Rutherford County, North Carolina – An extensive post-storm cleanup effort at Lake Lure in western North Carolina has unearthed remarkable pieces of local history that had previously been hidden beneath the surface of the man-made lake.
The town of Lake Lure, in collaboration with the United States Army Corps of Engineers and private contractors, has launched a large-scale restoration project to clear sediment and debris left behind by Hurricane Helene in September 2024.
As part of the effort, officials drained much of the nearly 800-acre reservoir, revealing parts of the lakebed that had not been visible since the area was first inundated in the 1920s.
Among the most surprising discoveries were a 1920s-era Model T-style truck and a 32-foot wooden boat designed to serve as a water taxi during the region’s early development.
“This is the first time the lake has been this low since it was first filled nearly a century ago,” said Jake Mohl, owner of Lake Lure Dock Company, which is currently repairing many of the lake’s docks and boathouses. “We’ve worked on this lake for decades, and we’re seeing things no one’s laid eyes on in generations.”
Mohl, who has shared photos of the discoveries with FOX Weather, says his team has found everything from sunken rowboats and large tree trunks to vehicle parts.
“The boat likely broke free during a storm and sank sometime after the Great Depression,” Mohl told me.
The Tanner family, one of the region’s original developers, owned the name “Pooh Bear,” which is still visible on the vessel’s side.
The boat was originally purchased to serve as a water taxi, but plans for commercial use were abandoned, and it vanished in the 1950s.
Nearby, crews discovered what appears to be a Model T-style truck, which was most likely abandoned when the lake was created in the 1920s.
Locals speculated that the vehicle became stuck in the mud or broke down and was simply left to be consumed by rising waters when a nearby dam was completed in 1926 and the lake filled a year later.
The discoveries come as contractors, such as the Lake Lure Dock Company, shift their focus from immediate recovery to the reconstruction of docks and other lake structures.
Many homes along the waterway appeared to be unaffected by Hurricane Helene, but boathouses and docks were severely damaged.
“It’s a dice roll out here,” Mohl said. “Some properties were completely wiped out.”
Treasure hunters hoping to explore the lakebed for themselves may be disappointed, as the area is still off-limits to the public for safety reasons.
Large construction equipment has been seen along the shoreline, and crews have already removed an estimated 376,000 tons of silt and 46,744 cubic yards of storm debris from the lake.
Town officials have yet to provide a firm timeline for when the project will be completed or how long it will take for the lake to refill, but locals are optimistic that Lake Lure will be restored to its former beauty by the summer of 2026.
