Appalachian History Series
A Small Lake With County-Wide Importance
In 1969 the Martin County Water District finished an earthen dam above Inez and created Curtis Crum Reservoir, a small but strategic pool that feeds the county’s drinking water system. From the start, managers paired the lake with pumps on the Tug Fork River to keep levels stable, then sent raw water to the treatment plant on Turkey Creek for household use.
How the System Works
On ordinary days the reservoir provides gravity-fed storage. During dry spells or when runoff falls short, large pumps lift Tug Fork water into the lake so the plant can maintain production. State reports describe Curtis Crum as the public source for Martin County, built in 1969 and supplemented as needed by Tug Fork pumping.
Built During the Coal-Era Push for Modern Utilities
Curtis Crum reflects a broader mid-century campaign to extend running water into Appalachian hollows. Planning documents for the Big Sandy region anticipated new lines, tanks, and treatment capacity to serve growing communities and industry. A 1999 Kentucky Geological Survey plan identified plant capacities and mapped expansions for the Big Sandy Area Development District, placing projects like Curtis Crum within that regional buildout.
Measuring the Lake, Fixing the Weak Links
Fifty years of siltation left operators uncertain how much water the reservoir actually held. In 2020 the Energy and Environment Cabinet used drones and a small unmanned “drone boat” to run a bathymetric survey of Curtis Crum, giving a clearer picture of remaining capacity and helping the county plan improvements.
At the same time, state agencies convened progress meetings with the water district and outlined steps to stabilize operations, from intake repairs to treatment upgrades.
When the Water Drops
Local coverage has repeatedly shown how vulnerable the system is when intake equipment fails or rainfall lags. In June 2023 Curtis Crum fell to a “dangerously low” level, with wide mudflats exposed around the shoreline. Episodes like this force the district to juggle storage, treatment, and distribution while the community copes with outages and conservation requests.
Grants, Pumps, and a Path Forward
Emergency upgrades in recent years focused on the Tug Fork intake, dam improvements, and plant reliability. In 2018 leaders announced multi-million-dollar funding packages through the Abandoned Mine Lands program and the Appalachian Regional Commission to add a secondary intake, upgrade the reservoir dam, and modernize the Turkey Creek plant. The state also formed a standing workgroup to coordinate agencies and keep projects moving until service becomes consistently reliable and affordable.
Water Quality, Research, and the Home Tap
Storage choices and source-water shifts can influence disinfection byproducts. A 2024 peer-reviewed case study sampled household taps across Martin County for a year, tracking seasonal patterns in trihalomethanes and haloacetic acids as temperatures and conductivity changed. Findings emphasized how system operations and source conditions affect what residents see at the tap.
Memory, Recreation, and Place
Beyond valves and pump curves, Curtis Crum is part of daily life. Generations learned to fish on its quiet coves. Community guides have long listed the “Martin County Reservoir” among local boating and fishing spots. Even so, recent drought drawdowns and intake outages have made the lake a symbol of the wider rural water struggle in the coalfields.
Why It Matters
Curtis Crum Reservoir is unassuming on a map, yet it anchors health, commerce, and hope for a county that has weathered mine closures and out-migration. Keeping this small lake viable, and the intake and plant behind it dependable, is less about a single dam and more about the Appalachian promise that every hollow can count on clean, running water.
Sources and Further Reading
Kentucky Division of Water, FY 2020 Annual Report. Bathymetric study and system description for Curtis Crum Reservoir. eec.ky.gov
Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet, MCWD Progress Meeting presentation, May 13, 2020, and meeting agenda. eec.ky.gov+1
Land, Air & Water (EEC), Innovative Drone Use and UAVs use cases. Bathymetry of Curtis Crum with drone and unmanned surface vessel. Land, Air & Water+1
Kentucky Geological Survey, Water-Resource Development plan, Big Sandy ADD. Regional capacities and expansion planning. kgs.uky.edu
Martin County Water District, 2020 Water Quality Report. Source water and operations summary. assets.noviams.com
Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet, Martin County Water District Workgroup page. Coordination and mission. eec.ky.gov
Unrine, J. M., et al. Spatial and seasonal variation in disinfection byproducts in a rural public system: Martin County, Kentucky, PLOS Water 2024. PLOSPubMed
Curtis Crum Reservoir at dangerously low level, The Mountain Citizen, June 7, 2023.
Kentucky leaders announce project to repair Martin County water systems, WCHS, Feb. 26, 2018.
TrailsRUs, Fishing and Boating Opportunities in Martin County. Historical community guide references to the reservoir.
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