Lake Jean 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 ...

in Luzerne County and Sullivan County, in

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

, in the United States. It has a surface area of approximately and is situated in Colley Township, Sullivan County and Fairmount Township, Luzerne County. The lake's main inflow is the outlet of

Ganoga Lake Ganoga Lake is a natural lake in Colley Township in southeastern Sullivan County in Pennsylvania, United States. Known as Robinson's Lake and Long Pond for most of the 19th century, the lake was purchased by the Ricketts family in the early 185 ...

. Lake Jean is fairly shallow, with an average depth of . It is in the watershed of Fishing Creek. The main

rock formation A rock formation is an isolated, scenic, or spectacular surface rock outcrop. Rock formations are usually the result of weathering and erosion sculpting the existing rock. The term ''rock formation'' can also refer to specific sediment ...

s in the lake's watershed include Burgoon Sandstone and the Mauch Chunk Formation. The lake is dammed by the Lake Jean Dam and is owned by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Lake Jean historically had a low pH due to impairment by atmospheric deposition. The lake has become less acidic, but continues to be impaired by mercury. Its watershed has an area of , including the lake itself. The majority of the watershed is forested, though there are a few other

land use Land use involves the management and modification of natural environment or wilderness into built environment such as settlements and semi-natural habitats such as arable fields, pastures, and managed woods. Land use by humans has a long h ...

s. The lake was named by Colonel R. Bruce Ricketts in 1905 after Jean Holberton Ricketts, his eldest daughter. A new dam was created for it in the 1950s. In 2015, the lake was partially drained so that repair work could be done on the control tower of the Lake Jean Dam. Lake Jean is stocked with trout and contains various species of warmwater game fish and panfish. The large tracts of forest in the lake's watershed are mainly deciduous, but there is some coniferous forest. The lake is listed on the Luzerne County Natural Areas Inventory. Its main uses are recreation and fishing and it is one of the common destinations of visitors to

Ricketts Glen State Park Ricketts Glen State Park is a Pennsylvania state park on 13,193 acres (5,280 ha) in Columbia, Luzerne, and Sullivan counties in Pennsylvania in the United States. Ricketts Glen is a National Natural Landmark known for its old-growth fore ...

, in which it is located.

Geography

The main outflow of Lake Jean is an unnamed tributary of Kitchen Creek. Its inflows include unofficially named streams such as "Beaver Tributary" and "Ganoga Tributary", as well as direct drainage. Both the lake's main inflow and its main outflow are around wide and deep. The elevation of the lake is above

sea level Mean sea level (MSL, often shortened to sea level) is an average surface level of one or more among Earth's coastal bodies of water from which heights such as elevation may be measured. The global MSL is a type of vertical datuma standardised g ...

. The lake has a highly irregular shape. Its maximum length is and its maximum width is . The largest inflow to Lake Jean is the outlet of

, which is northwest of Lake Jean. Drainage from a tract of

wetland A wetland is a distinct ecosystem that is flooded or saturated by water, either permanently (for years or decades) or seasonally (for weeks or months). Flooding results in oxygen-free (anoxic) processes prevailing, especially in the soils. The ...

also flows into the lake. There are several coves and inlets on the lake, especially on its western side, where there are also some wetlands. The lake also has a few islands. The surrounding land rises to at most above the lake. Lake Jean is relatively shallow, with an average depth of . Some of the deepest parts of the lake are only deep, though it can reach up to in depth. The lake has an area of and a volume of 486 million gallons. Lake Jean is entirely within the

United States Geological Survey The United States Geological Survey (USGS), formerly simply known as the Geological Survey, is a scientific agency of the United States government. The scientists of the USGS study the landscape of the United States, its natural resources, ...

quadrangle of Red Rock. The village of Red Rock is located to the south of the lake. The lake is located within

. It is in the northernmost part of the watershed of Fishing Creek. The main

in the watershed of Lake Jean is the Burgoon Sandstone, which contains

interbedded In geology, interbedding occurs when beds (layers of rock) of a particular lithology lie between or alternate with beds of a different lithology. For example, sedimentary rocks may be interbedded if there were sea level variations in their sedimen ...

gray

shale Shale is a fine-grained, clastic sedimentary rock formed from mud that is a mix of flakes of clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4) and tiny fragments (silt-sized particles) of other minerals, especial ...

conglomerate Conglomerate or conglomeration may refer to: * Conglomerate (company) * Conglomerate (geology) * Conglomerate (mathematics) In popular culture: * The Conglomerate (American group), a production crew and musical group founded by Busta Rhymes ** Co ...

