Lake Russell was created by construction of the Richard B. Russell Dam on the Savannah River, bordering Abbeville and Anderson counties in South Carolina. The lake impounds primarily the Savannah River but also includes Beaverdam Creek on the Georgia side and Rocky River on the South Carolina side.
Filling of the lake began in October 1983 and was completed in December 1984 at a full- pool elevation of 475 feet above sea level. Lake levels do not change much because the lake is designed to operate within five feet of full pool, compared to Hartwell and Thurmond, whose 35 and 18 feet of conservation storage, respectively, allows their levels to change more dramatically.
Lake Russell covers 26,650 surface acres and has 540 miles of shoreline. The lake is managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, and federal regulations prohibit private use of the public lands surrounding Lake Russell, so the shoreline is basically undeveloped.
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