Tennessee lake & reservoir water levels

6 lakes tracked · 5 with a current elevation reading · USGS Water Services + USACE CWMS Data

Tennessee has 6 lakes and reservoirs tracked here — 5 with a current elevation reading, from USGS Water Services and USACE CWMS Data. Sort the table by level, storage, %-full, or trend, then open any lake for its full elevation-with-datum, trend sparkline, storage, and source-and-vintage stamp. Figures are provisional readings for reference — not for navigation or safety decisions.

Statewide totals Tennessee · USGS + USACE
Lakes tracked
6

5 report a current pool-elevation reading; the rest report storage only.

With elevation reading
5
With %-full figure
0

All Tennessee lakes

Every lake tracked in Tennessee. Click a column heading to sort, or filter by name. Elevation lakes are listed before storage-only lakes; a missing figure always shows "not reported," never an estimate.

Tennessee lakes, elevation lakes first, by name.
Datum Trend
Center Hill Lake 635.57 NGVD29 1,112,652 ↑Rising
Cheatham Dam and Lake 385.85 NGVD29 106,061 ↓Falling
Cordell Hull Lake 504.18 NGVD29 263,612 ↓Falling
Dale Hollow Lake 642.87 NGVD29 1,136,886 ↓Falling
Old Hickory Lake 445.31 NGVD29 420,861 ↑Rising
J Percy Priest Dam 393,289

Data: USGS Water Services (waterservices.usgs.gov) and USACE CWMS Data (cwms-data.usace.army.mil), retrieved 2026-08-31. Both public domain (a work of the U.S. Government, 17 U.S.C. §105).

Every Tennessee lake in detail

Each lake tracked in Tennessee has its full record here — current reading, recent trend, and the dam behind it where the National Inventory of Dams has one. Use the table above to jump to a lake, or read straight through.

Center Hill Lake

USACE · reading Aug 31, 2026, 8:00 AM (UTC+00:00)

Pool elevation
635.57 ft

Datum NGVD29

% of conservation pool full
Not reported
Storage
1,112,652 acre-ft
Recent trend
↑Rising

+0.8 ft over the trend window

641.2ft639.9ftJun 2 – Jun 23

Center Hill Lake is held back by Center Hill Dam , a other structure , standing 125 ft high and running 2,160 ft along its crest , built across CANEY FORK RIVER in DeKalb County , near LANCASTER . It was completed in 1951 , and is owned by USACE - Nashville District , to a design credited to CELRN. Its recorded primary purpose is flood risk reduction — the pool is drawn down between storms so there is empty space waiting for the next flood, which is why this level can fall in dry weather and climb sharply after rain. Its spillway is gated, so the operator can hold the pool above the spillway crest and meter what leaves. NID classes it high hazard potential. That describes what a failure would cost downstream — loss of life would be expected — and says nothing about how likely a failure is, or what condition the dam is in. National Inventory of Dams record TN04102 — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, public domain.

Source: USACE LRN/Center Hill Dam, retrieved Aug 31, 2026, 8:24 AM (UTC+00:00). Official page for Center Hill Lake →

Cheatham Dam and Lake

USACE · reading Aug 31, 2026, 8:00 AM (UTC+00:00)

Pool elevation
385.85 ft

Datum NGVD29

% of conservation pool full
Not reported
Storage
106,061 acre-ft
Recent trend
↓Falling

−0.6 ft over the trend window

385.7ft384.4ftJun 2 – Jun 23

Cheatham Dam and Lake is held back by Cheatham Lock and Dam , a concrete gravity structure, resisting the reservoir by its own weight alone , standing 75 ft high and running 981 ft along its crest , built across CUMBERLAND RIVER in Dickson County , near NASHVILLE . It was completed in 1954 , and is owned by USACE - Nashville District , to a design credited to CELRN. Its recorded primary purpose is navigation — the pool is held inside a narrow band to keep a navigable depth, so large swings are rare by design. Its spillway is gated, so the operator can hold the pool above the spillway crest and meter what leaves. NID classes it significant hazard potential: a failure would be expected to damage property and infrastructure rather than cost lives. It is a consequence rating, not a condition rating. National Inventory of Dams record TN02101 — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, public domain.

Source: USACE LRN/Cheatham Dam, retrieved Aug 31, 2026, 8:24 AM (UTC+00:00). Official page for Cheatham Dam and Lake →

Cordell Hull Lake

USACE · reading Aug 31, 2026, 8:00 AM (UTC+00:00)

Pool elevation
504.18 ft

Datum NGVD29

% of conservation pool full
Not reported
Storage
263,612 acre-ft
Recent trend
↓Falling

−0.3 ft over the trend window

504.3ft503.6ftJun 2 – Jun 23

Cordell Hull Lake is held back by Cordell Hull Lock and Dam , a concrete gravity structure, resisting the reservoir by its own weight alone , standing 93 ft high and running 1,306 ft along its crest , built across CUMBERLAND RIVER in Smith County , near CARTHAGE . It was completed in 1973 , and is owned by USACE - Nashville District , to a design credited to CELRN. Its recorded primary purpose is recreation — holding a stable pool through the season is an operating goal, so a level well off normal in summer is unusual rather than routine. Its spillway is gated, so the operator can hold the pool above the spillway crest and meter what leaves. NID classes it high hazard potential. That describes what a failure would cost downstream — loss of life would be expected — and says nothing about how likely a failure is, or what condition the dam is in. National Inventory of Dams record TN15901 — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, public domain.