, and

mudstone Mudstone, a type of mudrock, is a fine-grained sedimentary rock whose original constituents were clays or muds. Mudstone is distinguished from '' shale'' by its lack of fissility (parallel layering).Blatt, H., and R.J. Tracy, 1996, ''Petrology. ...

. However, a small patch of the Mauch Chunk Formation occurs in the northern part of the watershed. The only

soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former te ...

in the watershed is the Wellsboro-Oquaga-Morris Association. However, the Lackawanna-Arnot-Morris Association occurs near the watershed's southwestern border. Lake Jean is

dam A dam is a barrier that stops or restricts the flow of surface water or underground streams. Reservoirs created by dams not only suppress floods but also provide water for activities such as irrigation, human consumption, industrial use, a ...

med by the earthen Lake Jean Dam, which is high and long. As of 1980, the dam and its eastern and western dikes can handle 73 percent of the probable maximum flood without overtopping. The lake is owned by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources. Lake Jean has a

beach A beach is a landform alongside a body of water which consists of loose particles. The particles composing a beach are typically made from rock, such as sand, gravel, shingle, pebbles, etc., or biological sources, such as mollusc shel ...

with a length of . It is open from late May to mid September.

Hydrology

Lake Jean was historically rendered acidic by

atmospheric deposition In the physics of aerosols, deposition is the process by which aerosol particles collect or deposit themselves on solid surfaces, decreasing the concentration of the particles in the air. It can be divided into two sub-processes: ''dry'' and '' ...

. In the summer of 1991, its pH was found to be 5.8, less than the minimum of 6.0 needed to attain its designated uses for aquatic life. The lake was listed as an impaired waterbody for this reason in 1996. By 2007, the pH had increased to 6.5 to 7.4, within Pennsylvania's criteria for pH. However, the lake is still impaired by

mercury Mercury commonly refers to: * Mercury (planet), the nearest planet to the Sun * Mercury (element), a metallic chemical element with the symbol Hg * Mercury (mythology), a Roman god Mercury or The Mercury may also refer to: Companies * Merc ...

from atmospheric deposition. The

hydraulic retention time The residence time of a fluid parcel is the total time that the parcel has spent inside a control volume (e.g.: a chemical reactor, a lake, a human body). The residence time of a set of parcels is quantified in terms of the frequency distribution ...

of water in Lake Jean is 0.6 years. The average

discharge Discharge may refer to Expel or let go * Discharge, the act of firing a gun * Discharge, or termination of employment, the end of an employee's duration with an employer * Military discharge, the release of a member of the armed forces from serv ...

of the lake's outflow is 3.6 cubic feet per second. On August 6, 1974, the water temperature of the lake at a depth of was . The

Secchi depth The Secchi disk (or Secchi disc), as created in 1865 by Angelo Secchi, is a plain white, circular disk in diameter used to measure water transparency or turbidity in bodies of water. The disc is mounted on a pole or line, and lowered slowly down ...

of the lake was measured to be in the 1970s. The specific conductance at this time ranged from 32 to 33 micro-siemens per centimeter at . The daily load of acidity at the outflow of Lake Jean is . The total maximum daily load of acidity at this point is . The lake's various inflows require an 87 to 97 percent reduction to meet their total maximum daily load requirements. In the 1970s, two measurements of

water hardness Hard water is water that has high mineral content (in contrast with "soft water"). Hard water is formed when water percolates through deposits of limestone, chalk or gypsum, which are largely made up of calcium and magnesium carbonates, bicarbo ...

in the lake were 5 and 8 milligrams per liter. In the 1970s, two measurements of the concentration of

hydrogen ion A hydrogen ion is created when a hydrogen atom loses or gains an electron. A positively charged hydrogen ion (or proton) can readily combine with other particles and therefore is only seen isolated when it is in a gaseous state or a nearly particle ...

s in Lake Jean ranged from 0.00020 to 0.00160 milligrams per liter. The dissolved oxygen concentration was 9.5 milligrams per liter and the

carbon dioxide Carbon dioxide (chemical formula ) is a chemical compound made up of molecules that each have one carbon atom covalently double bonded to two oxygen atoms. It is found in the gas state at room temperature. In the air, carbon dioxide is transpar ...

