Lake Wawasee, formerly Turkey Lake, is a natural
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 ...
southeast of
Syracuse
Syracuse may refer to:
Places Italy
*Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa''
*Province of Syracuse
United States
*Syracuse, New York
**East Syracuse, New York
**North Syracuse, New York
*Syracuse, Indiana
* Syracuse, Kansas
*Syracuse, Miss ...
in
Kosciusko County, Indiana
Kosciusko County ( ) is a county in the U.S. state of Indiana. At the 2020 United States Census, its population was 80,240. The county seat (and only incorporated city) is Warsaw.
The county was organized in 1836. It was named for the Polish gen ...
,
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 territorie ...
. It is the largest natural lake wholly contained within
Indiana
Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...
. It is located just east of
Indiana State Road 13
State Road 13 (SR 13) is a north–south state road in the US state of Indiana. The southern terminus is at an intersection with U.S. Highway 36 (US 36) and SR 67, in the town of Fortville, and its northern terminus is at the Michigan ...
.
History
Lake Wawasee has a long history extending from the
Pleistocene epoch
The Pleistocene ( , often referred to as the ''Ice age'') is the geological epoch that lasted from about 2,580,000 to 11,700 years ago, spanning the Earth's most recent period of repeated glaciations. Before a change was finally confirmed in ...
, arrival of early settlers, and its growth from the 19th century through today. The lake is named for
Miami
Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...
chief
Chief may refer to:
Title or rank
Military and law enforcement
* Chief master sergeant, the ninth, and highest, enlisted rank in the U.S. Air Force and U.S. Space Force
* Chief of police, the head of a police department
* Chief of the boa ...
Wawasee Wawasee or Wawaausee often contracted into Wawbee and known as ("Full Moon") was a Miami chief who lived in what is now Kosciusko County, Indiana, in the United States. He was brother to Miami chief Papakeecha.
Wawasee was a signatory to the Treaty ...
''(Wau-wuh-see)'', brother of Miami chief
Papakeecha Papakeecha or ''(Pa-hed-ke-teh-a)'' meaning "Flat Belly" was the most influential Miami chief in the region around Lake Wawasee, in what is now Kosciusko County, Indiana, United States leading his people from 1820 until 1837. Lake Papakeechie was n ...
, which translated means "Flat Belly."
Lake Wawasee has a history of being a summer vacation area for residents from
Indianapolis
Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Marion ...
and
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
. The Spink's Hotel (now condominiums) overlooking Lake Wawasee was a luxury hotel that hosted famous vacationers including
Al Capone
Alphonse Gabriel Capone (; January 17, 1899 – January 25, 1947), sometimes known by the nickname "Scarface", was an American gangster and businessman who attained notoriety during the Prohibition era as the co-founder and boss of the ...
.
Eli Lilly
Eli Lilly (July 8, 1838 – June 6, 1898) was an American soldier, pharmacist, chemist, and businessman who founded the Eli Lilly and Company pharmaceutical corporation. Lilly enlisted in the Union Army during the American Civil War and r ...
maintained residence on Lake Wawasee, and his home remains a landmark on the lake.
Geographic places
Known geographic place names around Wawasee: Black's Point, Black Stump Point, Jones Landing, Willow Grove, Pickwick Park, Kale Island, Oakwood, Lakeview-South Park, Ogden's Island, Sand Point, Johnson's Bay, Buttermilk Bay,
Vawter Park
Vawter Park is an unincorporated area of shoreline and nearby neighborhoods located on the south shore of Lake Wawasee, Indiana, United States.
History
Vawter Park is located near N. Southshore Drive and E. Vawter Park Road. It was plotted in 1887 ...
, Ideal Beach, Waveland Beach, Conkling Hill,
Morrison's Island Morrison's or Morrisons may refer to:
* Morrisons, a chain of supermarkets in the United Kingdom
* Morrisons, New Zealand, a settlement in Otago, New Zealand
* Morrison's Academy, a Scottish school in Crieff, Perth and Kinross
* Morrison's Cafeteri ...
