Sterling Lake 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 ...

located in

Sterling Forest State Park Sterling Forest State Park is a state park located in the Ramapo Mountains in Orange County, New York. Established in 1998, it is among the larger additions to the New York state park system in the last 50 years. History Sterling Forest was ...

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

. The lake contains a number of fish species including Lake Trout, Largemouth Bass, Smallmouth Bass, Chain Pickerel and Panfish. Fishing is permitted from the shore only; no boating is allowed on the lake, and the use of bait-fish is prohibited. There are a number of scenic hiking trails around the lake. One of the trails leads to the

Sterling Mountain Fire Observation Tower and Observer's Cabin The Sterling Mountain Fire Observation Tower and Observer's Cabin is a historic fire observation station located on Sterling Mountain in Sterling Forest State Park at Greenwood Lake in Orange County, New York. Located at an elevation of , the s ...

which provides a 360 degree view of the forest, including Sterling Lake. As of 2018, the Sterling Lake System, operated by SUEZ North America (formerly United Water), supplies drinking water from Sterling Lake to about 225 people.

History

The Sterling Lake area is rich in magnetite deposits. Since before the

American Revolution The American Revolution was an ideological and political revolution that occurred in British America between 1765 and 1791. The Americans in the Thirteen Colonies formed independent states that defeated the British in the American Revolut ...

, this area was an important source of iron ore for the

colonies In modern parlance, a colony is a territory subject to a form of foreign rule. Though dominated by the foreign colonizers, colonies remain separate from the administration of the original country of the colonizers, the '' metropolitan state'' ...

. Ore was discovered at the site of the old Sterling Mine in 1750, on the south shore of the lake. This led to the establishment of what would become known as the

Sterling Iron Works The Sterling Iron Works owned by Peter Townsend was one of the first steel and iron manufacturers in the Thirteen Colonies and the first steel producer in the Province of New York. The company was most famous for forging the Hudson River Chain that ...

. Another mine, called the Lake Mine, ran underneath Sterling Lake for some 3,800 feet at a depth of about 900 feet. The mines were finally closed in 1921. The underground workings of both these mines are now flooded.

References

{{authority control Lakes of New York (state) Ramapos Warwick, New York Fishing in the United States Iron mines in the United States Mines in New York (state)