Dunns Falls is a 45-foot man-made waterfall in Lauderdale County, Mississippi, the centerpiece of Dunn's Falls Water Park near Enterprise. The water pours off a bluff above the Chunky River beside a historic gristmill, and the park is run by the Pat Harrison Waterway District, a state agency.
The falls
The falls are artificial. The stream originally ran parallel to the Chunky River about 200 feet back from the bluffs until it was redirected to drive a mill, sending water over the cliff edge. Lidar surveys place the drop at 45 feet, though regional tourism accounts describe a 65-foot waterfall and earlier surveys listed 75 feet.
Getting there
The park is at 6890 Dunns Falls Road in Enterprise. The waterway district charges $5 for adults and $3 for children 2 to 12, with children under 2 admitted free and an annual day-use pass available for $75. Wooden stairs lead down to the river and the base of the falls.
When to go
The park is open daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. How the flow changes across seasons is not formally documented.
On site
A historic gristmill stands above the falls and houses a mill museum; its waterwheel no longer turns. The park also has a catfish pond, primitive camping and a cabin. In 2001 a visitor drowned while swimming across the mill pond.
History and name
The falls take their name from John Dunn, an Irish immigrant who diverted the stream to power a gristmill in the 1850s. The mill standing today is the Carroll-Richardson mill, relocated to the site from Cave Springs, Georgia.
Nearby
Rawson Gully Falls, on Rawson Creek, is about 19.6 miles away and is the only other recorded waterfall in the county.
Distances are straight-line.