Lewisville Lake

Infobox lake
lake_name = Lewisville Lake
image_lake = USACE Lewisville Lake and Dam.jpg
caption_lake = Aerial view of Lewisville Lake and Dam
image_bathymetry =
caption_bathymetry =
location = North Texas
coords = coord|33|6|3|N|96|57|50|W|type:waterbody_region:US-TX|display=inline,title
type = reservoir
inflow =
outflow =
catchment =
basin_countries = United States
length =
width =
area = 29,592 acres (120 km²)
depth =
max-depth = 67 ft (20 m)
volume =
residence_time =
shore =
elevation =
islands =
cities =
frozen =

Lewisville Lake is a man-made freshwater lake located in North Texas (USA) on the Elm Fork of the Trinity River in Denton County near Lewisville. The lake is primarily used recreationally for boating and watercraft, however, it was built for flood control purposes and to serve as a water source for Dallas and its suburbs.

History

Lewisville Lake is the second lake to impound the waters of the Elm Fork of the Trinity River in this area. The first lake, Lake Dallas, was constructed in the 1920s by the W.E. Callahan construction Company for the City of Dallas at a cost of $3 million. The dam, completed in 1927, was built near the village of Garza and named the Garza Dam. This dam was convert|10890|ft|m long with a convert|567|ft|m|sing=on long service spillway. Lake Dallas, with its convert|194000|acre feet|sing=on capacity and forty-three miles of shoreline, served as the principal municipal water source for the city of Dallas for 31 years. [ [http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/LL/rolac.html Texas Handbook Online] ]

In the 1940s, a need for increased water storage capacity and additional flood control became apparent. The United States Congress passed the River and Harbor Act of 1945 and called for additional construction in the Trinity River basin. The Corps began construction of a new lake in 1948 that would not only incorporate Lake Dallas, but also impound Hickory Creek to the West, and Stewart, Panther, Cottonwood, Doe Branch, and Little Elm Creeks to the East.

The convert|33000|ft|m|sing=on long Lewisville Dam was completed in 1955 at a cost of $21 million, and the old Garza Dam at Lake Dallas was breached in 1957 creating the new lake, known then as Garza-Little Elm Reservoir. This new lake had one hundred eighty-three miles of shoreline and a convert|436000|acre feet|sing=on capacity. [ [http://www.swf-wc.usace.army.mil/lewisville/Information/History.asp Army Corps of Engineers] ]

The breaching of the Garza Dam and incorporation of Lake Dallas into the Garza-Little Elm reservoir led to confusion concerning the lake's legal name. This was compounded by the Village of Garza renaming itself the City of Lake Dallas. The federal government attempted to rename the lake as Lewisville Reservoir in 1960 only to reverse itself in 1961. The confusion persisted until the mid-1970s when the lake was officially designated Lewisville Lake. [ [http://www.town-mall.net/lakes/lakelewisville.html Town Mall] ]

About

It is generally murky with extremely low visibility. The water by the dam is clear with a visibility of 2 to 3 feet (~1 m).

The lake has many facilities for overnight camping and fishing—the black bass lake record was broken three times in 2006.

Statistics

*Shoreline length: 183 miles (295 km)
*Date impounded: 1954
*Conservation pool elevation: 522 feet (159 m) msl
*Flood pool elevation: 532 feet (162 m) msl
* Top of Dam elevation: convert|537|ft|m
*Operated by: United States Army Corps of Engineers

Recreation

The lake is very close to a large population base in the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex, so during the summer months, the lake can become extremely crowded, creating optimal conditions for boating accidents. For a number of years Lewisville Lake was ranked the most dangerous lake in Texas due to the number of accidents and fatalities which occurred. Most of the fatalities are from individuals enjoying the day at the many parks around the lake and going too far out in the water. The number of actual boating accidents on the lake is fairly low. Adding to the danger for boats and other recreational watercraft, the lake contains numerous shallow areas with exposed and submerged trunks and other water hazards. Other recreation around the lake also includes a few areas for public hunting of water fowl and feral hogs (archery only).

There are four marinas based on the lake and two bars.

Party Cove located in near the old dam is home to the weekend revelers.

In 2005 Lake Lewisville hosted it's first large scale bass tournament, The Bassmasters's Elite 50, Kevin Vandamn took home 1st place and a check for $100,000. He also caught, at the time, the lake record bass at convert|11|lb|3|oz|kg. The Woman's Bassmaster Tour was held in April of 2008 with angler Kim Bain winning, taking home $51,000 in cash and prizes.

Transportation

There are two bridges that currently cross the lake. The main bridge is on Interstate 35E, which crosses the lake on its western finger and is a notorious traffic bottleneck during rush hour. The other current bridge is on the eastern finger of the Lake through Little Elm, connecting two halves of Farm to Market Road 720, locally known as Eldorado Parkway.

The Lewisville Lake Toll Bridge, currently under construction, will be a toll bridge connecting Little Elm via Eldorado Parkway and Interstate 35E near Swisher Road.

Cities named after the lake

Three cities surrounding Lewisville Lake have their names linked to various names of the lake: Lake Dallas, Little Elm, and Lewisville.

ee also

* Grapevine Lake

References

External links

History
* [http://texashistory.unt.edu/data/UNT/Maps/upl-meta-pth-2455/44490113.jpgUNT - 1940 Map of Lake Dallas]
* [http://www.swf-wc.usace.army.mil/lewisville/Lewisville_Lake.htm US Army Corps of Engineers]
*Handbook of Texas|id=LL/rolac|name=Lewisville Lake

Recreation
* [http://www.tpwd.state.tx.us/fishboat/fish/recreational/lakes/lewisville/ Texas Parks and Wildlife Lake Info]
* [http://www.dallasyachtclub.com Dallas Yacht Club]
* [http://www.llsailingclub.org Lewisville Lake Sailing Club]
* [http://www.pier121yachtclub.org Pier 121 Yacht Club]
* [http://www.dcyc.org Dallas Corinthian Yacht Club]
*gnis|1385437