagle Nest Lake (Manor) | 1951 | — | 18,000 |
| Electra, Lake | 1950 | 731 | 5,626 |
| Ellison Creek Reservoir | 1943 | 1,516 | 24,700 |
| Fairfield Lake (Big Brown Creek) | 1970 | 2,159 | 44,169 |
| Falcon Reservoir, International | 1954 | 85,194 | 2,646,187 |
| Fayette County Reservoir (Cedar Creek) | 1958 | 2,400 | 71,400 |
| Forest Grove Reservoir | 1982 | 1,502 | 20,038 |
| Fort Phantom Hill, Lake | 1938 | 4,213 | 70,036 |
| Georgetown, Lake | 1980 | 1,287 | 36,904 |
| Gibbons Creek Reservoir | 1981 | 2,770 | 27,603 |
| Gilmer Reservoir | 2001 | 1,010 | 12,720 |
| Gonzales, Lake (H-4) | 1931 | 696 | 6,500 |
| Graham, Lake | 1929 | 2,444 | 45,302 |
| Granbury, Lake | 1969 | 7,945 | 129,011 |
| Granger Lake (Laneport) | 1980 | 4,064 | 50,779 |
| Grapevine Lake | 1952 | 6,893 | 164,703 |
| Greenbelt Lake | 1967 | 2,025 | 60,400 |
| Halbert, Lake | 1921 | 603 | 6,033 |
| Harris Reservoir, William | 1947 | 1,663 | 9,200 |
| Hawkins, Lake | 1962 | 800 | 11,890 |
| Holbrook Lake | 1962 | 653 | 7,990 |
| Hords Creek Lake | 1948 | 504 | 8,112 |
| Houston, Lake | 1954 | 11,854 | 133,990 |
| Houston County Lake | 1966 | 1,330 | 17,665 |
| Hubbard Creek Reservoir | 1962 | 14,992 | 324,983 |
| Imperial Reservoir | 1912 | 1,530 | 6,000 |
| Inks Lake | 1938 | 788 | 14,074 |
| Jacksonville, Lake | 1959 | 1,165 | 25,732 |
| J.B. Thomas, Lake | 1952 | 7,282 | 200,604 |
| J.D. Murphree WMA Impoundments | n/a | 6,881 | 13,500 |
| Joe Pool Lake (Lakeview) | 1986 | 7,470 | 176,900 |
| Johnson Creek Reservoir | 1961 | 650 | 10,100 |
| Kemp, Lake | 1923 | 15,357 | 245,434 |
| Kickapoo, Lake | 1945 | 6,028 | 85,825 |
| Kiowa, Lake | 1967 | 560 | 7,000 |
| Kirby, Lake | 1928 | 740 | 7,620 |
| Kurth, Lake | 1950 | 726 | 14,769 |
| Lady Bird Lake (Town) | 1960 | 468 | 7,338 |
| Lake Creek Lake | 1952 | 550 | 8,400 |
| Lake Fork Reservoir | 1980 | 27,264 | 636,133 |
| Lake O' the Pines | 1959 | 16,919 | 241,363 |
| Lavon, Lake | 1953 | 21,357 | 458,569 |
| Leon, Lake | 1954 | 1,590 | 27,290 |
| Lewis Creek Reservoir | n/a | 1,010 | 16,400 |
| Lewisville Lake (Dallas, Garza–Little Elm) | 1929, 1954 | 27,175 | 598,902 |
| Limestone, Lake | 1978 | 12,553 | 208,107 |
| Livingston, Lake | 1969 | 83,277 | 1,741,900 |
| Loma Alta Lake | n/a | 2,490 | 26,500 |
| Lost Creek Reservoir | 1990 | 413 | 11,961 |
| Lyndon B. Johnson, Lake (Granite Shoals, LBJ) | 1951 | 6,273 | 133,090 |
| Mackenzie Reservoir | 1974 | 896 | 46,545 |
| Marble Falls, Lake | 1951 | 608 | 7,486 |
| Martin Creek Lake | 1974 | 4,981 | 75,116 |
| Medina Lake | 1913 | 6,066 | 254,823 |
| Meredith, Lake | 1965 | 16,411 | 817,970 |
| Millers Creek Reservoir | 1990 | 2,268 | 29,171 |
| Mineral Wells, Lake | 1920 | 440 | 7,065 |
| Mitchell County Reservoir | 1993 | 1,463 | 27,266 |
| Monticello Reservoir | 1972 | 2,001 | 34,740 |
| Moss Lake, Hubert H. | 1960 | 1,140 | 24,155 |
| Mountain Creek Lake | 1937 | 2,710 | 22,840 |
| Murvaul, Lake | 1958 | 3,529 | 38,284 |
| Mustang Lake East/West | n/a | — | 6,451 |
| Nacogdoches, Lake | 1976 | 2,212 | 39,523 |
| Nasworthy, Lake | 1930 | 1,380 | 10,108 |
| Natural Dam Lake | 1957, 1989 | 3,605 | 54,560 |
| (Originally a natural lake, whose surface and capacity were increased by construction of dams.) | |||
| Navarro Mills Lake | 1963 | 4,736 | 49,827 |
| Nocona, Lake (Farmers Creek) | 1960 | 1,362 | 21,749 |
| North Fork Buffalo Creek Reservoir | 1964 | 1,392 | 15,400 |
| North Lake | 1957 | 800 | 17,000 |
