Largest lakes & reservoirs in West Virginia by acres
There is no widely-accepted minimum surface area that defines a lake. What LakeLubbers describes as a lake, you might call a pond. Acreage of a lake (or sometimes square kilometers) is most often measured at the top surface area when the lake is at normal elevation. The surface area can be considerably smaller or larger when lake levels are lower or higher than normal. North America’s Lake Superior is the world’s largest freshwater lake by this measure.The other measure of a lake’s size is the lake’s water volume. By that measure, the world’s largest freshwater lake is Lake Baikal in Siberia.
You can find many of the world’s largest lakes (acres) on LakeLubbers in the comparison table below. Note: For some lakes, "Largest Lakes - Acres" data is unknown or does not apply, so you may see fewer lakes than the total 12 articles we have published for West Virginia lakes.
Thinking about booking a West Virginia lake vacation home rental, cabin or hotel?
Use our free interactive vacation rental map to search and compare multiple vacation properties at a glance. Enter a lake name, a state or city and then simply click on a listing to compare all similar properties, best rates and availability for your dates.Search results: Sort lakes by surface acreage
Below are lakes within USA > US South Region > West Virginia > Compared by surface area in acres. This list does not represent all lakes in West Virginia, only the 12 West Virginia lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name  |
Surface area in acres |
Lake description |
|---|---|---|
| Summersville Lake, WV (Mountain Lakes Region, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
2,790 ac | Also known as Summersville Reservoir Scenic Summersville Lake is the largest lake in West Virginia. The reservoir was built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers for flood control on the Ga… |
| Stonewall Jackson Lake, WV (Mountain Lakes Region, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
2,650 ac | Stonewall Jackson Lake, a young West Virginia lake that only finished completion in 1990, was built by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to provide flo… |
| Bluestone Lake, WV (New River-Greenbrier Valley Region, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
2,040 ac | Amidst the beautiful scenery of southern West Virginia lies the long, narrow Bluestone Lake. This reservoir, the third largest lake in West Virginia,… |
| Tygart Lake, WV (Mountaineer Country, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
1,750 ac | The wilderness song of Tygart Lake calls to fishing enthusiasts, boaters, campers, hikers, writers and artisans. Located near the beautiful Appalachia… |
| Cheat Lake, WV (Mountaineer Country, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
1,730 ac | Also known as Lake Lynn A dam built across the Cheat River in 1925 created the scenic reservoir of Cheat Lake. Originally called Lake Lynn, the dam sits nearly at the border… |
| Burnsville Lake, WV (Mountain Lakes Region, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
968 ac | Also known as Burnsville Reservoir Beautiful Burnsville Lake was created by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to control flooding along the Little Kanawha River. The Corps began construc… |
| Jennings Randolph Lake, MD/WV (Maryland, Potomac Highlands Region, WV, US Mid-Atlantic Region, US South Region, USA, West Virginia, Western Maryland) |
952 ac | Also known as Jennings Randolph Reservoir, Bloomington Lake Jennings Randolph Lake is nestled in a scenic valley along the North Branch Potomac River. This portion of the Potomac creates the county and state bo… |
| Beech Fork Lake, WV (Metro Valley Region, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
720 ac | Nestled in the verdant West Virginia hills off of Interstate 64 in Wayne County, Beech Fork Lake provides endless entertainment for visitors seeking a… |
| Stonecoal Reservoir, WV (Mountain Lakes Region, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
550 ac | Also known as Stonecoal Lake Stonecoal Reservoir is a 550-acre lake nestled in the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains between the cities of Weston and Buckhannon, West Virginia.… |
| Alpine Lake (Mountaineer Country, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
148 ac | Nestled in the foothills of the Allegheny Mountains, Alpine Lake is a private, gated community located near Terra Alta in Preston County, West Virgini… |
| Spruce Knob Lake (Potomac Highlands Region, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
23 ac | Spruce Knob Lake, in West Virginia’s Potomac Highlands, proves that good things come in small packages. Only 23 acres, the little reservoir was create… |
| Sleepy Hollow Lake WV (Eastern Panhandle Region, WV, US South Region, USA, West Virginia) |
7 ac | Sleepy Hollow Lake is a sparkling, seven-acre private lake located near the town of Hedgesville in Berkeley County, West Virginia. The lake is an impo… |