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Named event or history

Water for the towns: University Lake, the 1976–77 drought, and OWASA

Chapel Hill’s reservoir of 1932, the water crisis of 1976–77, the creation of the Orange Water and Sewer Authority in 1977, and the reservoir fight that followed at Cane Creek.

In briefThe University dammed Morgan Creek in 1932 to create University Lake. Droughts in 1968 and 1976–77 forced rationing and purchases from Durham, and on February 16, 1977 the Orange Water and Sewer Authority, organized by the county and both towns, took over the university and town systems. A long fight over a Cane Creek reservoir followed.

87 indexed works are connected with this event.

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Fishing at sunrise on University Lake, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro reservoir of 1932
Fishing at sunrise on University Lake, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro reservoir of 1932

Indexed works

Related works found in catalogs and archives across North Carolina. Each links to the institution that holds or provides it.

Narrow these works. Each link opens the search already limited to this event. Counts are indexed works, not copies on a shelf; a work can carry more than one period or place.

Material

Periodicals 12Photographs & portraits 11Biography 8Interviews 8Maps 3other types 2

Period

19th century 320th century 9

Place

Orange County 60North Carolina (statewide) 43Chapel Hill 32Cane Creek 21Carrboro 7University Lake 6

Oral history interview with Nancy Holt, October 27, 1985: interview K-0010, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)

Holt, Nancy · 2007 · University Library, UNC-Chapel Hill

Raised in Orange County's Cane Creek community, Nancy Holt became one of its organizers when the Orange Water and Sewer Authority planned a reservoir there. Interviewed alongside Brian Holt by Frances E. Webb in October 1985, she describes farm life, the school and church that held the community together, how scattered neighbors cooperated, and the environmental and social costs residents expected from the reservoir. Runs about two and a half hours; electronic edition from the UNC library, 2007, through Documenting the American South.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the NC Cardinal record: Cane Creek Reservoir (N.C.).

NC Cardinal UNC

Oral history interview with Sam Crawford, October 26, 1985: interview K-0006, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)

Crawford, Sam · 2007 · University Library, UNC-Chapel Hill

Sam Crawford (born 1949) helped found Cane Creek Conservation Authority, the residents' group formed in 1975 to fight plans by OWASA, the Chapel Hill area's water utility, for a reservoir on Cane Creek in rural Orange County. In this October 1985 interview with Judith Wheeler, joined by Patty Crawford, he recounts how residents learned of the plan and organized, and the environmental and water-supply arguments on each side. A little over two hours; electronic edition from the UNC library, 2007, through Documenting the American South.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the NC Cardinal record: Cane Creek Reservoir (N.C.).

NC Cardinal UNC

Oral history interview with Elizabeth Brooks, October 2, 1974: interview E-0058, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)

Brooks, Elizabeth · 2006 · University Library, UNC-Chapel Hill

Elizabeth Brooks, a cafeteria worker at UNC and a leader of the 1969 food workers' strike, speaks in a Southern Oral History Program interview recorded October 2, 1974, by Beverly Jones. Born in Caswell County, Brooks had made her home in Hillsborough since 1949 and raised nine children before her first paid job, at the university. She describes the strike, the Black Student Movement's support for the workers, and the response of Governor Robert W. Scott. Published online in 2006 in Documenting the American South.

Why this is here: The record names this subject alongside a heading for the county or its towns.

NC Cardinal UNC

Oral history interview with Bobby Kirk, October 28, 1985: Interview K-0013, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)

Kirk, Bobby · 2005 · University Library, UNC-Chapel Hill

Dairy farmer Bobby Kirk, who led the conservation authority formed at Cane Creek, describes the fight against the Cane Creek Reservoir, proposed for southwestern Orange County. In this Southern Oral History Program interview, recorded October 28, 1985, by K. Campbell, Kirk explains why he and neighboring farmers opposed the project, how residents first organized against it, and his view that the reservoir was badly planned. Just over an hour long. Published online in 2005 by the UNC-Chapel Hill Library in Documenting the American South.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the UNC record: Cane Creek Reservoir (N.C.).

