Appalachian History Series
A highway made a lake
Lake Linville is not a conventional reservoir built behind a separate concrete structure. Kentucky’s own mapping and basin summary explain that “Renfro Creek was dammed in 1968 by the I-75 fill embankment to create the lake.” The same Kentucky Geological Survey page notes that the Mount Vernon Water Works draws its raw water from Lake Linville and even provides a ramp locator for public access.
Federal and state mapping fix the timeline in the landscape. Post-impoundment USGS quadrangles show the lake and its dam in place; later US Topo editions continue to depict the reservoir adjacent to Interstate 75, a visual confirmation of the highway-dam relationship noted by Kentucky’s geologists.
What the early fieldwork found
Close on the heels of impoundment, the Kentucky Division of Water completed a biological and water-quality survey of the Renfro Creek drainage. The 1990 technical report documents field sampling above and below Lake Linville, including sites “below the Lake Linville dam.” It is a primary snapshot of the reservoir and its tributary soon after creation.
Water for Mount Vernon
The lake is not just for boats and bank fishing. It feeds the municipal system. Kentucky’s Drinking Water Watch lists Mount Vernon Water Works as system KY1020299, primary source “SW,” with an intake explicitly labeled “INTAKE – LAKE LINVILLE.” That same state database shows the intake facility details under the Mount Vernon system entry.
Downstream customers also rely on that source. A Kentucky American Water consumer confidence report for Eastern Rockcastle explains that part of its purchased supply comes from “City of Mt. Vernon (PWSID KY1020299), whose source is surface water drawn from Lake Linville.”
Safety classification, condition, and oversight
Because the interstate embankment functions as a dam, it sits within Kentucky’s Dam Safety Program. The Division of Water’s 2020 Annual Report records program flights and inspections at “Lake Linville (Renfro Dam),” a routine line that tells you the structure is on the state’s radar.
The most current statewide capital-needs accounting goes further. In 2024, the Energy and Environment Cabinet reported to the General Assembly on high-hazard dams, listing RENFRO DAM with National Inventory of Dams ID KY00101 in Rockcastle County, owner Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, and NID condition “Poor.” The same table shows its priority ranking among other high-hazard structures.
Kentucky’s recent work with the U.S. Department of Homeland Security adds context about how the state monitors risk. A 2020 DHS Science and Technology Directorate report describes a project with the Kentucky Division of Water to pilot low-cost flood sensors, prioritizing high-hazard and poor-condition dams for instrumentation. Renfro appears in statewide high-hazard listings connected to that effort, underscoring why Lake Linville’s embankment is treated with the same seriousness as any other high-hazard dam.
Road and dam, engineered together
Transportation files help explain how the highway and dam are handled in design. A Kentucky Transportation Cabinet value-engineering report for I-75 explicitly discusses the geometry of a ramp “over the Lake Linville dam,” a reminder that highway projects here are also dam projects by necessity.
Public access and fishery today
For anglers and paddlers, Lake Linville is a familiar spot. The Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife lists Lake Linville at 356 acres with site details for the public ramp. Agency pages provide regulations and facility notes that serve the lake’s day-to-day community uses.
Why it matters
Lake Linville is a case study in Appalachian infrastructure where a single earthwork had to carry cars, hold back water, and supply a town. The through-lines are unusually clear. State geologists tied the lake’s origin to the interstate embankment in plain language. Division of Water field staff documented conditions soon after the pool rose. The city’s water records point to the lake intake. Safety agencies and engineers still track, fly, and model the structure because people live and travel below it.
When we talk about dams in the mountains, the image is often a stand-alone wall of concrete. Rockcastle County shows another common Appalachian reality. A highway fill can be a dam. A city lake can also be a regulated high-hazard structure. And the paperwork, from maps to reports, tells the story.
Sources and further reading
Kentucky Geological Survey, Upper Cumberland River Basin Map and Chart 190. “Renfro Creek was dammed in 1968 by the I-75 fill embankment…” Also notes Mount Vernon Water Works draws from Lake Linville and includes a ramp locator. Kentucky Geological Survey
Kentucky Division of Water, Technical Report of Investigation No. 39: Renfro Creek Drainage (Cumberland River System), Rockcastle County, Kentucky 1990. Field survey with sites above and “below the Lake Linville dam.” Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet
Kentucky Division of Water, Annual Report 2020. Mentions inspection flights at “Lake Linville (Renfro Dam).” Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet
Kentucky Energy and Environment Cabinet to the Legislature, High-Hazard Dam Rehabilitation Report (HB6),2024. Lists RENFRO DAM, NID KY00101, owner KYTC, condition Poor. Legislative Research Commission
Kentucky Drinking Water Watch, Mount Vernon Water Works system KY1020299. Source and facility entries show “INTAKE – LAKE LINVILLE.” Kentucky Department of Education+1
USGS quadrangles and US Topo, Mount Vernon, show the post-1968 reservoir and dam beside I-75. Tennessee National Map+1
U.S. DHS Science and Technology Directorate, Low-Cost Flood Sensors: Innovation for Dam Safety Monitoring,2020. State partnership context prioritizing high-hazard and poor-condition dams. U.S. Department of Homeland Security
Kentucky Transportation Cabinet, Value Engineering Study Report VE201603 for I-75. Notes design carrying a ramp over the Lake Linville dam. KYTC
Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife Resources, Lake Linville pages with acreage, access sites, and regulations. fw.ky.gov+1
Kentucky American Water, Eastern Rockcastle water quality report noting purchased water from the City of Mount Vernon whose source is Lake Linville. American Water