It was created in 1979 when Georgia Power completed the construction of the Wallace Dam on the Oconee River.

[1] Lake Oconee serves as a reservoir for Georgia Power Company's Wallace Hydroelectric Plant.

The lake has 374 miles (602 km) of shoreline with a surface area of 19,971 acres (8,082 ha).

There are also senior living communities including Del Webb at Lake Oconee.

This article related to a protected area in the U.S state of Georgia is a stub.