West Thompson Lake is a 200-acre lake in

Thompson Thompson may refer to: People * Thompson (surname) * Thompson M. Scoon (1888–1953), New York politician Places Australia *Thompson Beach, South Australia, a locality Bulgaria * Thompson, Bulgaria, a village in Sofia Province Canada * ...

Windham County, Connecticut Windham County is a county located in the northeastern corner of the U.S. state of Connecticut. As of the 2020 census, the population was 116,418, making it the least populous county in Connecticut. It forms the core of the region known as the ...

. A dam was constructed in 1965 by the

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

to create the lake. It impounds the

Quinebaug River The Quinebaug River is a river in south-central Massachusetts and eastern Connecticut, with watershed extending into western Rhode Island. The name "Quinebaug" comes from the southern New England Native American term, spelled variously , , etc ...

for

flood control Flood control methods are used to reduce or prevent the detrimental effects of flood waters."Flood Control", MSN Encarta, 2008 (see below: Further reading). Flood relief methods are used to reduce the effects of flood waters or high water level ...

and seasonal storm water management. The dam is owned and operated by the Corps of Engineers. The dam is one of the six flood control structures built on the river. This network of dams helps control flooding all the way from the upstream tributaries of the Thames River to the Long Island Sound. The West Thompson Dam was constructed in 1965. It cost 6.7 million U.S. dollars. The West Thompson Lake has a total storage capacity of 342 million gallons of flood water.

Natural Resources

West Thompson Lake contains a myriad of natural resources, including diverse habitats, landscapes, plant life, and wildlife. The 1,857 acres of land around the lake is managed by Park Rangers. Of the total area, approximately 1,125 acres are forests. The forests consist of

eastern white pine ''Pinus strobus'', commonly called the eastern white pine, northern white pine, white pine, Weymouth pine (British), and soft pine is a large pine native to eastern North America. It occurs from Newfoundland, Canada west through the Great Lakes ...

, oak, and

shagbark hickory ''Carya ovata'', the shagbark hickory, is a common hickory in the Eastern United States and southeast Canada. It is a large, deciduous tree, growing well over tall, and can live more than 350 years. The tallest measured shagbark, located in Sa ...

, birch and maple. Recreation includes fishing, boating, hunting and hiking, along with an 18-hole disc golf course. Camping is available as well.

References

External links

West Thompson Lake
U.S. Army Corps of Engineers
Bathymetry Map: West Thompson Reservoir
Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection {{authority control Reservoirs in Connecticut United States Army Corps of Engineers dams Dams completed in 1965 Thompson, Connecticut Protected areas of Windham County, Connecticut Lakes of Windham County, Connecticut 1965 establishments in Connecticut