Parksville Lake (Ocoee No. 1) Water Level
Tennessee · Ocoee River
Full pool is the summer level. Parksville fluctuates about nine feet from summer to winter, with observed readings running near 835 ft in summer and around 827 to 828 ft in midwinter.
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Water level history
About Parksville Lake (Ocoee No. 1)
Parksville Lake (Ocoee No. 1) is a reservoir on the Ocoee River in Tennessee, operated by Tennessee Valley Authority. It sits just below the Ocoee's famous Olympic whitewater run. Its full summer pool sits at 830 ft above sea level. Live water levels come from the Tennessee Valley Authority (TVA) and update hourly.
Understanding Parksville Lake (Ocoee No. 1)'s water level
Parksville Lake, also called Ocoee No. 1, is the oldest dam and reservoir in the TVA system. Construction began in 1910 and finished in 1911, built by the Eastern Tennessee Power Company to sell power into Chattanooga, with four units running commercially from January 1912. It came to TVA in August 1939 as part of the Tennessee Electric Power Company purchase, and its five units now carry a summer net dependable capacity of 24 megawatts.
The level moves about nine feet from summer to winter, which is modest by TVA standards. Observed readings run near 835 feet in late spring and summer and around 827 to 828 in midwinter. The figure of 830.82 feet often quoted is the spillway crest under the gates, a structural elevation rather than an operating target. Records go back to June 1914: a maximum of 840.2 feet in February 1946 and a minimum of 814.8 feet in December 1934.
Two things upstream shape this place. The first is whitewater. Parksville is the lowest of the three Ocoee dams, so all the famous water is above it: the Middle Ocoee below Ocoee No. 2, and the Upper Ocoee below Ocoee No. 3, which hosted the 1996 Olympic canoe and kayak slalom and remains the only natural river ever used for an Olympic slalom course. That whitewater exists only on scheduled release days, because on ordinary days the water is diverted into a wooden flume, built in 1912 and now on the National Register, that carries it five miles along the mountainside to a powerhouse. The second is the Copper Basin. Copper smelting from the 1850s stripped 32,000 acres and left 23,000 severely eroded, damage visible from space, and the gullies carried soil straight into these reservoirs. TVA's seventy-year restoration cut erosion from 200 tons per acre per year to eight, but the silting has already reduced Parksville's capacity considerably.
Parksville Lake (Ocoee No. 1) — frequently asked
Is Parksville Lake the oldest reservoir in the TVA system?
Yes. TVA states that Ocoee No. 1, which forms Parksville Lake, is the oldest dam and reservoir in the system. Construction began in 1910 and was completed in 1911, with four generating units in commercial operation from January 1912. It was built by the Eastern Tennessee Power Company and acquired by TVA in August 1939.
How much does Parksville Lake's level change?
TVA describes the reservoir as fluctuating about nine feet from summer to winter. Observed readings run near 835 feet in late spring and summer and around 827 to 828 feet in midwinter. Note that the widely quoted 830.82 feet is the spillway crest under the gates, a structural elevation rather than an operating target.
Is the Olympic whitewater course below Parksville Lake?
Above it, not below. Parksville is the lowest of the three Ocoee dams, so all the whitewater is upstream. The 1996 Olympic canoe and kayak slalom was held on the Upper Ocoee, below Ocoee No. 3, and it remains the only natural river ever used for an Olympic slalom course. The Middle Ocoee, below Ocoee No. 2, is the commercial rafting run. Below Parksville is the flat-water float section.
Why is there whitewater on the Ocoee only some days?
Because on other days the water is in a flume. A wooden flume built in 1912, now on the National Register, carries water from Ocoee No. 2 nearly five miles along the mountainside to a powerhouse, letting a thirty-foot dam generate like a 250-foot one. On scheduled release days TVA diverts that water over the dam instead. The current agreement runs from 2019 through 2034, funded partly by a licensing fee on commercial outfitters.
What are Parksville Lake's record levels?
The record maximum is 840.2 feet on 10 February 1946 and the record minimum is 814.8 feet on 14 December 1934, from a record beginning in June 1914. The reservoir has also been known by three official names over time: Parksville (Ocoee No. 1) Reservoir before 1953, Parksville Lake from 1953 to 1968, and Lake Ocoee since.
What is the Copper Basin and how did it affect this lake?
Copper mining and smelting from the 1850s stripped 32,000 acres above the Ocoee, leaving 23,000 acres severely eroded, damage that was visible from space. The gullies carried topsoil and subsoil straight into the three Ocoee reservoirs, and federal records note that Parksville's capacity has been considerably reduced by silting. A seventy-year TVA restoration returned over 11,000 acres to productive use and cut erosion from 200 tons per acre a year to eight.
Other lakes near Parksville Lake (Ocoee No. 1)
- Pickwick LakeAL/TN/MS
- Old Hickory LakeTN
- South Holston LakeTN/VA
- Norris LakeTN
- Tellico LakeTN
- Normandy LakeTN
See current levels for all 23 Tennessee lakes and reservoirs →
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