, and
Natti Crow Beach
Lake Wawasee, formerly Turkey Lake, is a natural lake southeast of Syracuse in Kosciusko County, Indiana, United States. It is the largest natural lake wholly contained within Indiana. It is located just east of Indiana State Road 13.
History
La ...
.
Black Stump Point
![Black Stump Point Lake Wawasee](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Black_Stump_Point_Lake_Wawasee.png)
Located at the northwest end of Lake Wawasee, Black Stump Point protrudes northeasterly out into the lake. Roads on this geographic point are E. Waco Drive and N. Waco Point Drive. Businesses located during the 1950s and 1960s were Mocks' Marina and Waco, a boat-in and drive-in restaurant.
Cedar Beach/Wawasee
Cedar Beach was established as an
unincorporated community
An unincorporated area is a region that is not governed by a local municipal corporation. Widespread unincorporated communities and areas are a distinguishing feature of the United States and Canada. Most other countries of the world either have ...
in the area, with a post office established under this name in 1879. It was renamed Wawasee in 1893, and the post office remained in operation until it was discontinued in 1938.
Crow's Bay
Crow's Bay is located on Wawasee's eastern shore and between Cedar Point to the north and Morrison's Island to the south. Crows Bay is named after Nathaniel Crow who established the Crow's Nest.
Natti Crow Beach
Lake Wawasee, formerly Turkey Lake, is a natural lake southeast of Syracuse in Kosciusko County, Indiana, United States. It is the largest natural lake wholly contained within Indiana. It is located just east of Indiana State Road 13.
History
La ...
is a prominent area on the bay's southern end.
Jarrett's Bay
Also known in recent years as Buttermilk Bay, Jarrett's Bay is the extreme southern end of Wawasee. Jarrett's Bay extends southeast with Morrison's Island to the east and Clark's Point to the west. This bay was named after Lewis Jarrett who owned a
resort
A resort (North American English) is a self-contained commercial establishment that tries to provide most of a vacationer's wants, such as food, drink, swimming, lodging, sports, entertainment, and shopping, on the premises. The term ''resort ...
known as Buttermilk Point.
''Also see:
Lake Wawasee history: Buttermilk Point''
Johnson's Bay
Johnson's Bay is located on Wawasee's east side. Ogden Island and Cedar Point serve as the two prominent points of land creating this bay. Johnson's Bay is, for the most part, barren of lakeside homes as its northern, northeastern, and northwestern sections are
cat tail
''Typha'' is a genus of about 30 species of monocotyledonous flowering plants in the family Typhaceae. These plants have a variety of common names, in British English as bulrush or reedmace, in American English as reed, cattail, or punks, in ...
ed
marsh
A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...
. Due to its location it became a haven for
water skiing
Water skiing (also waterskiing or water-skiing) is a surface water sport in which an individual is pulled behind a boat or a cable ski installation over a body of water, skimming the surface on two skis or one ski. The sport requires suffic ...
at least as far back as the 1950s. Cedar Point affords a break from north winds and lacks the heavy boat traffic found on much of the lake.
Morrison Island
Morrison Island, originally Eagle Island, is named after William T. Morrison who lived on this
island
An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...
until 1890. Today, the island has a number of homes lining the lakeside (north, south, west) and
boat house
A boathouse (or a boat house) is a building especially designed for the storage of boats, normally smaller craft for sports or leisure use. describing the facilities These are typically located on open water, such as on a river. Often the boats ...
s lining the eastern side with channel access to Wawasee. The island has
seawall
A seawall (or sea wall) is a form of coastal defense constructed where the sea, and associated coastal processes, impact directly upon the landforms of the coast. The purpose of a seawall is to protect areas of human habitation, conservation ...
s with the ground just a couple of feet from the lake's level. Morrison Island is one of the lowest elevation residential areas on Lake Wawasee. A public grass
green space lined with trees occupies the center of the island. Access by car via E. Morrison Island Road.
