Located in upstate New York, the Great Sacandaga Lake provides a vacation spot for tourists, as well as recreation for local citizens. Look through the information we have collected on this web site, then come and visit our beautiful lake. Click on any picture below to enlarge it.

HISTORY OF THE LAKE

The Great Sacandaga Lake is man-made. Back in the early 1920s, before the lake was around, the melting snow in the Spring would cause the Sacandaga and Hudson Rivers to flood the cities they passed through.

Even before the construction of the dam and the filling of the lake, the Sacandaga River was a popular place. The river was used to logging, and many people would come to watch the logging companies "river drives" as they used the river to transport their logs. It was also the center of New York's best known amusement centers.

These floods were catastrophic for local businesses in the flood areas. Because of the damage they caused, something had to be done. The final idea was to build a dam that would provide a place for the flood waters to be held back in the spring, then let out slowly throughout the year. This would stop the floods, and provide a steady source of water for farmers and businesses.

Construction of the Conklingville Dam started in the 1920s and was completed by 1930 and put to use on March 27, 1930.

The total cost of construction was $12,000,000. However, no federal or state funds were ever used for its design or construction. All necessary costs were paid by businesses that would benefit from the flood control the dam provided.

Today, many businesses benefit not only from the flood protection provided by the lake, but also from the tourist economy the lake has created in the area. People come from many miles around to visit the lake for recreation, or to stay in their summer camps on the lake.

The public has access to the lake via many public boat launches, and public beaches, as well as campgrounds that are located on the shores of the lake.

STATISTICS

• Surface area of the lake: 42 square miles
• Shore line: 125 miles
• Water capacity: 37.75 billion cubic feet
• Conklingville Dam completed: 1930
• Total cost to build the dam: $12,000,000
• First used: March 27, 1930

TOWNS ON THE LAKE

• Broadalbin
• Mayfield
• Northville
• Edinburg
• West Day
• Conklingville
• Batchellerville
• Fayville
• Fish House

RELATED LINKS

• The Great Sacandaga Lake Association
• DEC Press Release: Broadalbin Boat Launch Opening (1998)
• Hudson River - Black River Regulating District
• Great Sacandaga Lake Water Levels Report
• Sacandaga Campground Information
• DEC Freshwater Fishing Web Site

This beautiful photo was taken by Jon Parise from a tower in the Sacandaga area. It shows how beautiful this area truly is. Much of the lake is located in the Adirondack Park, a "forever wild" nature preserve in upstate New York. We have two copies of this picture for you to look at if you would like to see more detail: - Large version (640x480) - Huge version (1024x768)

All copyrighted images on this site are used with permission. In cases where images were not copyrighted, sources were given. If you have an outstanding picture that we could use on this page, please contact us.