concentration ranged from 0.6 to 5.1 milligrams per liter. The concentration of organic carbon was 2.3 milligrams per liter. The concentration of

bicarbonate In inorganic chemistry, bicarbonate (IUPAC-recommended nomenclature: hydrogencarbonate) is an intermediate form in the deprotonation of carbonic acid. It is a polyatomic anion with the chemical formula . Bicarbonate serves a crucial biochemic ...

was 2 milligrams per liter in two measurements. The

nitrogen Nitrogen is the chemical element with the symbol N and atomic number 7. Nitrogen is a nonmetal and the lightest member of group 15 of the periodic table, often called the pnictogens. It is a common element in the universe, estimated at se ...

concentration was 0.33 milligrams per liter in one measurement and the concentration of organic nitrogen ranged from 0.13 to 0.37 milligrams per liter. The

phosphorus Phosphorus is a chemical element with the symbol P and atomic number 15. Elemental phosphorus exists in two major forms, white phosphorus and red phosphorus, but because it is highly reactive, phosphorus is never found as a free element on Ear ...

concentration ranged from 0.010 to 0.020 milligrams per liter and the

phosphate In chemistry, a phosphate is an anion, salt, functional group or ester derived from a phosphoric acid. It most commonly means orthophosphate, a derivative of orthophosphoric acid . The phosphate or orthophosphate ion is derived from phospho ...

concentration was 0.031 milligrams per liter. The sulfate concentration ranged from 2.5 to 7.2 milligrams per liter. The

fluoride Fluoride (). According to this source, is a possible pronunciation in British English. is an inorganic, monatomic anion of fluorine, with the chemical formula (also written ), whose salts are typically white or colorless. Fluoride salts typ ...

concentration was twice measured to be 0.10 milligrams per liter and the

chloride The chloride ion is the anion (negatively charged ion) Cl−. It is formed when the element chlorine (a halogen) gains an electron or when a compound such as hydrogen chloride is dissolved in water or other polar solvents. Chloride salts ...

concentration ranged between 4.0 and 6.4 milligrams per liter. The concentration of

silica Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , most commonly found in nature as quartz and in various living organisms. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is one ...

ranged between 0 and 0.1 milligrams per liter. In the 1970s, two measurements of the

sodium Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na (from Latin ''natrium'') and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 of the periodic table. Its only stable iso ...

concentration in filtered waters of Lake Jean ranged from 1.10 to 3.50 milligrams per liter. The

potassium Potassium is the chemical element with the symbol K (from Neo-Latin ''kalium'') and atomic number19. Potassium is a silvery-white metal that is soft enough to be cut with a knife with little force. Potassium metal reacts rapidly with atmosphe ...

concentration was twice measured to be 0.60 milligrams per liter. The concentration of

magnesium Magnesium is a chemical element with the symbol Mg and atomic number 12. It is a shiny gray metal having a low density, low melting point and high chemical reactivity. Like the other alkaline earth metals (group 2 of the periodic ta ...

ranged between 0.40 and 0.60 milligrams per liter and the

calcium Calcium is a chemical element with the symbol Ca and atomic number 20. As an alkaline earth metal, calcium is a reactive metal that forms a dark oxide-nitride layer when exposed to air. Its physical and chemical properties are most similar to ...

concentration ranged between 1.00 and 2.40 milligrams per liter. Detectable amounts of

nickel Nickel is a chemical element with symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel is a hard and ductile transition metal. Pure nickel is chemically reactive but large pieces are slow to ...

and

cadmium Cadmium is a chemical element with the symbol Cd and atomic number 48. This soft, silvery-white metal is chemically similar to the two other stable metals in group 12, zinc and mercury. Like zinc, it demonstrates oxidation state +2 in most of ...

were observed in the lake, but no

chromium Chromium is a chemical element with the symbol Cr and atomic number 24. It is the first element in group 6. It is a steely-grey, lustrous, hard, and brittle transition metal. Chromium metal is valued for its high corrosion resistance and hardne ...

copper Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu (from la, cuprum) and atomic number 29. It is a soft, malleable, and ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. A freshly exposed surface of pure copper has a pinkis ...

was detected. The concentrations of both

cobalt Cobalt is a chemical element with the symbol Co and atomic number 27. As with nickel, cobalt is found in the Earth's crust only in a chemically combined form, save for small deposits found in alloys of natural meteoric iron. The free element, pr ...

and

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

were less than 2 micrograms per liter. The

zinc Zinc is a chemical element with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. Zinc is a slightly brittle metal at room temperature and has a shiny-greyish appearance when oxidation is removed. It is the first element in group 12 (IIB) of the periodi ...

concentration was once measured to be 20 micrograms per liter. The concentration of

iron Iron () is a chemical element with symbol Fe (from la, ferrum) and atomic number 26. It is a metal that belongs to the first transition series and group 8 of the periodic table. It is, by mass, the most common element on Earth, right in f ...

ranged from a detectable amount to 240 micrograms per liter and the

manganese Manganese is a chemical element with the symbol Mn and atomic number 25. It is a hard, brittle, silvery metal, often found in minerals in combination with iron. Manganese is a transition metal with a multifaceted array of industrial alloy use ...

concentration ranged between a detectable amount and 70 milligrams per liter.

