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Fort Loudoun Lake
Fort-Loudoun-Lake-Louisville-Point-NW-tn.jpg
The lake in Louisville
Location of Fort Loudoun Lake in Tennessee, USA.
Location of Fort Loudoun Lake in Tennessee, USA.
Fort Loudoun Lake
Location in Tennessee
Location of Fort Loudoun Lake in Tennessee, USA.
Location of Fort Loudoun Lake in Tennessee, USA.
Fort Loudoun Lake
Location in the United States
Location Blount / Knox / Loudon counties, Tennessee, US
Coordinates 35°47′31″N 84°14′36″W / 35.79194°N 84.24333°W / 35.79194; -84.24333
Type reservoir
Primary inflows French Broad River,
Holston River
Primary outflows Tennessee River
Basin countries United States
Surface elevation 813 feet (248 m)

Fort Loudoun Lake is a reservoir in east Tennessee on the upper Tennessee River, extending about 50 miles (80 km) along the river upstream from Fort Loudoun Dam, at Lenoir City, to Knoxville.

Fort Loudoun Reservoir takes its name from the 18th-century British fort built on a nearby site during the French and Indian War. The fort was named for John Campbell, the fourth Earl of Loudoun, commander of British forces in North America at the time.

Fort Loudoun is a popular recreation destination, known for bass fishing, boating, and birdwatching. The tailwater area immediately below the dam is an excellent site for viewing a variety of waterbirds, including herons, cormorants, gulls, osprey, and bald eagles.

The reservoir is connected by a short canal to Tellico Reservoir on the nearby Little Tennessee River. Water is diverted through the canal to Fort Loudoun for power production. The canal also offers commercial barges access to Tellico without the need for a lock. Barges passing through the Fort Loudoun lock carry about half a million tons of cargo a year.

In popular culture

The reservoir is mentioned in the Knoxville-based V-Roys song "Over the Mountain".

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