| Oak Creek Reservoir | 1952 | 2,375 | 39,360 |
| O.C. Fisher Lake (San Angelo) | 1952 | 5,440 | 115,743 |
| O.H. Ivie Reservoir (Stacy) | 1990 | 19,149 | 554,340 |
| Olmos Reservoir | 1926 | 1,050 | 15,500 |
| Olney, Lake/Cooper (see Lake Cooper) | 1935 | 446 | 6,650 |
| Palestine, Lake | 1962 | 22,656 | 373,202 |
| Palo Duro Reservoir | 1991 | 2,413 | 61,239 |
| Palo Pinto, Lake | 1964 | 2,176 | 27,215 |
| Pat Mayse Lake | 1967 | 5,638 | 117,844 |
| Pinkston Reservoir (Sandy Creek) | 1976 | 523 | 7,380 |
| Possum Kingdom Lake | 1941 | 16,716 | 540,340 |
| Proctor Lake | 1963 | 4,537 | 55,457 |
| Quitman, Lake | 1962 | 814 | 7,440 |
| Randell Lake | 1909 | 280 | 6,290 |
| Ray Hubbard, Lake (Forney) | 1968 | 20,963 | 452,040 |
| Ray Roberts Lake (Aubrey) | 1987 | 29,350 | 788,490 |
| Red Bluff Reservoir | 1937 | 11,193 | 153,670 |
| Red Draw Reservoir | 1985 | 374 | 8,538 |
| Richland-Chambers Reservoir | 1987 | 43,384 | 1,112,763 |
| Rita Blanca, Lake | 1940 | 524 | 12,100 |
| River Crest Lake | 1953 | 555 | 7,000 |
| Sam Rayburn Reservoir (McGee Bend) | 1965 | 112,590 | 2,876,033 |
| San Bernard Reservoirs 1, 2, 3 | n/a | — | 8,610 |
| Santa Rosa Lake | 1929 | 1,500 | 11,570 |
| Smithers Lake | 1957 | 2,480 | 18,700 |
| Somerville Lake | 1967 | 11,555 | 147,104 |
| South Texas Project Reservoir | 1983 | 7,000 | 202,600 |
| Spence Reservoir, E.V. | 1969 | 14,640 | 517,272 |
| Squaw Creek Reservoir | 1983 | 3,297 | 151,273 |
| Stamford, Lake | 1953 | 5,124 | 51,573 |
| Steinhagen Lake, B.A. (Town Bluff, Dam B) | 1951 | 10,687 | 66,972 |
| Stillhouse Hollow Lake (Lampasas) | 1968 | 6,484 | 227,825 |
| Striker, Lake (Striker Creek) | 1957 | 1,920 | 22,865 |
| Sulphur Springs, Lake (White Oak Creek) | 1950 | 1,340 | 14,160 |
| Sulphur Springs Draw Reservoir | 1992 | 970 | 7,997 |
| Sweetwater, Lake | 1930 | 630 | 11,900 |
| Tawakoni, Lake | 1960 | 37,879 | 888,140 |
| Terrell City Lake | 1955 | 849 | 8,594 |
| Texana, Lake (Palmetto Bend) | 1980 | 9,727 | 161,085 |
| Texoma, Lake | 1943 | 74,686 | 2,516,232 |
| Toledo Bend Reservoir | 1967 | 181,600 | 4,477,000 |
| Tradinghouse Creek Reservoir | 1968 | 2,010 | 37,800 |
| Travis, Lake | 1942 | 19,199 | 1,134,863 |
| Trinidad Lake | 1923 | 740 | 7,450 |
| Truscott Brine Lake | 1987 | 3,146 | 111,147 |
| Twin Buttes Reservoir | 1963 | 9,080 | 186,200 |
| Twin Oaks Reservoir | 1982 | 2,330 | 30,319 |
| Tyler, Lake / Lake Tyler East | 1949/1967 | 4,737 | 80,198 |
| Upper Nueces Reservoir | 1926, 1948 | 316 | 5,200 |
| Valley Lake (Brushy Creek) | 1961 | 1,080 | 16,400 |
| Waco, Lake | 1929 | 8,437 | 144,830 |
| Walter E. Long, Lake (Decker) | 1967 | 1,269 | 33,940 |
| Waxahachie, Lake | 1956 | 656 | 11,386 |
| Weatherford, Lake | 1956 | 1,112 | 17,812 |
| Welsh Reservoir (Swauano Creek) | 1976 | 1,269 | 20,242 |
| White River Lake | 1963 | 1,642 | 31,846 |
| White Rock Lake | 1911 | 1,088 | 9,004 |
| Whitney, Lake | 1951 | 23,220 | 554,203 |
| Wichita, Lake | 1901 | 2,200 | 14,000 |
| Winnsboro, Lake | 1962 | 806 | 8,100 |
| Winters, Lake (New-, Elm Creek) | 1983 | 643 | 8,374 |
| Worth, Lake | 1914 | 3,458 | 33,495 |
| Wright Patman Lake (Texarkana) | 1957 | 24,438 | 122,640 |
Sources: U.S. Geological Survey, Texas Water Development Board, the Handbook of Texas, Texas Parks & Wildlife, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, previous Texas Almanacs, various river basin authorities, website of the owners of reservoirs.
