Murvaul Lake (Sabine River Basin)
Murvaul Lake is located about ten miles southwest of Carthage in Panola County, on Murvaul Creek (or Bayou), a tributary of the Sabine River. The project is owned and operated by the Panola County Fresh Water Supply District Number One, with offices in Carthage. Construction of the reservoir began on September 26, 1956, and was completed on June 1, 1958. Deliberate impoundment began in November 1957. The lake has a capacity of 45,840 acre-feet and a surface area of 3,820 acres at the spillway crest elevation of 265.3 feet above mean sea level. Water is used for municipal, industrial, and recreational purposes.
Lake Murvaul Dam and appurtenant structures consist of a rolled earth fill embankment, 8,300 feet in length, with a maximum height of 51 feet and a crest elevation of 280.0 feet. The service spillway is located at the right (south) end of the main embankment. The spillway is an uncontrolled concrete broad-crested weir and chute, 270 feet in length with a crest elevation of 265.3 feet. The outlet works is a tower with three slide gate openings. The invert for the lowest 48- inch by 48-inch gate is 235.0 feet. Discharges flow into a 36-inch diameter cast iron pipe downstream to the channel and a "tee" valve to the water supply line. According to TWDB 1998 volumetric survey, the lake has a storage capacity of 38,285 acre-feet encompassing a surface area of 3,507 acres at its conservation pool elevation, 265.3 feet above mean sea level. The drainage area above the dam is 115 square miles.