Sangchris Lake is a 3,022-acre (12.2 km²)

reservoir A reservoir (; from French ''réservoir'' ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam. Such a dam may be either artificial, built to store fresh water or it may be a natural formation. Reservoirs can be created in a number of ways, including contro ...

located in

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

and Sangamon Counties,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

. It was created in 1964 by damming Clear Creek, a tributary of the South Fork of the Sangamon River for recreation and to serve as a source for cooling water for an adjacent electrical generating plant powered with

coal Coal is a combustible black or brownish-black sedimentary rock, formed as rock strata called coal seams. Coal is mostly carbon with variable amounts of other elements, chiefly hydrogen, sulfur, oxygen, and nitrogen. Coal is formed when dea ...

. The lake is no more than 7 miles (11 km) long from headwaters to dam, but so jagged is its shore that the lake's total shoreline measures 120 miles (193 km) in length. Much of the shoreline is now part of

Sangchris Lake State Recreation Area Sangchris Lake State Recreation Area is an Illinois state park on in Christian and Sangamon Counties, Illinois, United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, ...

. The nearest town is

Kincaid, Illinois Kincaid is a village in Christian County, Illinois. The population was 1,349 at the 2020 census. Geography According to the 2021 census gazetteer files, Kincaid has a total area of , all land. The village is located near Sangchris Lake. Demograp ...

. As of 2013, the lake and state park are operated by the

Illinois Department of Natural Resources The Illinois Department of Natural Resources (IDNR) is the code department of the Illinois state government that operates the state parks and state recreation areas, enforces the fishing and game laws of Illinois, regulates Illinois coal mines, ...

, and the adjacent 1,108

megawatt The watt (symbol: W) is the unit of Power (physics), power or radiant flux in the International System of Units, International System of Units (SI), equal to 1 joule per second or 1 kg⋅m2⋅s−3. It is used to quantification (science), ...

Kincaid Power Station is operated by Dominion Resources, an

electricity Electricity is the set of physical phenomena associated with the presence and motion of matter that has a property of electric charge. Electricity is related to magnetism, both being part of the phenomenon of electromagnetism, as described ...

conglomerate. The lake is known for its

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'' ...

, largemouth bass, and striped bass fisheries.

External links

Illinois DNR - Sangchris Lake
{{authority control Protected areas of Christian County, Illinois Reservoirs in Illinois Protected areas of Sangamon County, Illinois Bodies of water of Christian County, Illinois Bodies of water of Sangamon County, Illinois 1964 establishments in Illinois