Largest lakes & reservoirs in Southern Virginia Region by water volume
The estimated volume of water that a lake contains is measured at the lake’s normal elevation. By this measure, the world’s largest freshwater lake is Siberia’s Lake Baikal.Water Volume can be measured in acre-feet, in cubic miles, or in cubic kilometers. One acre-foot is the amount of water needed to cover one acre (43,560 square feet) to a depth of one foot. One cubic mile equals 3,379,200 acre-feet. One cubic kilometer equals 810,713 acre-feet. 1 acre-foot is equal to 325,851 US gallons. Siberia’s Lake Baikal contains about 6,276,367,740,000,000 gallons of freshwater – nearly 1 million gallons for every living person on earth.
The other – and more widely used – measure of a lake’s size is the lake’s surface acreage. By that measure, the world’s largest freshwater lake is North America’s Lake Superior.
Note: In the United States, an acre foot is a unit of volume used to refer to large-scale bodies of water. It is defined by the volume of water needed to cover 1 acre of surface area to a depth of 1 foot.
You can find many of the the world’s largest lakes (by water volume) on LakeLubbers. Note: For some lakes, the water volume data is unknown or does not apply, so you may see fewer lakes than the total 6 articles we have published for Southern Virginia Region lakes.
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Below are lakes within USA > US South Region > Virginia > Southern Virginia Region > Compared by water volume. This list does not represent all lakes in Southern Virginia Region, only the 6 Southern Virginia Region lake articles we have published on the LakeLubbers website.
Lake name  |
Water vol. in ac-ft |
Lake description |
|---|---|---|
| Kerr Lake, NC/VA (North Carolina, Piedmont Region, NC, Southern Virginia Region, US South Region, USA, Virginia) |
3,364,500 ac-ft | (Also known as Kerr Reservoir, John H Kerr Reservoir, Buggs Island Lake, Buggs Island Reservoir) The 48,900-acre John H. Kerr Reservoir straddles the Virginia-North Carolina border. This impoundment of the Roanoke and Dan Rivers, completed by the… |
| Smith Mountain Lake, VA (Blue Ridge Highlands, VA, Central Virginia, Southern Virginia Region, US South Region, USA, Virginia) |
1,140,000 ac-ft | (Also known as Jewel of the Blue Ridge) With emerald green shores, sapphire blue skies, topaz blue waters, and soaring surrounding mountains, it’s clear why Smith Mountain Lake is nicknamed… |
| Lake Gaston, NC/VA (North Carolina, Piedmont Region, NC, Southern Virginia Region, US South Region, USA, Virginia) |
450,000 ac-ft | Lake Gaston covers 20,300 acres along 34 miles of Virginia and North Carolina real estate. The lake was created in 1963 by the Virginia Electric and P… |
| Philpott Lake, VA (Blue Ridge Highlands, VA, Southern Virginia Region, US South Region, USA, Virginia) |
250,000 ac-ft | (Also known as Philpott Reservoir) Snuggled into the Blue Ridge Mountains, the 2,880-acre Philpott Lake resides in southwestern Virginia’s Franklin, Henry, and Patrick Counties. The irr… |
| Leesville Lake, VA (Central Virginia, Southern Virginia Region, US South Region, USA, Virginia) |
94,960 ac-ft | (Also known as Leesville Reservoir) The 3000+ acre Leesville Lake is another of Virginia’s prolific fishing and outdoor recreation reservoirs. It is part of the Smith Mountain Lake hydro… |
| Fairy Stone Lake (Southern Virginia Region, US South Region, USA, Virginia) |
3,360 ac-ft | Virginia’s Fairy Stone Lake is home to “fairy stones,” unusual staurolite (iron aluminum silicate hydroxide) diamond-shaped crystals. The 168-acre lak… |