Appalachian History Series
What Congress Authorized and Why
In July 1960 the Flood Control Act became law and it expressly authorized “the project for flood control and allied purposes on Laurel River, Kentucky,” to be carried out in line with the Chief of Engineers’ recommendations in House Document 413 of the 86th Congress. The statute also required that construction wait until the federal power marketer had agreements in place to repay hydropower costs over time.
From Paper to Groundbreaking
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers planners folded Laurel River into a larger Cumberland River Basin plan. The Nashville District’s Water Control Manual for Laurel River Dam gives a concise construction timeline: construction began 4 December 1964, the river closure occurred in October 1973, and initial impoundment began 26 July 1974.
The dam sits in Laurel and Whitley Counties about 2.3 miles above the confluence with the Cumberland River, a site selection that maximized flood storage and provided head for hydropower while leaving Cumberland Falls upstream on the main stem undisturbed.
Building the Highest Dam in the Nashville District
Laurel River Dam is a combination earth and rock-fill structure that rises roughly 282 feet above the streambed, with a crest length of about 1,420 feet, forming a reservoir of about 5,600 surface acres at summer pool. The Nashville District notes these dimensions in public releases and project pages that also place Laurel among the district’s most ambitious multipurpose works of the 1970s.
USACE’s Final Environmental Statement for Laurel River Lake, completed in February 1975 as the reservoir filled, documented expected effects on fish, wildlife, water quality, and the human landscape and preserved a snapshot of the valley on the eve of permanent inundation.
Authorized Purposes and Daily Operations
Laurel River Lake was authorized and is operated for several allied purposes in the Cumberland system: flood control, hydropower, water quality, water supply, and recreation. Day-to-day releases follow the Laurel River Water Control Manual under the Corps-wide water control regulation known as ER 1110-2-240, which standardizes plan preparation and operations across USACE reservoirs.
For current levels, releases, and operating notes, the Nashville District maintains a live “Laurel Dam” portal within USACE’s Water Management site that ties modern telemetry to historical operating records.
Hydropower, SEPA, and Who Buys the Electricity
The powerplant went online in 1977, completing the project’s multipurpose profile. Within the Cumberland system, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Southeastern Power Administration (SEPA) schedules and dispatches the Corps’ hydropower, then markets the energy at cost to public power customers. SEPA’s official pages explain its generation scheduling role and current Cumberland marketing policy. That policy was updated in 2023 to address renewable energy certificates while leaving the long-standing preference power framework in place.
Regional filings confirm that Kentucky cooperatives take Laurel’s hydropower through SEPA as part of the Cumberland portfolio, a line of business that links a headwater valley in the Daniel Boone to distribution systems across the Commonwealth.
Recreation and the Forest Service Partnership
From the start USACE coordinated closely with the U.S. Forest Service. Most of the shoreline lies within the Daniel Boone National Forest, and today the Forest Service manages the bulk of lakeside recreation while USACE operates the dam and several facilities at the damsite. The Great Lakes and Ohio River Division’s recreation pages and the Forest Service’s site both describe this arrangement and highlight the lake’s 5,600 acres of deep, clear water and about 200 miles of shoreline.
What the Data Say
Federal datasets and gaging stations make Laurel one of the better documented reservoirs in the region. The National Inventory of Dams lists the project under NID ID KY03046, and long-running U.S. Geological Survey stations downstream capture the hydrologic signature of dam regulation at “Laurel River at Corbin” and at the municipal dam near Corbin. These records show how flood crests have been shaped, how low flows are supported during dry spells, and how the Cumberland responds below the confluence.
Why Laurel River Matters
Laurel River Dam is a classic mid-century Appalachian public works story that moved from Congress to concrete in a little over a decade. The project reduced flood risk for communities along the Laurel and contributed peaking power to the regional grid, while opening a deep reservoir ringed by Forest Service lands that now draw anglers, divers, and campers from across Kentucky. It also encapsulates the federal model that governs so many Appalachian watersheds: congressional authorization and repayment rules, Corps design and operation, SEPA marketing of power, and interagency stewardship of public lands.
Sources & Further Reading
Flood Control Act of 1960, Public Law 86-645, 74 Stat. 480, authorizing “the project for flood control and allied purposes on Laurel River, Kentucky,” by reference to House Document 413. Congress.gov
USACE, Water Control Manual, Laurel River Dam and Lake (most recent rev.), construction timeline and operating authority. Water Data
USACE, Final Environmental Statement: Laurel River Lake, Cumberland River Basin (Feb. 1975), Nashville District. CONTENTdm
USACE Great Lakes and Ohio River Division, Laurel River Dam project page, siting, dimensions, and milestones.
USACE Great Lakes and Ohio River Division, Laurel River Lake recreation and management overview. USACE Great Lakes Division
USACE, Water Management live data for “Laurel Dam.” Water Data
USACE Engineer Regulation ER 1110-2-240, Water Control Management. Army Corps Publications
DVIDS, “Maintenance inspection on track at Laurel River Dam” (2013), dam height and construction period. DVIDS
USGS, Monitoring location 03405000, Laurel River at Corbin, KY and 03404820, Laurel River at Municipal Dam near Corbin, KY. USGS Water Data+1
National Inventory of Dams entry for Laurel River Dam, NID ID KY03046 (referenced on USACE Water Data). Water Data
U.S. Forest Service, Daniel Boone National Forest: Laurel River Lake. US Forest Service
DOE, Southeastern Power Administration overview of scheduling and dispatch for Corps hydropower. The Department of Energy’s Energy.gov
Federal Register, SEPA Revision to Power Marketing Policy, Cumberland System (Final 2023). GovInfo
Kentucky PSC proceeding materials referencing SEPA-supplied Cumberland hydropower to EKPC. Kentucky Public Service Commission
Leland R. Johnson, Engineers on the Twin Rivers, 1972–1988 (USACE Nashville District history), context on Laurel River’s construction era and significance within the district. Wikimedia Commons