NC Cardinal UNC

Oral history interview with Dr. Daniel Okun, October 22, 1985: Interview K-0021, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)

Okun, Daniel Alexander · 2004 · University Library, UNC-Chapel Hill

The case for the Cane Creek Reservoir, made by Daniel A. Okun, professor of environmental engineering at UNC, in a Southern Oral History Program interview recorded October 22, 1985, by Laura Drey. Okun sets out why a new reservoir was needed in Orange County and answers the Cane Creek farmers' objections on water quality and watershed management. It pairs with interviews of opponents Bobby Kirk and Edward S. Johnson. Published online in 2004 by the UNC-Chapel Hill Library in Documenting the American South.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the UNC record: Cane Creek Reservoir (N.C.).

NC Cardinal UNC

Oral history interview with Edward S. Johnson, October 28, 1985: Interview K-0012, Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)

Johnson, Edward S. · 2004 · University Library, UNC-Chapel Hill

Edward S. Johnson (1933-2022) recounts the organized effort to stop OWASA, the Orange County water utility, from damming Cane Creek for a reservoir, in a 40-minute Southern Oral History Program interview recorded October 28, 1985, by Patricia E. Sloan. Johnson describes how neighbors came together into a coherent opposition, the questions of eminent domain raised by the taking of farmland, and the environmental review of the project. Published online in 2004 by the UNC-Chapel Hill Library in Documenting the American South.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the NC Cardinal record: Cane Creek Reservoir (N.C.).

NC Cardinal UNC
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Oral history interview with Joe Herzenberg, November 18, 1985: Interview K-0008. Southern Oral History Program Collection (#4007)

Herzenberg, Joseph A. · 2004 · University Library, UNC-Chapel Hill

Joseph A. Herzenberg (1941-2007), later a Chapel Hill Town Council member, was interviewed by Mary Dexter in November 1985 about the Cane Creek reservoir fight. OWASA, the water and sewer utility serving Chapel Hill, proposed damming Cane Creek in rural Orange County, and residents there organized against it. Herzenberg supports the reservoir and discusses the local politics and water-supply questions behind the dispute. About an hour and a half; electronic edition from the UNC library, 2004, through Documenting the American South.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the NC Cardinal record: Cane Creek Reservoir (N.C.).

NC Cardinal UNC

A pocket guide to University Lake

1997

A pocket guide to University Lake issued by the Orange Water and Sewer Authority in Carrboro, eleven unnumbered pages with illustrations and a map, 18 centimeters. Dated 1997, though one page carries the notation 7/84. The guide describes the lake as a water source for Carrboro, Chapel Hill and Orange County.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the UNC record: University Lake (N.C.).

UNC

Optimization of the operation of a multiple reservoir system using 0,1 mixed integer programming

Speight, Vanessa · 1994

Vanessa Speight's master's report in environmental engineering, submitted to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1994 and approved by Donald T. Lauria, Donald E. Francisco and Philip C. Singer. It applies 0,1 mixed integer programming to the operation of a multiple reservoir system, with the Orange Water and Sewer Authority's reservoirs in Orange County as the case, on water supply and theoretical models.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the UNC record: Orange Water and Sewer Authority (N.C.).

UNC

Comments on North Carolina Division of Environmental Management's environmental impact statement for Cane Creek water supply reservoir

Orange Water and Sewer Authority · 1982 · OWASA

The Orange Water and Sewer Authority's formal comments on the state Division of Environmental Management's environmental impact statement for the Cane Creek reservoir, the water supply built in western Orange County. Transmitted under a letter dated June 1, 1982, the volume covers reservoirs, water supply and water quality management in the county, with maps. Published by OWASA in Carrboro, one volume in various pagings.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the UNC record: Cane Creek Reservoir (N.C.).