Main channel
![Lake Wawasees Main Channel](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Lake_Wawasees_Main_Channel.png)
The main
channel
Channel, channels, channeling, etc., may refer to:
Geography
* Channel (geography), in physical geography, a landform consisting of the outline (banks) of the path of a narrow body of water.
Australia
* Channel Country, region of outback Austral ...
is not officially part of Lake Wawasee but does perform as an outlet for water heading north. The main channel begins at the lake's northwest shore with Oakwood Park on its west and Kale Island on its east and flows north through Mudd Lake and finally into
Syracuse Lake
Syracuse Lake is a natural lake bordering Syracuse in Kosciusko County, Indiana, United States.
Location
Syracuse Lake is bordered on the west by N. Front Street, Pickwick Road and the B&O Railroad on the south. On the east it is bordered by E. ...
. The main channel is lined with homes and a
marina
A marina (from Spanish , Portuguese and Italian : ''marina'', "coast" or "shore") is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.
A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships o ...
on its west for its first third of travel. On the channel's east side is a large wetland
marsh
A marsh is a wetland that is dominated by herbaceous rather than woody plant species.Keddy, P.A. 2010. Wetland Ecology: Principles and Conservation (2nd edition). Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, UK. 497 p Marshes can often be found at ...
where a
gristmill
A gristmill (also: grist mill, corn mill, flour mill, feed mill or feedmill) grinds cereal grain into flour and Wheat middlings, middlings. The term can refer to either the Mill (grinding), grinding mechanism or the building that holds it. Grist i ...
once stood.
Recreation
Marinas
*Griffith's Wawasee Marina was founded in 1946 and is located on Wawasee's southeast end overlooking Buttermilk Bay and tucked behind Morrison Island to the marina's west.
*Main Channel Marina was established in 1976 and is located on the west side of the Main Channel on the northwest side of Wawasee.
*Johnson's Bay Marina is no longer in service (condos)and used to be located in a channel on the east side of Johnson's Bay.
*Wawasee Boat Company was founded in 1929 and is located on Wawasee's north shore off of E. Cornelius Road.
Wawasee Yacht Club
The
Wawasee Yacht Club
The Wawasee Yacht Club was formed in 1935 and is located at 6338 E Trusdell Ave. on the northeast shore of Lake Wawasee, Indiana. It currently has 75 families and 35 social members sailing 28-foot E-Scow, 19-foot Lightning, and 13-foot Sunfish c ...
(est. 1935) is located on the northeast shore. During the summer season, the club is home to four competitive one-design fleets: 28-foot
E-Scow
The E Scow is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Arnold Meyer Sr as a one-design racer and first built in 1924.Sherwood, Richard M.: ''A Field Guide to Sailboats of North America, Second Edition'', pages 128-129. Houghton Mifflin ...
, 19-foot
Lightning (dinghy)
The Lightning is an American sailing dinghy that was designed by Olin Stephens of Sparkman & Stephens, as a one-design racer and first built in 1938.Sherwood, Richard M.: ''A Field Guide to Sailboats of North America, Second Edition'', pages ...
, 20-foot
I-20 Scow, and 13-foot
Sunfish (sailboat)
The Sunfish is a personal-size, beach-launched sailing dinghy. It features a very flat, boardlike hull carrying an Oceanic lateen sail mounted to an un- stayed mast.
Sunfish was developed by Alcort, Inc. and first appeared around 1952 as th ...
class boats.
Their mission is to foster, promote and encourage the sport of sailboat racing, and to promote the science of seamanship.
Annual Fireworks
Independence Day fireworks - The
4th of July
Fourth or the fourth may refer to:
* the ordinal form of the number 4
* ''Fourth'' (album), by Soft Machine, 1971
* Fourth (angle), an ancient astronomical subdivision
* Fourth (music)
In music a fourth is an interval spanning four staff po ...
weekend on Saturday sports a
fireworks
Fireworks are a class of Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a l ...
display launched from three waterborne platforms and synchronized with music played by a local radio station. There is also a 'Flotilla' which features decorated boats in a parade around the lake.
