Allen Lake is a

lake A lake is an area filled with water, localized in a basin, surrounded by land, and distinct from any river or other outlet that serves to feed or drain the lake. Lakes lie on land and are not part of the ocean, although, like the much large ...

located southeast of the Village of

Richfield Springs Richfield Springs is a village located in the Town of Richfield, on the north-central border of Otsego County, New York, United States. The population was 1,264 at the 2010 census. The name is derived from local sulfur springs. Geography The vi ...

in northern Otsego County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. It is a natural lake, but a low earthen dam and concrete spillway were installed to raise the lake level. The main outflow is

Trout Brook Trout Brook may refer to: *Massachusetts **Trout Brook (Massachusetts), a stream in Holden, Massachusetts *Minnesota **Trout Brook (Ramsey County, Minnesota), a stream in Ramsey County, Minnesota ** Miesville Ravine Park Reserve#Trout Brook, a strea ...

, also known as White Creek, which flows into Otsego Lake. Allen Lake is the water supply for Richfield Springs.

History

By 1820, fresh water was being shipped in to the Village of Richfield Springs from Weatherby Pond to the north. As the village grew, it required a steadier supply of fresh water. At first water came from the two holding reservoirs along US Route 20 east of Richfield Springs. This was still not enough water, and Allen Lake was purchased by the village. At first a

steam pump A pump is a device that moves fluids ( liquids or gases), or sometimes slurries, by mechanical action, typically converted from electrical energy into hydraulic energy. Pumps can be classified into three major groups according to the method they ...

pumped the water above ground but later it was buried and tunnelled through the divide so it could be gravity fed. Most of the main

cast iron Cast iron is a class of iron–carbon alloys with a carbon content more than 2%. Its usefulness derives from its relatively low melting temperature. The alloy constituents affect its color when fractured: white cast iron has carbide impuriti ...

transmission line from the old steam pump location to the village was installed in 1880, with the exception of the roughly section that was tunnelled through the divide in the 1920s, so that it could be gravity fed. The tunnelled portion ranges from . The current intake was built in the 1970s, and is composed of a diameter cast iron pipe that is run from the old steam pump location on the eastern shore, where the main pipe exits the lake, out into the lake roughly to the intake structure that extends upward from the lake bottom. In 1994, when the present water plant was built, pumps were added, although it could still be gravity fed.

Lower reservoirs

There are two small

reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

s located directly east of the village along US 20. The upper reservoir, at an elevation of , is used to hold most of the water coming through the pipe from Allen Lake. It is kept full by throttling a manual valve on a branch line coming off the main line from Allen Lake. The water travels through the aerial fountain on the upper reservoir to aerate the raw water. The lower reservoir which is seldom used, at an elevation of , is kept full by an uncontrolled overflow pipe from the upper reservoir.

References

{{Reflist Lakes of Otsego County, New York