Watershed

The

watershed Watershed is a hydrological term, which has been adopted in other fields in a more or less figurative sense. It may refer to: Hydrology * Drainage divide, the line that separates neighbouring drainage basins * Drainage basin, called a "watershe ...

of Lake Jean has an area of (including the lake itself) and is located in eastern Sullivan County and western Luzerne County. Discounting the lake, the watershed has an area of . Pennsylvania Route 487 passes through the lake's watershed in a north–south direction. Discounting Lake Jean itself, a total of (81.0 percent) of the watershed is forested land. (12.6 percent) of the watershed contains fields and (4.7 percent) consists of other lakes. The remaining (1.7 percent) consists of

History and etymology

Lake Jean was entered into the

Geographic Names Information System The Geographic Names Information System (GNIS) is a database of name and locative information about more than two million physical and cultural features throughout the United States and its territories, Antarctica, and the associated states of ...

on August 2, 1979. Its identifier in the Geographic Names Information System is 1177996. The lake is named after the first daughter of Colonel

R. Bruce Ricketts Robert Bruce Ricketts (April 29, 1839 – November 13, 1918) distinguished himself as an artillery officer in the American Civil War.Lindbuchler, Ryan L. (2001) ''Gone But Not Forgotten: Civil War Veterans of Northeastern Pennsylvania.'' Wilkes-B ...

, a 19th-century/20th century landowner. Ricketts named the lake after Jean Holberton Ricketts in 1905. The lake was initially created for the purpose of moving large logs in R. Bruce Ricketts' logging industry. However, a natural lake was originally in that location. Boating and fishing were being done on the lake as early as the early 1900s. In 1958, the Pennsylvania Fish Commission declared Lake Jean unsuitable for fishing, as its fish population was unbalanced. Fishing in the lake was forbidden until 1961, as attempts were made to chemically reclaim the lake. The Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Resources added 106 tons of cement stack dust to the lake's frozen surface in the winter of 1959 for this purpose. In 1995, the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources began adding

lime Lime commonly refers to: * Lime (fruit), a green citrus fruit * Lime (material), inorganic materials containing calcium, usually calcium oxide or calcium hydroxide * Lime (color), a color between yellow and green Lime may also refer to: Botany ...

to Lake Jean to combat its acidity. Lime was added semi-annually (in the spring and fall) for a number of years, with 19 tons per year typically being added. The Lake Jean Dam was constructed in the 1950s by the old Department of Forests and Waters. The dam was earthen and replaced an older dam. This operation combined Mud Pond with what was then Lake Jean to create the lake that currently exists. While it has been maintained, various parts have deteriorated. In June 2015, the lake will be entirely drained to repair the dam's control tower. It will take about two weeks to drain the lake, though a stream of water will still flow through its deepest parts. In 2015, the project was expected to cost $800,000. Lake Jean was reopened in May 2016.

Biology

Lake Jean is listed on the Luzerne County Natural Areas Inventory. Warmwater game fish and panfish inhabit Lake Jean. Specific fish in the lake include

trout Trout are species of freshwater fish belonging to the genera '' Oncorhynchus'', ''Salmo'' and ''Salvelinus'', all of the subfamily Salmoninae of the family Salmonidae. The word ''trout'' is also used as part of the name of some non-salmoni ...

, smallmouth bass,

largemouth bass The largemouth bass (''Micropterus salmoides'') is a carnivorous freshwater gamefish in the Centrarchidae ( sunfish) family, a species of black bass native to the eastern and central United States, southeastern Canada and northern Mexico, but ...

crappie Crappies () are two species of North American freshwater fish of the genus ''Pomoxis'' in the family Centrarchidae (sunfishes). Both species of crappies are popular game fish among recreational anglers. Etymology The genus name ''Pomoxis'' ...

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 ...

