Lake Beulah is an

unincorporated community An unincorporated area is a parcel of land that is not governed by a local general-purpose municipal corporation. (At p. 178.) They may be governed or serviced by an encompassing unit (such as a county) or another branch of the state (such as th ...

in the town of

East Troy East Troy is a village in Walworth County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 5,673 at the 2020 census. The village is located southwest of the Town of East Troy. A small portion extends into the adjacent Town of Troy. As of 2020, th ...

, Walworth County,

Wisconsin Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...

, United States. The unincorporated community surrounds the freshwater Lake Beulah.

Lake Beulah

Community

The unincorporated community surrounds the freshwater Lake Beulah. The lake covers an area of 812 acres with a maximum depth of 58 feet. Two

summer camp A summer camp, also known as a sleepaway camp or residential camp, is a supervised overnight program for children conducted during the summer vacation from school in many countries. Children and adolescents who attend summer residential camps ...

s, YMCA Camp Edwards and Beber Camp, also use the lake for recreational purposes.

Ecology

Lake Beulah contains a variety of different species within the lake. Many species of fish can be found in the lake, including:

Panfish The word panfish, also spelled pan-fish or pan fish, is an American English term describing any food fish, edible freshwater fish that usually do not outgrow the size of an average frying pan. It is also commonly used by recreational fishing, re ...

Largemouth Bass The largemouth bass (''Micropterus nigricans'') is a carnivorous, freshwater fish, freshwater, ray-finned fish in the Centrarchidae (sunfish) family, native to the eastern United States, eastern and central United States, southeastern Canada an ...

Smallmouth Bass The smallmouth bass (''Micropterus dolomieu'') is a species of freshwater fish in the Centrarchidae, sunfish family (biology), family (Centrarchidae) of the order (biology), order Centrarchiformes. It is the type species of its genus ''Micropterus ...

Northern Pike The northern pike (''Esox lucius'') is a species of carnivorous fish of the genus ''Esox'' (pikes). They are commonly found in brackish water, moderately salty and fresh waters of the Northern Hemisphere (''i.e.'' holarctic in distribution). T ...

Walleye The walleye (''Sander vitreus'', Synonym (taxonomy), synonym ''Stizostedion vitreum''), also called the walleyed pike, yellow pike, yellow pikeperch or yellow pickerel, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern ...

Redbreast Sunfish The redbreast sunfish (''Lepomis auritus'') is a species of freshwater fish in the sunfish family (biology), family (Centrarchidae) of the order (biology), order Centrarchiformes. The type species of its genus, it is native to the river systems o ...

Catfish Catfish (or catfishes; order (biology), order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Catfish are common name, named for their prominent barbel (anatomy), barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, though not ...

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 ''Pomoxi ...

Bluegill The bluegill (''Lepomis macrochirus''), sometimes referred to as "bream", "brim", "sunny", or, in Texas, "copper nose", is a species of North American freshwater fish, native to and commonly found in streams, rivers, lakes, ponds and wetlands ea ...

, and

Cisco Cisco Systems, Inc. (using the trademark Cisco) is an American multinational digital communications technology conglomerate corporation headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco develops, manufactures, and sells networking hardware, s ...

. The lake is also home to Painted Turtles, Smooth Softshell Turtles, and

Snapping Turtles The Chelydridae is a Family (biology), family of turtles that has seven extinct and two extant genera. The extant genera are the snapping turtles, ''Chelydra'' and ''Macrochelys''. Both are Endemic (ecology), endemic to the Western Hemisphere. Th ...

Curly-Leaf Pondweed ''Potamogeton crispus'', the crisp-leaved pondweed, curly pondweed, curly-leaf pondweed or curled pondweed, is a species of aquatic plant (hydrophyte) native to Eurasia but an introduced species and often a noxious weed in North America. Descr ...

, Eurasian Water-Milfoil, Hybrid

Eurasian Eurasia ( , ) is a continental area on Earth, comprising all of Europe and Asia. According to some geographers, physiographically, Eurasia is a single supercontinent. The concept of Europe and Asia as distinct continents dates back to antiq ...