UNC

Draft Cane Creek EIS

1982

A draft environmental impact statement from 1982 on the Cane Creek Reservoir, the water-supply impoundment proposed for Cane Creek in southwestern Orange County near the Alamance line. Prepared by the Division of Environmental Management of the state Department of Natural Resources and Community Development, it runs 144 pages in various pagings with illustrations, maps, bibliographies and an index. Topics include reservoirs, water supply and environmental impact analysis for Orange County.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the UNC record: Cane Creek Reservoir (N.C.).

NC Cardinal UNC

Report and recommendations : Carrboro, North Carolina : November, 1982

Carrboro Water Quality Task Force · 1982 · The Task Force

Report and recommendations of the Carrboro Water Quality Task Force, presented in November 1982. Topics include water quality, water quality management and water supply in Carrboro, so the document belongs with the town's planning record from the early 1980s. One volume of various pagings with maps, issued by the task force itself.

Why this is here: Catalog heading in the UNC record: Water-supply -- North Carolina -- Carrboro.

UNC

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In the chronology

Episodes in this history, earliest first. Each has its own page.

Cane Creek Reservoir and Bingham Township1961 to 1989 · 20 events · From the first engineering studies of 1961 to the filling of the reservoir in 1989: OWASA's Cane Creek Reservoir, the watershed land purchases, and the Bingham Township farm families displaced.

Other dated events here, earliest first. See these 33 dated events in the chronology →

