The earthen dam was initially constructed at a height of 70 feet (21 m) in 1910 and 1911 by the United States Bureau of Reclamation, during the first generation of the Bureau's activity, then raised in 1920 and reconstructed in 1969.

[1] Conconully Dam impounds Salmon Creek for flood control and irrigation storage, part of the larger Okanogan Project.

[2] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 6, 1974.

Both are owned by the Bureau and operated by the local Okanogan Irrigation District.

The Conconully Reservoir has a normal water surface area of 550 acres and a maximum storage capacity of 13,000 acre-feet.