/ Northern Water-Milfoil, and

Zebra Mussels The zebra mussel (''Dreissena polymorpha'') is a small freshwater mussel, an Aquatic animal, aquatic bivalve mollusk in the family Dreissenidae. The species originates from the lakes of southern Russia and Ukraine, but has been accidentally Intro ...

can also be found in the lake.

Wood duck The wood duck or Carolina duck (''Aix sponsa'') is a partially migratory species of perching duck found in North America. The male is one of the most colorful North American waterfowls. Taxonomy The wood duck was Species description, formal ...

s and

Canada geese The Canada goose (''Branta canadensis''), sometimes called Canadian goose, is a large species of 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 ...

are also present on Lake Beulah.

History

Early history

The lake was formed at some point in the 1830s following the construction of the wooden Yonman-Johnson dam (which now forms part of Wisconsin County Highway J), creating a lake between

and

Mukwonago Mukwonago is a village in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. The population was 8,262 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. The village is located mostly within the Mukwonago (town), Wisconsin, Town of Mukwonago in Waukesha County, Wisconsin ...

. In 1894, the Lake Beulah Protective and Improvement Association (LBPIA) was established with the aim of "improving and protecting Lake Beulah and the streams and waters adjacent thereto." By 1904, the association had improved the lake strengthening the dam, introducing wall eyed pike, and formulating regulations regarding the display of lights on watercraft. The association successfully managed to get the dam further strengthened with cement in 1909, which allowed for the lake to be maintained at a set height all year round. A

weed cutter A weed is a plant considered undesirable in a particular situation, growing where it conflicts with human preferences, needs, or goals.Harlan, J. R., & deWet, J. M. (1965). Some thoughts about weeds. ''Economic botany'', ''19''(1), 16-24. Pla ...

was then purchased by LBPIA and led to the removal of weeds and tree stumps which had previously clogged some channels surrounding the lake.

Post World War Two

The end of the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

brought with it the advent of the commercial speedboat. Such crafts became a common occurrence on the lake and led to the issuance of a revised 'Code of Good Conduct' in 1963 which was issued to all lake front property owners. By the 1990s, the major issue on the lake was the spread of

invasive species An invasive species is an introduced species that harms its new environment. Invasive species adversely affect habitats and bioregions, causing ecological, environmental, and/or economic damage. The term can also be used for native spec ...

, particularly the

Eurasian Water Milfoil ''Myriophyllum spicatum'' (Eurasian watermilfoil or spiked water-milfoil) is a submerged perennial aquatic plant which grows in still or slow-moving water. Eurasian watermilfoil is native to Europe, Asia, and North Africa, but has a wide geograph ...

Lake Beulah Yacht Club

The Lake Beulah Yacht Club was established in 1893. Its members have been nationally recognized in sailboat racing, winning prestigious awards. The Rolex Yachtswoman of the Year Award was presented to Stephanie Roble and Annie Haeger in 2015 and 2016, respectively. Haeger also went on to represent the

USA The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 contiguous ...

at the

2016 Olympics The 2016 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Rio 2016, were an international multi-sport event held from 5 to 21 August 2016 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, with preliminary events i ...

, finishing 7th in the women's 470.

Notable people

* Frank L. Fraser, Wisconsin State Representative, farmer, and lawyer lived in Lake Beulah; Fraser served as the postmaster for Lake Beulah and the chairman of the East Troy Town Board.'Wisconsin Blue Book 1895,' Biographical Sketch of Frank L. Fraser, pg. 692-693 * Annie Haeger, US Olympic sailor; participated in sailing competitions and other sailing activities with the Lake Beulah Yacht Club. * Stephanie Roble, US Olympic sailor; participated in sailing competitions and other sailing activities with the Lake Beulah Yacht Club.

Notes

External links

Lake Beulah Protective & Improvement Association
{{authority control Unincorporated communities in Walworth County, Wisconsin Unincorporated communities in Wisconsin