Tuttle Creek Lake was authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1938 with construction starting on October 7, 1952 by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The main feature that creates this lake on the Big Blue River is the dam, which is constructed of approximately 21,000,000 cubic yards of earth and rock fill. Final closure of the dam was completed on July 20, 1959 and the normal pool elevation (1,075.0 feet) of the lake behind the dam was first reached on April 29, 1963.