  1. The legislature funds university waterworks on Bowlin's Creek The General Assembly of 1899 gave $7,500 for university waterworks, with steam pumps on Bowlin's Creek about a mile and a half from the campus filling a tall tank that fed the buildings by gravity. The supply still fell short.Documenting the American South: Kemp P. Battle, History of the University of North Carolina, vol. II (1912), p. 571
  2. Fire destroys the Chapel Hill waterworks station The pumping station that supplied water to the university and the town of Chapel Hill burned early on November 20, cause unknown, with a loss of $700 to $1,000 and no insurance. The water supply was cut off until a temporary pump was put in.Orange County Observer (Hillsborough), November 24, 1904, p. 3
  3. Drought shrinks the University's water supply and delays the fall opening After four hot, dry months Strowd's Creek, the main water source, had dwindled, and plants in the arboretum died. On local health officials' advice Chase asked students not to arrive before October 4, when a temporary six-inch line to Morgan's Creek was due to be ready. People: Harry Woodburn ChaseHoward E. Covington Jr., Fire and Stone: The Making of the University of North Carolina under Presidents Edward Kidder Graham and Harry Woodburn Chase (2018), p. 243
  4. University Lake begins supplying Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina dammed Morgan Creek west of Carrboro to form University Lake, which began supplying water to the university and to Chapel Hill. The lake and about 500 acres of surrounding land remain in university ownership, with OWASA entitled to use the lake under contract.Orange Water and Sewer Authority: Capital Improvements Program Book FY24-28
  5. University Lake's spillway is partly filled to raise the lake a foot To add storage for the growing demands of the University, Chapel Hill and Carrboro, the main spillway of University Lake was partly filled to raise the water a foot. A 1955 account noted that silt had cut the Morgan Creek inlet from six or seven feet deep to two or three since about 1948.The News of Orange County (Hillsborough), September 29, 1955, p. 8
  6. UNC considers the Jordan Reservoir for its water and Okun argues for Cane Creek While Okun was on sabbatical in 1961 the university began considering the Jordan Reservoir as a water source; on his return he persuaded the board that Cane Creek, which his students had studied in the 1950s, was the better site.Search the index · The Carolina Story: Cane Creek Reservoir (Water at UNC-Chapel Hill)
  7. The Association for the Preservation of the Eno River Valley forms Residents who had begun organizing in 1965 against plans to dam the Eno for a water-supply reservoir formed the Association for the Preservation of the Eno River Valley on October 14, 1966. Led by Margaret and Holger Nygard, it began the campaign that preserved the river corridor in Durham and Orange counties. People: Margaret Nygard, Holger NygardEno River Association: ERA Through the Eras, Beginnings of the Eno River Association
  8. Drought drops University Lake to a sixth of its normal level and forces water rationing With the lake nearly empty, the university spent about $100,000 on a pipe connecting Chapel Hill to Durham's water system and bought Durham water. Lawn watering and car washing were banned under penalty of fine, and there was concern that classes would be suspended before levels recovered by the end of 1969. People: J. Carlyle SittersonCarolina Story, Virtual Museum of University History (UNC): Droughts, 1960s-1970s
  9. Engineering study for UNC recommends a reservoir on Cane Creek After the 1968 drought left University Lake dangerously low, a study sponsored by the University of North Carolina and conducted by the engineering firm Hazen and Sawyer recommended damming Cane Creek. The Haw River, the proposed Jordan reservoir, an enlarged University Lake and the Eno were among the alternatives set aside. People: Daniel A. OkunCaselaw Access Project: In re Appeal from Environmental Management Commission, 53 N.C. App. 135 (1981)
  10. The governor appoints a commission to study the future of the university's water and sewer systems Governor Robert W. Scott named a Utilities Study Commission to weigh whether the University of North Carolina should keep, sell or otherwise dispose of the water and sewer systems it operated for Chapel Hill and Carrboro. On May 28, 1976 the commission concluded that divesting most of the university's utility holdings was the best course. People: Robert W. ScottOrange Water and Sewer Authority: Learn (History of OWASA)
  11. Orange County and the towns of Chapel Hill and Carrboro create the Orange Water and Sewer Authority The Orange County Board of Commissioners and the governing boards of Chapel Hill and Carrboro incorporated OWASA under Chapter 162A of the North Carolina General Statutes. It was created as a public body to acquire, consolidate and operate the three existing water and sewer systems serving the area.Orange Water and Sewer Authority: Annual Comprehensive Financial Report, fiscal year 2024
