The Wanaque Reservoir

Panoramic view, August 14, 1921, of the former location of the south end of Hook Road (now under water) during the Wanaque Reservoir construction. Source: Wanaque Borough, Golden Jubilee, 1993.

The Wanaque Reservoir is located in northeastern Passaic County in the Boroughs of Ringwood and Wanaque. The reservoir was created by damming the Wanaque River and its tributaries, all of which are part of the northern New Jersey’s Passaic Watershed, creating a body of water with 2,310 acres of water surface and capturing 29.6 billion gallons of water. Constructed between 1920 and 1928, the Wanaque Reservoir includes not only the reservoir but a collection of buildings, structures, and features that together comprise the reservoir complex.

View of the Wanaque Reservoir during construction circa 1916-1921. Note all of the property shown here were demolished for construction. This is presently under water. On file at the Ringwood Public Library, Ringwood, Passaic County, NJ. Source: Unknown

The Wanaque Reservoir Complex consists of the Raymond Dam, the Wolf Den Dam, the Green Swamp Dam Nos. 1, 2, 3, & 4, the Furnace Road Dam, the Midvale Dam, the Upper Gate House, the Lower Gate House, the Administration Building, the Control House, the Pump House, the Aeration Pond, the Cascades, the Surge Tank, the Overflow Weir, the Overflow Channel, the Wanaque Reservoir, and the West Brook Road Bridge.