Source: USACE LRN/Cordell Hull Dam, retrieved Aug 31, 2026, 8:24 AM (UTC+00:00). Official page for Cordell Hull Lake →

Dale Hollow Lake

USACE · reading Aug 31, 2026, 8:00 AM (UTC+00:00)

Pool elevation
642.87 ft

Datum NGVD29

% of conservation pool full
Not reported
Storage
1,136,886 acre-ft
Recent trend
↓Falling

−0.6 ft over the trend window

644.9ft644.3ftJun 2 – Jun 23

Dale Hollow Lake is held back by Dale Hollow Dam , a concrete gravity structure, resisting the reservoir by its own weight alone , standing 200 ft high and running 1,717 ft along its crest , built across OBEY RIVER in Clay County , near CELINA . It was completed in 1943 , and is owned by USACE - Nashville District , to a design credited to CELRN. Its recorded primary purpose is flood risk reduction — the pool is drawn down between storms so there is empty space waiting for the next flood, which is why this level can fall in dry weather and climb sharply after rain. Its spillway is gated, so the operator can hold the pool above the spillway crest and meter what leaves. NID classes it high hazard potential. That describes what a failure would cost downstream — loss of life would be expected — and says nothing about how likely a failure is, or what condition the dam is in. National Inventory of Dams record TN02702 — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, public domain.

Source: USACE LRN/Dale Hollow Dam, retrieved Aug 31, 2026, 8:24 AM (UTC+00:00). Official page for Dale Hollow Lake →

Old Hickory Lake

USACE · reading Aug 31, 2026, 8:00 AM (UTC+00:00)

Pool elevation
445.31 ft

Datum NGVD29

% of conservation pool full
Not reported
Storage
420,861 acre-ft
Recent trend
↑Rising

+0.1 ft over the trend window

445.2ft444.7ftJun 2 – Jun 23

Old Hickory Lake is held back by Old Hickory Lock and Dam , a concrete structure , standing 98 ft high and running 3,750 ft along its crest , built across CUMBERLAND RIVER in Davidson County , near NASHVILLE . It was completed in 1954 , and is owned by USACE - Nashville District , to a design credited to CELRN. Its recorded primary purpose is navigation — the pool is held inside a narrow band to keep a navigable depth, so large swings are rare by design. Its spillway is gated, so the operator can hold the pool above the spillway crest and meter what leaves. NID classes it high hazard potential. That describes what a failure would cost downstream — loss of life would be expected — and says nothing about how likely a failure is, or what condition the dam is in. National Inventory of Dams record TN03702 — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, public domain.

Source: USACE LRN/Old Hickory Dam, retrieved Aug 31, 2026, 8:24 AM (UTC+00:00). Official page for Old Hickory Lake →

J Percy Priest Dam

USACE · reading Aug 31, 2026, 1:00 AM (UTC+00:00)

Pool elevation
Not reported
% of conservation pool full
Not reported
Storage
393,289 acre-ft
Recent trend
Not enough recent readings

J Percy Priest Dam is held back by J. Percy Priest Dam , a concrete structure , standing 147 ft high and running 2,716 ft along its crest , built across STONES RIVER in Davidson County , near NASHVILLE . It was completed in 1967 , and is owned by USACE - Nashville District , to a design credited to CELRN. Its recorded primary purpose is flood risk reduction — the pool is drawn down between storms so there is empty space waiting for the next flood, which is why this level can fall in dry weather and climb sharply after rain. Its spillway is gated, so the operator can hold the pool above the spillway crest and meter what leaves. NID classes it high hazard potential. That describes what a failure would cost downstream — loss of life would be expected — and says nothing about how likely a failure is, or what condition the dam is in. National Inventory of Dams record TN03701 — U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, public domain.

Source: USACE LRN/JPHT1-J_PERCY_PRIEST, retrieved Aug 31, 2026, 8:24 AM (UTC+00:00). Official page for J Percy Priest Dam →

Frequently asked questions

How many lakes and reservoirs in Tennessee are tracked here?
6, of which 5 report a current pool-elevation reading. The rest report storage only, or lack a fresh reading and are not published.
Which Tennessee lakes report a %-full figure?
None of Tennessee's lakes in this dataset currently have a source-provided %-full figure — we show the bare level rather than estimate one.
Where does the data come from?
USGS Water Services and USACE CWMS Data, both public domain. See the methodology page for the exact endpoints and update cadence.

Explore

Read the methodology behind these figures, or search all lakes nationally from the home page.