  12. Cane Creek is chosen as the site of a new reservoir and area landowners organize against it A consultant's feasibility study concluded that Cane Creek, west of Carrboro, was the best site for a reservoir to supplement University Lake, and OWASA began assembling land there. Cane Creek residents and farmers formed a conservation group and fought the project in court for years, arguing that it would destroy farms and hasten the decline of agriculture and that expanding University Lake had not been properly considered. People: Daniel A. OkunANCHOR, A North Carolina History Online Resource: Cane Creek Reservoir
Show all 33 dated events
  1. The state approves conveying the university's water and wastewater systems to OWASA The Governor and Council of State approved the conveyance of the University of North Carolina's water and wastewater utilities to OWASA under Agreements of Sale and Purchase among the university, the two towns and the authority. The university's Board of Trustees had approved the conveyance on June 11, 1976.Orange Water and Sewer Authority: Comprehensive Annual Financial Report, fiscal year 2007
  2. Severe drought creates a local water crisis A drought from August 1976 to January 1977 forced Chapel Hill and UNC to buy more water from Durham, ban unnecessary water use and cut campus services. By August 1977 University Lake was lower still, and the new Orange Water and Sewer Authority kept conservation rules and used federal drought aid to buy Durham water.Daily Tar Heel, August 25, 1977, p. 63: Droughts not new to Chapel Hill
  3. UNC trustees approve a Cane Creek pipeline on OWASA's recommendation With University Lake 64 inches below capacity, the UNC Board of Trustees approved an $824,450 pipeline and small temporary dam to draw water from Cane Creek, described as a step toward the planned reservoir. OWASA, due to take over the University water system in January 1977, recommended the Cane Creek project over alternatives that included pumping raw water from the Haw River to a treatment plant.Daily Tar Heel (DigitalNC): Board of Trustees approve $824,000 pipeline from Cane Creek, October 11, 1976
  4. Orange Grove residents form the Cane Creek Conservation Authority Farm families around Cane Creek organized the Cane Creek Conservation Authority to stop the dam and elected 23-year-old dairy farmer Bobby Kirk president; the group had about 100 active members and said 12 dairy farms would be affected. It argued that the reservoir would end farming in the area, that owners had not been consulted, and that Jordan Lake and other sources were alternatives. People: Bobby KirkDaily Tar Heel (DigitalNC): Area groups opposed to planned Cane Creek reservoir, December 6, 1976
  5. OWASA commenced operations, taking over the water and sewer systems of Chapel Hill, Carrboro, and the university The three separately owned systems serving the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill and Carrboro were transferred to the Orange Water and Sewer Authority, which began serving the whole Carrboro and Chapel Hill community as a single public utility that day.Orange Water and Sewer Authority: Learn (History of OWASA)
  6. Court of Appeals lets OWASA survey Cane Creek land over owners' objections Landowners including the estate of Nancy Armstrong had refused OWASA's surveyors access to the dam site. After a trial court ordered access on April 28, 1977, the N.C. Court of Appeals held that the authority could enter and survey before starting eminent domain proceedings.Caselaw Access Project: Orange Water & Sewer Authority v. Estate of Armstrong, 34 N.C. App. 162 (1977)
  7. OWASA asks the state for power to condemn Cane Creek land OWASA petitioned the N.C. Environmental Management Commission for a certificate authorizing eminent domain for the Cane Creek reservoir, which would need about 700 acres of mostly woodland and prime farmland. The commission held a seven-day hearing between April and June 1978.Caselaw Access Project: In re Appeal from Environmental Management Commission, 53 N.C. App. 135 (1981)
  8. State commission overrules its hearing panel and backs condemnation A three-member Environmental Management Commission panel recommended in March 1979 that OWASA be denied the certificate, but the full commission adopted the minority report and granted it. The Daily Tar Heel reported this was the first time the full commission had gone against a panel's recommendation.Daily Tar Heel (DigitalNC): Dam delayed in planning stages, August 2, 1979
  9. Army Corps of Engineers issues the federal permit for the Cane Creek dam The Corps' district engineer issued OWASA a Clean Water Act Section 404 permit to place fill for the dam on the same day the Court of Appeals voided the state certificate. The permit was set to expire on August 31, 1982 unless construction had begun.Caselaw Access Project: Cane Creek Conservation Authority v. Orange Water and Sewer Authority, 590 F. Supp. 1123 (M.D.N.C. 1984)
  10. Court of Appeals throws out the state's approval of the Cane Creek project On appeal by the Cane Creek Conservation Authority, several landowners and Teer Farms, the N.C. Court of Appeals vacated the commission's certificate, which Wake County Superior Court had upheld on March 5, 1980. It held that the decision needed an environmental impact statement under the state Environmental Policy Act and a review of the whole record, and sent the case back to the commission.Caselaw Access Project: In re Appeal from Environmental Management Commission, 53 N.C. App. 135 (1981)
