The Lake Bellwood dam, one of the earliest of its kind
The dam that impounds Lake Bellwood, built in 1894 for Tyler’s waterworks on a plan by engineer J. M. Howell for owner B. B. Cain, was one of the earliest hydraulic-fill dams of its size in the United States.
It cost $1,140 and is on the National Register (1977).
Note
Who built it differs: the dam’s own nomination says the private Tyler Water Company, bought by B. B. Cain in 1893; the city’s 2000 documentation says “the City built an earthen dam in 1894.”
Sources
- National Register nomination: Tyler Hydraulic-Fill Dam (NR 77001543; THC Atlas), p. 3atlas.thc.texas.gov
The hydraulic-fill dam constructed for the waterworks of Tyler, Texas in 1894 was one of the earliest hydraulic-fill dams of its size in the United States.
In 1894, J. M. Howell conceived the idea of building a reservoir by impounding water behind a hydraulic-jet and sluicing type dam, and Cain agreed to the plan.
The entire cost of the dam was $1140
Checked October 15, 2026. How the cards are filed