Rathbun Lake was constructed and is operated by the

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

. Located at

Chariton River The Chariton River is a U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 26, 2011 tributary to the Missouri River in southeast Iowa and northeast Missouri. The river forms in southe ...

mile marker 142, approximately 7 miles north of

Centerville, Iowa Centerville is a city in and the county seat of Appanoose County, Iowa, Appanoose County, Iowa, United States. The population was 5,412 in the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, a decline from 5,924 in 2000 United States Census, 2000. After ...

, in Appanoose County, it is one of the largest lakes in

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

. The lake was constructed to control flooding, provide recreation opportunities, abate stream pollution, fish and wildlife enhancement, and maintain minimum stream flow on the Chariton,

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

, and

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 ...

s. The Chariton and South Fork of the Chariton River are the major sources of water flowing into Rathbun Lake. The construction of Rathbun Dam and Reservoir was authorized by the

Flood Control Act In the United States, there are multiple laws known as the Flood Control Act (FCA). Typically, they are enacted to control irrigation because of floods or other natural disasters and are administered by the United States Army Corps of Engineers. Th ...

of 1954 (Public Law 83-780). Construction of the dam and embankment began in September 1964. Most of the remains of the village of Griffinsville are underneath the lake.The Historical Marker Database: The Real Village of Griffinsville.
Accessed 26 January 2023. The dam itself is rolled earthfill construction and is 10,129 feet long, 30 feet wide at the top, and rises 100 feet above the streambed. Operation as a multi-purpose unit began November 1969 and the top of multi-purpose pool (904 msl) was reached on October 10, 1970. Rathbun Lake was dedicated July 31, 1971, with President

Richard Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was ...

being the keynote speaker. Camping, sightseeing, fishing, boating, picnicking and hunting are favorite activities on and near Rathbun Lake. The lake’s fish and wildlife resources provide sightseers, fishermen and hunters ample opportunities for their sports.

Bald eagles The bald eagle (''Haliaeetus leucocephalus'') is a bird of prey found in North America. A sea eagle, it has two known subspecies and forms a species pair with the white-tailed eagle (''Haliaeetus albicilla''), which occupies the same niche as ...

white-tailed deer The white-tailed deer (''Odocoileus virginianus''), also known as the whitetail or Virginia deer, is a medium-sized deer native to North America, Central America, and South America as far south as Peru and Bolivia. It has also been introduced t ...

Canada geese The Canada goose (''Branta canadensis''), or Canadian goose, is a large wild goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks, white under its chin, and a brown body. It is native to the arctic and temperate regions of North America, and it is o ...

wild turkey The wild turkey (''Meleagris gallopavo'') is an Upland game bird, upland ground bird native to North America, one of two extant species of Turkey (bird), turkey and the heaviest member of the order Galliformes. It is the ancestor to the domestic ...

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'' ...

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 ...

channel catfish The channel catfish (''Ictalurus punctatus'') is North America's most numerous catfish species. It is the official fish of Kansas, Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, and Tennessee, and is informally referred to as a "channel cat". In the United States, the ...

and other wildlife can be found at Rathbun Lake. The size of the lake combined with the prevailing winds make Rathbun Lake one of the best

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (land yacht) over a chosen cour ...

lakes in Iowa. One

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 ...

concession area, Rathbun Lake Marina (near the dam), provides a full line of marina services. Rathbun Lake is home to the Rathbun Yacht Club. Rathbun Lake-Sunset Boat

Eight parks have been developed for public recreation. Six are managed by the Corps of Engineers, and one state park is managed by the

Iowa Department of Natural Resources The Iowa Department of Natural Resources (Iowa DNR or IA DNR) is a department/agency of the U.S. state of Iowa formed in 1986, charged with maintaining state parks and forests, protecting the environment of Iowa, and managing energy, fish, wild ...

. Recreation facilities include boat ramps, courtesy docks, campgrounds, picnic areas and playgrounds. Honey Creek State Park Resort opened in 2008 and is Iowa's first-ever state-run resort with more than a hundred guest rooms, an 18-hole golf course, and an indoor water park. Rathbun Lake supplies the water treatment plant of Rathbun Regional Water Association (RRWA) which provides quality water to nearly 16,000 rural families, farms and communities in Iowa and Missouri. Average production at the plant during 2001 was 4.37 million gallons per day; however, the annual usage of the RRWA water system is equal to only 4 inches of Rathbun Lake water surface.

References

Sources

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Rathbun Lake – Dam and River BasinU.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Rathbun Lake – Lake FactsU.S. Army Corps of Engineers: Rathbun Lake – Recreation OpportunitiesMidwest SailingRathbun Yacht Club
* ttp://www.honeycreekresort.com/ Honey Creek Resort State Parkbr>Rathbun Regional Water Association
{{authority control Reservoirs in Iowa Bodies of water of Appanoose County, Iowa Tourist attractions in Appanoose County, Iowa Dams in Iowa United States Army Corps of Engineers dams