  11. Opponents sue in federal court, arguing the dam permit has lapsed The Cane Creek Conservation Authority filed suit in U.S. District Court claiming OWASA's Corps permit expired on August 31, 1982 because no fill had actually been placed at the site. OWASA said its preliminary work before the deadline kept the permit valid. People: Sam CrawfordDaily Tar Heel (DigitalNC): Fights on to stop OWASA dam, October 20, 1982
  12. OWASA agrees to buy the Stanford dairy farm at the dam site The same day the commission ruled, OWASA agreed to buy 267 acres of the dam site from dairy farmers William and Joyce Stanford for about $1.28 million, bringing it to 60 percent of the 728 acres it needed. Between 20 and 25 of the 48 affected landowners had sold by then.Daily Tar Heel (DigitalNC): OWASA buys 60 percent of land needed for Cane Creek reservoir, October 18, 1983
  13. State commission grants OWASA condemnation power for the third time After a second hearing in late 1982, the Environmental Management Commission reissued OWASA's certificate in March 1983, a Wake County Superior Court judge sent it back, and on October 13 the commission reinstated OWASA's power of eminent domain. Mike Teer, by then president of the Cane Creek Conservation Authority, said the group would appeal.Daily Tar Heel (DigitalNC): OWASA wins Cane Creek right, October 14, 1983
  14. OWASA buys out most of the Cane Creek landowners By April 1986 OWASA owned 48 of the 50 parcels needed for the reservoir, almost all bought through negotiated sales. Sam Crawford recalled an opening offer of $500 an acre that rose to about $3,500 to $3,600, and that his family lost 50 acres, including their biggest field. People: Sam CrawfordDaily Tar Heel (DigitalNC): N.C. Court of Appeals upholds (Valerie Stegall), April 4, 1986
  15. Federal court dismisses the opponents' permit suits for lack of standing The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of North Carolina dismissed the two suits brought by the Cane Creek Conservation Authority and Teer Farms, finding they alleged only a general fear of environmental loss rather than a direct injury. The court noted that OWASA had so far acquired all its land through voluntary purchases.Caselaw Access Project: Cane Creek Conservation Authority v. Orange Water and Sewer Authority, 590 F. Supp. 1123 (M.D.N.C. 1984)
  16. Cane Creek Conservation Authority members go to the General Assembly to oppose an OWASA bill Fifteen members of the Cane Creek Conservation Authority traveled to the legislature to oppose a bill OWASA sought to settle its outstanding court cases and widen its authority.Search the index · Documenting the American South: Oral history interview with Sam Crawford, October 26, 1985 (K-0006)
  17. OWASA builds a temporary impoundment on Cane Creek During a water shortage OWASA built a temporary impoundment at the Cane Creek site as an emergency water source, while the permanent dam was still being designed.Daily Tar Heel (DigitalNC): Amy Weisner on the Cane Creek Reservoir, April 13, 1988
  18. Court of Appeals upholds OWASA's right to condemn the Teer land The N.C. Court of Appeals affirmed the commission's 1983 certificate against an appeal by the Cane Creek Conservation Authority and Teer Farms, ruling among other points that water quality was a proper factor. The Daily Tar Heel reported that the case turned on two parcels owned by dairy farmer Thomas Teer, the last two of the 50 parcels OWASA needed.Caselaw Access Project: In re Appeal from Environmental Management Commission, 80 N.C. App. 1 (1986)
  19. OWASA breaks ground for the Cane Creek dam OWASA held a groundbreaking for the Cane Creek Reservoir, designed by Hazen and Sawyer: a 72-foot-high, 1,350-foot earthen dam on a 760-acre site, with a 480-acre lake holding 3 billion gallons. Completion was scheduled for June 1989.Daily Tar Heel (DigitalNC): Scott Greig on the Cane Creek groundbreaking, January 26, 1987
  20. Cane Creek Reservoir is filled OWASA completed and filled the reservoir on Cane Creek west of Carrboro, adding roughly three billion gallons of storage drawn from a 32 square mile drainage area. Before it came online OWASA's estimated dependable yield was about two million gallons a day, and the 1980s had brought repeated mandatory restrictions and purchases of water from neighboring utilities.Orange Water and Sewer Authority: Asset Management Plan, FY2020
  21. Reviewers deny the OWASA Jones Ferry Road water plant a place on the Study List The Orange Water and Sewer Authority's Jones Ferry Road Water Treatment Plant was among five central region requests on July 10, 1997. Staff recommended denial because of modern alterations, and the committee accepted the staff recommendations without separate discussion of the plant.NC State Historic Preservation Office: National Register Advisory Committee agendas, minutes and approved lists, p. 737

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Picture: Fishing at sunrise on University Lake, the Chapel Hill-Carrboro reservoir of 1932. CC BY-SA 2.0. Photograph by Larry Lamb; via Wikimedia Commons

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