Big Stone Lake ( dak, Íŋyaŋ Tháŋka Bdé) is a long, narrow freshwater

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 ...

and

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 ...

on the border between western

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

and northeastern

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Lakota and Dakota Sioux Native American tribes, who comprise a large porti ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

Description

The lake covers , stretching from end to end and averaging around wide. At an elevation of , it is South Dakota's lowest point. Big Stone Lake is the source of the Minnesota River, which flows to the

Mississippi River The Mississippi River is the second-longest river and chief river of the second-largest drainage system in North America, second only to the Hudson Bay drainage system. From its traditional source of Lake Itasca in northern Minnesota, it fl ...

. Flow from the lake to the Minnesota River is regulated by the Big Stone Lake Dam, built in 1937 at the lake's southern end. Although modest, the dam controls a maximum capacity of 205,000

acre-feet The acre-foot is a non- SI unit of volume equal to about commonly used in the United States in reference to large-scale water resources, such as reservoirs, aqueducts, canals, sewer flow capacity, irrigation water, and river flows. An acre-f ...

. It is owned and operated by the state of Minnesota. The lake is fed by the

Little Minnesota River The Little Minnesota River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map , accessed October 5, 2012 headwaters tributary of the Minnesota River in northeastern South Dakota and west-central ...

at its north end, which flows through the

Traverse Gap The Traverse Gap is an ancient river channel occupied by Lake Traverse, Big Stone Lake and the valley connecting them at Browns Valley, Minnesota. It is located on the border of the U.S. states of Minnesota and South Dakota. Traverse Gap has an u ...

. Big Stone was formed at the end of the last

ice age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gree ...

when glacial

Lake Agassiz Lake Agassiz was a large glacial lake in central North America. Fed by glacial meltwater at the end of the last glacial period, its area was larger than all of the modern Great Lakes combined. First postulated in 1823 by William H. Keating, it ...

drained through the gap into

Glacial River Warren Glacial River Warren, also known as River Warren, was a prehistoric river that drained Lake Agassiz in central North America between about 13,500 and 10,650 BP calibrated (11,700 and 9,400 14C uncalibrated) years ago. A part of the uppermost porti ...

. The valley of that river now holds Big Stone Lake. The lake is shown on the 1757 edition of

Mitchell Map The Mitchell Map is a map made by John Mitchell (1711–1768), which was reprinted several times during the second half of the 18th century. The map, formally titled ''A map of the British and French dominions in North America'' &c., was used ...

as "L. Tinton", referring to the Lakota people, also known as ''Tetonwan'' ("dwellers of the prairie"). Big Stone Lake was named for nearby rock outcroppings. Two

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on account of its natural ...

s are at the lake:

Big Stone Lake State Park Big Stone Lake State Park is a state park of Minnesota, United States, on the shore of Big Stone Lake, the headwaters of the Minnesota River. It is home to wildlife including deer, raccoons, squirrels, meadowlarks, sedge wrens, pheasants, b ...

in Minnesota and

Hartford Beach State Park Hartford Beach State Park is a South Dakota state park on Big Stone Lake in Roberts County, South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state in the North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. ...

in South Dakota. They provide picnic, boat launching, trail, and camping facilities. An educational center is part of the Minnesota park. Several vacation resorts are along the shores of Big Stone Lake as well. Visitors are attracted to the lake especially for its

fishing Fishing is the activity of trying to catch fish. Fish are often caught as wildlife from the natural environment, but may also be caught from stocked bodies of water such as ponds, canals, park wetlands and reservoirs. Fishing techniques inclu ...

walleye The walleye (''Sander vitreus'', synonym ''Stizostedion vitreum''), also called the yellow pike or yellow pickerel, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern United States. It is a North American close relat ...

northern pike The northern pike (''Esox lucius'') is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus '' Esox'' (the pikes). They are typical of brackish and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (''i.e.'' holarctic in distribution). They are known simply as a ...

, and

bluegill The bluegill (''Lepomis macrochirus''), sometimes referred to as "bream", "brim", "sunny", or "copper nose" as is common in Texas, is a species of North American freshwater fish, native to and commonly found in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and ...

s are all popular

game fish Game fish, sport fish or quarry refer to popular fish pursued by recreational anglers, and can be freshwater or saltwater fish. Game fish can be eaten after being caught, or released after capture. Some game fish are also targeted commerciall ...

with anglers, and the lake contains over 30 other species. There are 12 public accesses for fishing use. The lake is stocked every two years with 7,000,000 walleye fry. The communities of

Ortonville, Minnesota Ortonville is a city in Big Stone County in the U.S. state of Minnesota at the southern tip of Big Stone Lake, along the border with South Dakota. The population was 2,021 at the 2020 census. It is the county seat of Big Stone County. Big St ...

, and

Big Stone City, South Dakota Big Stone City is a city in the northeastern corner of Grant County, South Dakota, United States, that lies between the southern tip of Big Stone Lake and the northern bank of the Whetstone River, and is adjacent to the city of Ortonville, Minne ...

, are at the lake's southern tip;

Browns Valley, Minnesota Browns Valley is a city in Traverse County, Minnesota, United States, adjacent to the South Dakota border. The population was 558 at the 2020 census. Browns Valley lies along the Little Minnesota River between the northern end of Big Stone La ...

, is at the northern tip.

References

Sources

"Big Stone Lake"
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources. Retrieved July 29, 2005.
"Big Stone Lake"

United States Department of Transportation The United States Department of Transportation (USDOT or DOT) is one of the executive departments of the U.S. federal government. It is headed by the secretary of transportation, who reports directly to the President of the United States and ...

. Retrieved July 29, 2005.
Big Stone Lake Area Chamber of Commerce
Viewed July 29, 2005. * .

Environmental Protection Agency A biophysical environment is a biotic and abiotic surrounding of an organism or population, and consequently includes the factors that have an influence in their survival, development, and evolution. A biophysical environment can vary in scale f ...

. Retrieved July 29, 2005. * Spading, Kenton (January 2000). .

United States Army Corps of Engineers , colors = , anniversaries = 16 June (Organization Day) , battles = , battles_label = Wars , website = , commander1 = ...

External links

{{authority control Borders of Minnesota Borders of South Dakota Dams completed in 1937 Dams in Minnesota Dams in South Dakota Minnesota River Reservoirs in Minnesota Reservoirs in South Dakota United States state-owned dams Lakes of Big Stone County, Minnesota Lakes of Roberts County, South Dakota Bodies of water of Grant County, South Dakota

Description

See also

References

Sources

External links