Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

The dam of Lake des Settons, located at Montsauche-les-Settons in Morvan, was built between 1854 and 1858 under the impulse of André Dupin, MP for Nièvre. Intended to regulate the navigation on the Yonne and facilitate the flotation of the wood towards Paris, this 20 m high dam, built in granite blocks, was a colossal undertaking for the time. The stones, towed by oxen from the Breuil-Chenu forest at 15 km, formed a pyramidal structure of 267 m long, based on the principle of "force dams". The 366-hectare artificial lake, fed by the Cure, became a key reservoir to avoid the floods of the Seine.

Inaugurated in 1858 and blessed by the Vicar General of Nevers, Pierre-Louis-Marie Cortet, the dam swallowed up several buildings, including mills still visible during the ten-year emptyings. By 1861, additional work was needed to strengthen the structure, attacked by the waters. The lake lost its main function around 1920 with the decline of the wood flotation, replaced by coal. Ranked in 1937, it became a place of leisure in the 1950s, with the opening of campsites and hotels, before facing ecological challenges (eutrophication) in the 1980s.

The dam, of the "mass in masonry" type, includes a 271 m dyke and a guard wall added in 1905 after the rupture of the Bouzey dam (Vosges). The manoeuvring chamber, located above the water intake tower, controls the valves and the 35 drainage wells. Downstream, fish tanks (1880) and a landscape park were built. The house of the guard, built in 1848 to house the engineers, now houses the tourist office, while the house of the cantoner, unoccupied, bears witness to the industrial history of the site.

Lake des Settons, vidangé every ten years (as in 2008), is now a tourist hub offering sailing, fishing, hiking and water skiing. Its fish habitat, managed by a local association, is home to pike, trout and brook salmon. Mesolithic and neolithic remains, such as cut flints and a point of arrow, were discovered on Cerney Island, revealing an ancient occupation of the site. The dam, classified as a Historical Monument in 2024, remains a symbol of Morvan's industrial and natural heritage.

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