Lake Gregory is a

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 ...

in the

San Bernardino National Forest The San Bernardino National Forest is a United States National Forest in Southern California encompassing of which are federal. The forest is made up of two main divisions, the eastern portion of the San Gabriel Mountains and the San Bernard ...

of the San Bernardino Mountains in

San Bernardino County, California San Bernardino County (), officially the County of San Bernardino, is a county located in the southern portion of the U.S. state of California, and is located within the Inland Empire area. As of the 2020 U.S. Census, the population was 2,181, ...

. The lake and the surrounding area make up the Lake Gregory Regional Park adjacent to

Crestline, California Crestline is a census-designated place in the San Bernardino Mountains of San Bernardino County, California, USA. The population was 10,770 at the 2010 census, up from 10,218 at the 2000 census. Geography Crestline is located at . According to t ...

. The area, originally known as Houston Flat, was developed by and named for its developer, Redlands citrus grower Arthur Gregory, Sr. Gregory bought and developed land in an area known today as Valley of the Moon. He erected a

sawmill A sawmill (saw mill, saw-mill) or lumber mill is a facility where logs are cut into lumber. Modern sawmills use a motorized saw to cut logs lengthwise to make long pieces, and crosswise to length depending on standard or custom sizes (dimensi ...

at Valley of the Moon to cut wood for crating his "Orange Blossom" brand of

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...

fruit. Gregory was also instrumental in creating the Crest Forest County

Water District A water district is a special district given the task of supplying water and sewer needs to a community. This term is commonly used in the United States. See also * Irrigation district In the United States an irrigation district is a cooperative ...

(CFCWD), which, in turn, was necessary to acquire federal aid in order to develop the area. Although the lake is in Crestline proper, Crestline is not a part of the Crest Forest District, but rather the Crestline Water District, which purchases water from CFCWD. Work began in 1937 under a

Works Progress Administration The Works Progress Administration (WPA; renamed in 1939 as the Work Projects Administration) was an American New Deal agency that employed millions of jobseekers (mostly men who were not formally educated) to carry out public works projects, i ...

(WPA) grant to dam the east and west forks of Houston Creek, whose waters drained into

tributaries A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drainag ...

of the

Mojave River The Mojave River is an intermittent river in the eastern San Bernardino Mountains and the Mojave Desert in San Bernardino County, California, United States. Most of its flow is underground, while its surface channels remain dry most of the time, ...

, thereby "going to waste". The project was nearly completed by March 1938, but federal funds had run out. Gregory financed the completion of the project, lending money to the district for the completion. The eventual cost was US$225,000, of which US$160,000 came from the federal government, with the balance funded by the water district. Heavy rains that March put the dam to its first test. It had been estimated that it would take three years to fill the lake. So heavy were the rains that the lake filled in only three days. An unconfirmed, but plausible

urban legend An urban legend (sometimes contemporary legend, modern legend, urban myth, or urban tale) is a genre of folklore comprising stories or fallacious claims circulated as true, especially as having happened to a "friend of a friend" or a family m ...

claims that the construction equipment left on the lake bed in 1938 during the rains remains at the bottom of the lake today. A road built over the dam (present-day Lake Drive) completed the project in January 1939. Today, the Lake Gregory Recreational Park with swimming and water slides is at the west end of the lake and a walking trail encircles the lake. The south shore of the lake is a popular fishing destination. The regional park is the site of Crestline's Independence Day celebration. The southeast shore is the site of the private beach and

Tyrol Tyrol (; historically the Tyrole; de-AT, Tirol ; it, Tirolo) is a historical region in the Alps - in Northern Italy and western Austria. The area was historically the core of the County of Tyrol, part of the Holy Roman Empire, Austrian Emp ...

ean-styled clubhouse of the San Moritz Lodge, once known as Club San Moritz. The original club was built in the Valley of the Moon in 1926 along the shore of now-drained Moon Lake, today the site of Lake Gregory Community Church. A fire of suspicious origin destroyed the building in 1950 and the lake was drained in the early 1960s over increasing problems with

mosquito Mosquitoes (or mosquitos) are members of a group of almost 3,600 species of small flies within the family Culicidae (from the Latin ''culex'' meaning " gnat"). The word "mosquito" (formed by ''mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish for "li ...

es. The new club, built along Lake Gregory in 1950, was intended to be a members-only resort and club for property owners in the area. Today, the only remaining buildings are the restaurant, used as the site of special events such as weddings, and a

bathhouse Public baths originated when most people in population centers did not have access to private bathing facilities. Though termed "public", they have often been restricted according to gender, religious affiliation, personal membership, and other cr ...

, now used as a senior center. Private vessels and power boats are not allowed on Lake Gregory, although rowboats, paddle boards, pedal-powered "water trikes" and paddle boats are available for rental. The rowboats may be affixed with the renter's own electric

trolling motor A trolling motor is a self-contained marine propulsion unit that includes an electric motor, propeller and control system, and is affixed to an angler's boat, either at the bow or stern. A gasoline-powered outboard used in trolling, if it i ...

. From 2011 to 2013, the park experienced operating losses of $1.4 million. In 2014, the San Bernardino County partnered with The California Parks Company, now named Basecamp Hospitality, after six years of decline due to the flagging economy. In 2018, San Bernardino County put the concessionaire contract up for bid to find a new managing company for Lake Gregory. Basecamp Hospitality won the bid as the only concessionaire applying, but struggled to come to financial terms with the longterm contract and renewed a two-year agreement instead. In 2019, San Bernardino County ended its relationship with Basecamp Hospitality. The

California Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment The Office of Environmental Health Hazard Assessment, commonly referred to as OEHHA (pronounced oh-EEE-ha), is a specialized department within the cabinet-level California Environmental Protection Agency ( CalEPA) with responsibility for evaluatin ...

(OEHHA) has developed
safe eating advisory
for Lake Gregory based on levels of mercury found in fish caught from this water body.

References

* *
San Bernardino Mountains Early History from californiamountains.net, Jan. 06, 2011
*http://www.sbsun.com/lifestyle/20140323/lake-gregory-getting-new-water-play-structure-seasonal-pass-varieties

External links

Official Lake Gregory Park page

The California Parks Company
{{authority control San Bernardino Mountains Gregory 1937 establishments in California Works Progress Administration in California San Bernardino National Forest Gregory Gregory Gregory