Wawascene.com
Wawascene.com is an online magazine dedicated to life at Lake Wawasee & Syracuse Lake. Formed in 2009, this website hosts a live webcam controllable by users, water temperature, photos, blogs, news, video, a local business directory and resident directory.
Bathymetry
Wawasee's bottom consists of channels and rises. It was noted in 1895 that if the water level in Wawasee were dropped , 4 distinct bodies of water would then be visibly connected by channels 100 to wide and 8–10 feet deep.
*The first body would be in front of Crow's Nest (Crow Bay) with a depth of .
*The second body would be 50% of Jarrett's Bay with maximum depth of .
*The third would be the main body of Wawasee with a decreased width of 50% and maximum depth of .
*The fourth would be a small just northwest of Black Stump Point with a maximum depth of .
If Wawasee lost of water there would be 4 distinct lakes without channels connecting them.
Hydrology
Classification
Lake Wawasee measures in size and is classified as a
Trophic
Trophic, from Ancient Greek τροφικός (''trophikos'') "pertaining to food or nourishment", may refer to:
* Trophic cascade
* Trophic coherence
* Trophic egg
* Trophic function
* Trophic hormone
* Trophic level index
* Trophic level
* Trop ...
Class 1 lake with two major basins. The north basin has a
eutrophication
Eutrophication is the process by which an entire body of water, or parts of it, becomes progressively enriched with minerals and nutrients, particularly nitrogen and phosphorus. It has also been defined as "nutrient-induced increase in phytopla ...
index value of 10 and the south basin has a eutrophication index of 12. The maximum depth is and an average depth of . The lake is presently healthy and has a balanced aquatic
ecosystem
An ecosystem (or ecological system) consists of all the organisms and the physical environment with which they interact. These biotic and abiotic components are linked together through nutrient cycles and energy flows. Energy enters the syste ...
.
Water sources
Lake Wawasee is a
spring
Spring(s) may refer to:
Common uses
* Spring (season), a season of the year
* Spring (device), a mechanical device that stores energy
* Spring (hydrology), a natural source of water
* Spring (mathematics), a geometric surface in the shape of a ...
fed lake with exposed springs flowing into Wawasee from south, west, and east sides.
Lake Papakeechie
Lake Papakeechie is a small man-made lake of located in Kosciusko County, Indiana, United States. The lake is situated south of and drains into Lake Wawasee. The lake is owned by the papakeechie Protective Association.
History
Lake Papakeechie ...
, sitting a few feet higher in elevation, provides a vast amount of water from a spillway at Buttermilk Bay at Wawasee's south end. Wawasee's structure is typical of natural lakes in the formerly
glaciated
A glacier (; ) is a persistent body of dense ice that is constantly moving under its own weight. A glacier forms where the accumulation of snow exceeds its ablation over many years, often centuries. It acquires distinguishing features, such as ...
portions of the
Midwest
The Midwestern United States, also referred to as the Midwest or the American Midwest, is one of four Census Bureau Region, census regions of the United States Census Bureau (also known as "Region 2"). It occupies the northern central part of ...
. It is supplied by a watershed of which starts at
Little Knapp Lake
Little is a synonym for small size and may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Little'' (album), 1990 debut album of Vic Chesnutt
* ''Little'' (film), 2019 American comedy film
*The Littles, a series of children's novels by American author John P ...
and
Harper Lake
Harper Lake is a dry lake located in the Mojave Desert near the small community of Lockhart, California, in northwestern San Bernardino County of Southern California. The lake is accessible from Harper Lake Road, which runs north off of State Rou ...
in
Noble County and flows down through 10 lakes by way of Turkey Creek into Lake Wawasee. Water exits into through the wetlands of Main Channel and Mudd Lake into Syracuse Lake. The Wawasee Watershed is an area of that encompasses Wawasee, Syracuse, Bonar Lake and Papakeechie lakes as well as the ten lakes in the upper Turkey Creek and Papakeechie subwatersheds.
