Tenkiller Ferry Lake

Tenkiller Ferry Lake, or more simply, Lake Tenkiller, is a reservoir in eastern Oklahoma formed by the damming of the Illinois River. The earth-fill dam was constructed between 1947 and 1952 by the United States Army Corps of Engineers for purposes of flood control, hydroelectric power generation, water supply and recreation. It went into full operation in 1953.<ref name="Warner">Warner, Badger and Lage, 1973.</ref> The lake and dam were named for the Tenkiller family, prominent Cherokees who owned the land and ferry that were bought for the project.<ref name="name">A Little History of the Tenkiller Lake Area. www.tenkiller.net Accessed May 4, 2013.</ref> The 6th largest lake in Oklahoma, based on water capacity, it is one of Oklahoma's 'Big Three' lakes, along with Lake Eufaula and Grand Lake o' the Cherokees.Template:Efn

Geography

Release of floodwater in 2015

Release of floodwater in 2015

The lake covers Template:Convert and has a shoreline of over Template:Convert in the Cookson Hills of the Ozark Mountains of Cherokee and Sequoyah counties, about Template:Convert northeast of the town of Gore and Template:Convert from the intersection of I-40 and the Muskogee Turnpike.

The distance from major cities include: Template:Convert east of Oklahoma City, Template:Convert west of Fort Smith, Arkansas, Template:Convert southeast of Tulsa and Template:Convert from Muskogee.<ref name="Warner"/>

One of the townships bordering this lake is Paradise Hill, at the far southwestern edge of the lake. It is known for its violent drop-offs, some going from a grown man's waist level to over his head. This is the cause of many deaths in the lake.<ref name="Warner"/>

Electric power generation

The hydroelectric power station is remotely controlled from the control center at Fort Gibson Lake. Two generators, each rated for 17 megawatts, provide a total capacity of 34 megawatts (MWe). The facility can handle 40 MWe for a short period of time. However, the amount of power that can actually be generated depends heavily on the lake elevation at any given time.<ref name="Warner"/>

Water supply

Originally, the amount of water delivered by the project was considered incidental, although the quality of water was much higher than that of the Arkansas River (the closest alternative source). Much of this water was expected to be used by the Kerr-McGee Nuclear Fuel Plant. That plant closed in 1975. The cities of Muskogee and Sallisaw are now major consumers.<ref name="Warner"/>

Recreation

Attractions near the lake include scuba diving, camping, hiking, fishing, golfing, water sports, scenic nature, fishing, and hunting. In addition there are Template:Convert of trout fishing along the Illinois River. There are also ten marinas, fourteen parks, 24 boat launching ramps, five floating restaurants, and many islands including Goat Island which is famous for the goats that inhabit it.<ref name="TenkillerHome">Lake Tenkiller area visitors guide. www.laketenkiller.com Accessed May 4, 2013.</ref> Scuba divers can even see the ruins of old communities that were flooded by the lake, such as the original town of Cookson. This lake is the venue of several fishing tournaments including the popular Bassmaster series championship.

Other than the goats, many other animals inhabit the area including Canada geese, white tail deer, ducks, monarch butterflies, warblers, otters, mink, beaver, bear, mountain lion, wild hogs, wild turkey and bald eagles.

Tenkiller State Park, Cherokee Landing State Park, and several Corps parks are among the parks bordering the lake.

Wildlife Management Area

The Tenkiller Wildlife Management Area consists of Template:Convert on the southwest shoreline of the lake, a mixture of upland and riparian habitat. The upland portion is covered with oak and hickory. The riparian portion contains mostly willow, sycamore, hackberry, elm, ash, and birch.<ref name="ODWC">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

In popular culture

• The 1986 slasher film Terror at Tenkiller was set and shot around the lake<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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• Singer Tom Waits mentions the lake in the song 'Swordfishtrombone' off of his 1983 studio album Swordfishtrombones<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation

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References

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External links

• Template:Official website
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers website
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Corps Lake Getaway
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lake website
• U.S. Army Corps of Engineers lake data
• Lake Tenkiller Home Page
• Lake Tenkiller Depth map
• Oklahoma Digital Maps: Digital Collections of Oklahoma and Indian Territory
• Warner, Larkin; Daniel D. Badger; and Gerald M. Lage. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Tulsa District. "Impact Study of the Construction and Operation of the Tenkiller Ferry Lake, Oklahoma. August 1973.
• Template:YouTube