Smith Lake

Lewis Smith Lake is a 21,200-acre man-made lake on the Sipsey Fork, the uppermost lake on the Black Warrior River. The three-fingered lake has over 500 miles of shoreline in Cullman, Walker, and Winston counties, and at full pool has a level of 510 feet above mean sea level. Its average volume is about 1,670,700 acre feet (2.06 cubic kilometers).

The lake was impounded by Alabama Power Company's Lewis M. Smith Dam, the largest earthen dam in the eastern United States. The dam is 2,200 feet long and reaches a maximum height of 300 feet. Construction began on November 25, 1957. It was dedicated in May 1961 and entered service on September 5, 1961.

Nearby towns include Bremen, Crane Hill and Dodge City in Cullman County; Curry and Jasper in Walker County; and Addison, Arley, and Double Springs in Winston County. It is the second-cleanest lake in America, behind Lake Tahoe.

Volunteers from the Smith Lake Environmental Preservation Committee and the Smith Lake Civic Association contribute water quality monitoring reports to Alabama Water Watch.

Fishing

While Smith Lake has over 70 species of fish in its waters, it is a prime destination for striped, spotted and largemouth bass anglers. It hosts weekly local fishing tournaments, a night tournament, the annual Red Cross Spring Bass Classic, and frequent stops on national fishing tours.

Spotted bass from Smith Lake set several world fishing records in the 1970s. The current record was set in California from a lake stocked from Smith Lake bass. Alabama's record catch was an 8 pound, 15 ounce specimen caught on Smith Lake by Phillip Terry of Decatur on March 18, 1978. The junior world record Striped bass was a 31 pound, 15 ounce fish caught at Smith Lake by 8-year-old Kamron Butler of Eva in 2007.

Public lake access is provided at the dam, at Smith Lake Park and Speegle's Marina in Cullman County, and from the Bankhead National Forest and Sipsey Wilderness. Some fishing guides have been prosecuted for stocking the lake with invasive Blueback herring, intended to fatten the lake's striped bass.

Camp Jimmy Goodwin was located on the lake's southwest shore until 2006, when it was sold to a residential developer planning the Duncan Bridge Resorts South on the property.

Tributaries

Sipsey Fork Bear Branch Dismal Creek Little Dismal Creek Maple Branch Duncan Creek Devil's Branch Battle Branch Clear Creek Caney Creek Coon Creek Big Bear Branch Little Bear Branch Brushy Creek Farley Branch Cow Creek Yellow Creek Rockhouse Creek Hoghouse Creek North Creek Hullett Branch Penitentiary Branch Bull Branch Cane Creek

Rock Creek Little Crooked Creek White Oak Creek Crooked Creek Cutoff Branch Mill Branch Panther Branch Ryan Creek Loup Branch Coon Creek (Bremen) Alder Branch Pigeon Roost Creek Lick Branch Sulphur Springs Branch Broglen Branch Bates Branch Simpson Creek Reid Creek Brushy Creek (Guthery Crossroads) Clear Creek (Trimble)

Bridges

Alabama Power constructed four new bridges as part of the dam project:

• Bailey's Bridge, carries Winston County Road 22 over White Oak Creek between Helicon and Trade
• Duncan Bridge, a 1,035-foot steel bridge with a 361-foot main span, carries Winston County Road 41 over Sipsey Fork between Curry and Arley
• Phillips Bridge (also known as "Big Bridge"), carries Cullman Country Road 222 over Ryan Creek between Wheat and Brushy Pond
• Swayback Bridge carries Winston County Road 77 (Helicon Road) over Rock Creek between Arley and Helicon

Additional bridges over parts of Smith Lake include:

• U. S. Highway 278 over Sipsey Fork between Double Springs and Houston
• Winston County Road 63 over Brushy Creek between Houston and Arley
• Cullman County Road 946 over Crooked Creek between Mt Zion and Crane Hill
• Cullman County Road 813 over Ryan Creek between Trimble and Loretto

References

• "Citizen Volunteer Water Quality Monitoring of Alabama's Reservoirs: Volume 1: Lewis Smith Lake" (October 1999) Alabama Water Watch
• Darr, Doug (2008) Fish and Fishing in Smith Lake. Alabama Department of Conservation and Natural Resources
• "Lewis Smith Lake." (February 23, 2008) Wikipedia - accessed April 7, 2008
• Gillespie, Loretta (December 9, 2012) "More than 50 years later, residents recall birth of Smith Lake." Cullman Times

External links

Locate with
Google Maps

• SmithLakeBass website
• Smith Lake Park website