Barren River Lake HistoryBarren River Lake History Information

1936

Flood Control Act
Since the mid 1800s, Federal engineers, in response to recurring floods and a growing public outcry for relief, have debated effective flood protection measures. Legislation passed in the 1920s further defined a federal role in flood protection, but it was the 1936 Flood Control Act that recognized flood control as a “proper activity of the Federal government in cooperation with the States…” That landmark legislation, together with record floods in the Ohio Valley in 1936 and 1937, marked the beginning of comprehensive federal flood control work by the Corps. In the 1940s the Louisville District began construction of local protection projects, which are operated and maintained by local government. The District has constructed 20 multi-purpose flood reduction lakes, which are part of a coordinated protection system consisting of 78 lakes located throughout the Ohio Valley. Cagles Mill Lake, completed in 1953, was the District’s first multi-purpose project; Taylorsville Lake, completed in 1983, is the most recent. The local protection projects, together with the multi-purpose lakes, have provided over $1 billion in flood reduction benefits.

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