Graham Lake (Maine)

Graham Lake in Hancock County, Maine is a eutrophic reservoir formed by the construction of a hydro-electric power dam in 1922 four miles (6 km) upstream from Ellsworth, Maine. The first dam was a hastily built earthen dam built by the Bangor Hydro Electric Company. It failed in 1923, flooding downtown Ellsworth and doing almost $8 million in property damage. The dam was rebuilt and operated by Bangor Hydro until its sale in 1999. The dam has since been acquired by PPL Corporation, which continues to use it to generate electricity.^[1][3][4]

Graham Lake
Graham Lake Show map of Maine Graham Lake Show map of the United States
Location	Hancock County, Maine
Coordinates	44°39′30″N 68°23′57″W
Type	eutrophic reservoir[1]
Primary inflows	Union River[1]
Primary outflows	Union River[1]
Catchment area	499 sq mi (1,290 km2) [1]
Basin countries	United States
Max. length	13 miles (21 km)[2]
Surface area	9,383 acres (3,797 ha) [1]
Average depth	17 ft (5.2 m) [1]
Max. depth	47 ft (14 m) [1]
Water volume	105,603 acre⋅ft (130,259,000 m3) [1]
Residence time	3 months [1]
Shore length1	89.8 mi (144.5 km) [1]
Surface elevation	106 ft (32 m) [1]
Settlements	Ellsworth, Waltham, Mariaville
References	[2]
1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure.

Water clarity in the lake is low,^[5] with secchi disk measurements averaging less than 3 meters. Fish in the lake that are of interest to anglers include smallmouth bass, white perch, chain pickerel, landlocked salmon, and brook trout.^[1]