There are two smaller lakes near Wawasee.
Syracuse Lake
Syracuse Lake is a natural lake bordering Syracuse in Kosciusko County, Indiana, United States.
Location
Syracuse Lake is bordered on the west by N. Front Street, Pickwick Road and the B&O Railroad on the south. On the east it is bordered by E. ...
to the north is accessible from Wawasee through the 'Main Channel.'
Lake Papakeechie
Lake Papakeechie is a small man-made lake of located in Kosciusko County, Indiana, United States. The lake is situated south of and drains into Lake Wawasee. The lake is owned by the papakeechie Protective Association.
History
Lake Papakeechie ...
to the south is at an elevation slightly higher than Wawasee. It is not accessible by boat from Wawasee.
Water quality and wetlands
The community around Wawasee pushes for
water clarity
Water clarity is a descriptive term for how deeply visible light penetrates through water. In addition to light penetration, the term water clarity is also often used to describe underwater visibility. Water clarity is one way that humans measure ...
and keeping the lake clean for future generations. One of the most active organizations involved in wetland and water quality protection is the Wawasee Area Conservancy Foundation (WACF). This non profit group has a documented history of action and lake preservation. The WACF was formed in 1991 to anticipate, discover, and correct threats to the Wawasee Area Watershed and to its water quality. The WACF is dedicated to the preservation and enhancement of the area and works hand-in-hand with property owner groups, the State Department of Natural Resources and other governmental and civic organizations that share its concerns.
One ongoing battle concerning preservation involves a local
farmer
A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mig ...
who has a permit to open a
hog farm
The Hog Farm is an organization considered America's longest running hippie commune. Beginning as a collective in North Hollywood, California, during the 1960s, a later move to an actual hog farm in Tujunga, California gave the group its na ...
in the area. So far the conservancy has been successful in dissuading the local farmer.
Lake Wawasee is unusually clear for a Midwest lake. This is, in part, due to its location just a few miles from a continental divide that separates water that runs off 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 f ...
basin and Lake Michigan. Another reason for this clarity is that most of the lake's nutrients are tied up in vegetation and zebra mussels. According to a 1995 study, Wawasee's
water clarity
Water clarity is a descriptive term for how deeply visible light penetrates through water. In addition to light penetration, the term water clarity is also often used to describe underwater visibility. Water clarity is one way that humans measure ...
allows for viewing up to depths, whereas other Midwest lakes, on average, have clarity allowing for viewing depths.
Since 1991, invasive
Zebra Mussels
The zebra mussel (''Dreissena polymorpha'') is a small freshwater mussel. The species originates from the lakes of southern Russia and Ukraine, but has been accidentally Introduced species, introduced to numerous other areas and has become an inv ...
have been found in Lake Wawasee and have become a nuisance to the local marinas, fishermen, and property owners.
Zebra Mussels: Questions and Answers for Inland Lake Managers
References
External links
*
Syracuse-Wawasee Digital Archives
{{authority control
Wawasee Wawasee or Wawaausee often contracted into Wawbee and known as ("Full Moon") was a Miami chief who lived in what is now Kosciusko County, Indiana, in the United States. He was brother to Miami chief Papakeecha.
Wawasee was a signatory to the Treaty ...
Wawasee Wawasee or Wawaausee often contracted into Wawbee and known as ("Full Moon") was a Miami chief who lived in what is now Kosciusko County, Indiana, in the United States. He was brother to Miami chief Papakeecha.
Wawasee was a signatory to the Treaty ...
Wawasee Wawasee or Wawaausee often contracted into Wawbee and known as ("Full Moon") was a Miami chief who lived in what is now Kosciusko County, Indiana, in the United States. He was brother to Miami chief Papakeecha.
Wawasee was a signatory to the Treaty ...
Tourist attractions in Kosciusko County, Indiana