Near Sardis in Panola County, Mississippi — The American South (East South Central)

Sardis Dam

Photographed by Mark Parker, November 5, 2020

1. Sardis Dam Marker. Sardis Lake is in the background

Inscription. Authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1936 and built by the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers, Sardis Dam began operation in October 1940. Located on the Little Tallahatchie River, the dam contains 16,500,000 cubic yards of material and controls a drainage basin of 1,545 square miles. Using the hydraulic-fill method for construction, the dredge Pontotoc pumped soil from below the dam creating the 472-acre Lower Lake. At 15,300 feet long and 97 feet high, it is the last major hydraulic-fill dam built in the U.S.

Erected 2004 by Mississippi Department of Archives and History.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Man-Made Features • Waterways & Vessels. A significant historical month for this entry is October 1940.

Location. 34° 24.09′ N, 89° 47.19′ W. Marker is near Sardis, Mississippi, in Panola County. It is on Scenic Mississippi Route 315 north of Route 35. The marker is at the Arty R. Tapp Overlook. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Sardis MS 38666, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in the American South,

specifically in the Deep

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South,

and in the Mississippi Delta.

Globally, it is in North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 11 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Andrew Johnson (Anders Jönssen) (approx. 7.6 miles away); Sardis (approx. 7.9 miles away); Archeology (approx. 8.6 miles away); The History (approx. 8.6 miles away); Discovery (approx. 8.6 miles away); Batesville Mounds (approx. 8.7 miles away); Bates House (approx. 10.9 miles away); Batesville (approx. 11.1 miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Sardis.

Sardis Lake from the overlook image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Mark Parker, November 5, 2020

2. Sardis Lake from the overlook

Credits. This page was last revised on March 2, 2025. It was originally submitted on March 1, 2025, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. This page has been viewed 185 times since then and 30 times this year. Photos: 1, 2. submitted on March 1, 2025, by Mark Parker of Hickory, North Carolina. • James Hulse was the editor who published this page.