Lake Cumberland

The Nashville District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers welcomes you to Lake Cumberland, the second largest lake in the Cumberland River System.  The lake provides varied outdoor recreational opportunities for millions of visitors each year.  Because of the temperate climate and relatively long recreation season, visitors have many opportunities to fish, hunt, camp, picnic, boat, canoe, hike, and enjoy the outdoors.

Lake Cumberland is located in Wayne, Russell, Pulaski, Clinton, McCreary, Laurel, and Whitley counties in Southeastern Kentucky on the Cumberland River.  The damsite is at river mile 460.9 or about 10 miles southwest of Jamestown, Kentucky.

The Wolf Creek Project was authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1938 and the Rivers and Harbor Act of 1946.  Construction of the project, designed and supervised by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, began in August 1941.  After a three-year delay caused by World War II, the project was completed for full beneficial use in August 1952.

The dam was completed for flood control operation in 1950.  Three of the six hydroelectric generating units were placed in operation in 1951 and the remaining three in 1952.  Operation of the lake is for the primary purposes of flood control and the production of hydroelectric power.  The cost of the project was approximately $80.4 million.

Contact

855 Boat Dock Road Somerset, KY 42501
606-679-6337
Monday-Friday 8:00 AM -4:30 PM
lakecumberland@usace.army.mil