, and pickerel. Additionally, pumpkinseed and

yellow perch The yellow perch (''Perca flavescens''), commonly referred to as perch, striped perch, American perch, American river perch or preacher is a freshwater perciform fish native to much of North America. The yellow perch was described in 1814 by Samu ...

have been observed within the lake. It is stocked with trout. Historically, Lake Jean had a low level of fish

biodiversity Biodiversity or biological diversity is the variety and variability of life on Earth. Biodiversity is a measure of variation at the genetic (''genetic variability''), species (''species diversity''), and ecosystem (''ecosystem diversity'') l ...

due to its acidity. In 1985, seven species were observed in the lake. However, in 1997, eleven species were observed, and in 2007, twelve species were observed. Canada geese are also sometimes observed at the lake. At least 30 individuals of an

invertebrate Invertebrates are a paraphyletic group of animals that neither possess nor develop a vertebral column (commonly known as a ''backbone'' or ''spine''), derived from the notochord. This is a grouping including all animals apart from the chordate ...

species of concern have been observed on the lake's shoreline. Species such as '' Aeshna clepsydra'' and '' Carterocephalus palaemon mandan'' have been observed in its vicinity. Lake Jean used to experience a bladderwort infestation. At its most severe point, Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources employees had to rake bladderwort off the lake's beaches on a daily basis. However, bladderwort populations have been reduced since the lake became less acidic, and the lake's plant biodiversity has increased. Most of the forests in the lake's watershed are

deciduous forest In the fields of horticulture and Botany, the term ''deciduous'' () means "falling off at maturity" and "tending to fall off", in reference to trees and shrubs that seasonally shed leaves, usually in the autumn; to the shedding of petals, aft ...

s. However, some areas of

conifer Conifers are a group of conifer cone, cone-bearing Spermatophyte, seed plants, a subset of gymnosperms. Scientifically, they make up the phylum, division Pinophyta (), also known as Coniferophyta () or Coniferae. The division contains a single ...

forest are present, especially in the watershed's western part. Small waterwort and '' Sphinx gordius'' also inhabit the lake. The shores of Lake Jean are lined with

hardwood Hardwood is wood from dicot trees. These are usually found in broad-leaved temperate and tropical forests. In temperate and boreal latitudes they are mostly deciduous, but in tropics and subtropics mostly evergreen. Hardwood (which comes from ...

forests, hemlocks,

pine A pine is any conifer tree or shrub in the genus ''Pinus'' () of the family Pinaceae. ''Pinus'' is the sole genus in the subfamily Pinoideae. The World Flora Online created by the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew and Missouri Botanical Garden accep ...

trees, and

sedge The Cyperaceae are a family of graminoid (grass-like), monocotyledonous flowering plants known as sedges. The family is large, with some 5,500 known species described in about 90 genera, the largest being the "true sedges" genus ''Carex'' wit ...

s. As early as the early 1900s, virtually all of the forested land in the watershed was

second-growth forest A secondary forest (or second-growth forest) is a forest or woodland area which has re-grown after a timber harvest or clearing for agriculture, until a long enough period has passed so that the effects of the disturbance are no longer evident. I ...

Recreation

Lake Jean is mainly used for recreation and fishing. According to '' Times Leader'', most of the 330,000 annual visitors to

visit Lake Jean. In 2014, the

Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission The Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission is an independent state agency responsible for the regulation of all fishing and boating in the state of Pennsylvania within the United States of America. Unlike many U.S. states, Pennsylvania has a separ ...

temporarily lifted fishing restrictions in Lake Jean in preparation for the lake's draining.

Ice fishing Ice fishing is the practice of catching fish with lines and fish hooks or spears through an opening in the ice on a frozen body of water. Ice fishers may fish in the open or in heated enclosures, some with bunks and amenities. Shelters Longer ...

is permitted on the lake in the wintertime. There are also two boat launches on the lake. Both motorboats with electric motors and non-powered boats are permitted. There are picnic facilities along Lake Jean. Jeff Mitchell's book ''Paddling Pennsylvania: Canoeing and Kayaking the Keystone State's Rivers and Lakes'' describes Lake Jean as being "known for its beauty" and "one of the finest lakes for paddling in Pennsylvania". The 0.8-mile-long Beach Trail at Ricketts Glen State Park goes along Lake Jean. There are ten modern cabins near the lake.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Jean Lakes of Luzerne County, Pennsylvania Bodies of water of Sullivan County, Pennsylvania Lakes of Pennsylvania