In the 1920s, the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and the State of California first surveyed the area for suitable reservoir sites to provide irrigation water.

[6] In 1948, with plans for the dam on the Kaweah River nearly complete, an archaeological survey of the future reservoir site revealed an unusually rich selection of Native American artifacts.

[12] In the 1990s the USACE began studies for a project to increase the capacity of the dam's spillway, which was considered inadequate to pass the probable maximum flood on the Kaweah River.

[19] Snowmelt runoff stored in Lake Kaweah are released at high rates between May and late July-early August during the peak of the irrigation season.

[20][21] The dam also generates hydroelectricity from a plant built in 1992 by the Kaweah River Power Authority (KRPA), which is jointly managed by TID and KDWCD.

[23] In February 2020, the KRPA filed to transfer their operating license to Eagle Creek Renewable Energy, the US subsidiary of Ontario Power Generation.