Lakes History

On March 6, 1889, the water works franchise was transferred from Jeter and Boardman to the Tuscaloosa Water Works Company, which operated the plant until about 1906, at which time the company went into receivership. In November 1906, the City Council adopted an ordinance providing for an election on December 6, 1906, for the issuance of a $125,000 dollar water works bond. The voters approved the bond issue, and on April 29, 1907, the mayor authorized to bid $30,000 for the water works property and the company accepted this bid. To operate the plant, the City by ordinance created a Water Works Commission of three men, Messrs. Blair, Oliver, and Faulkner.

As population increased and pollution issues became a concern, a new source of raw water was needed. In 1929 Harris Lake was completed, a 220-acre Lake with the storage capacity of approximately 1 billion gallons of water (approximately 815 million gallons of water have an elevation high enough to be removed). Harris Lake has two (2) of the first true arch dams in the state of Alabama. Harris Lake is used only for industrial water, at the present time. The Spillway elevation is 205.0 feet above mean sea level.

With a demand and need for more raw water, another source pursued. In 1954, Lake Nicol a 380-acre lake with the storage capacity of approximately 3.3 billion gallons was constructed. Lake Nicol is used primary as a back up lake at the present time. The Spillway elevation is at 285.2 feet above mean sea level.

With a still increasing population and industrial base moving into the City and the surrounding areas, even more raw water required. To meet the current demand as well as ensure an adequate water supply for the future, Lake Tuscaloosa was constructed. The newest and by far the largest of the City's reservoirs, is it was completed in 1970 at a cost of approximately $7,725,000.00.  The 5,885 acres lake has a capacity of approximately 40 billion gallons and can provide a safe withdrawal rate of approximately 200 million gallons per day. Lake Tuscaloosa is our primary source of raw water and is treated for human consumption as well as being used for industrial raw water. The normal pool elevation of Lake Tuscaloosa is 223.2 feet above mean sea level.