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Cedar Creek Reservoir (Texas)
Encyclopedia
Cedar Creek Reservoir is a reservoir
located in Henderson
and Kaufman
Counties, Texas
(USA
), 60 miles (97 km) southeast of Dallas
. It is built on Cedar Creek
, which flows into the Trinity River
. Floodwaters are discharged through a gated spillway
into a discharge channel that connects to the Trinity River.
s (65 ha
), as a Wildlife Management Area for aquatic birds. The lake is owned by the Tarrant Regional Water District
, and supplies water to Fort Worth
and other cities and water districts in Tarrant
and Johnson
counties. Construction on the lake began in 1961, and was completed in 1965.
, Mabank
, Gun Barrel City
, Payne Springs
, Enchanted Oaks
, Eustace
, Caney City
, Malakoff
, Star Harbor
, Trinidad
, Tool
and Seven Points
. Its proximity to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex makes it a popular weekend getaway.
, a tributary
to the Trinity River
. The dam is at the south end of the lake in the town of Malakoff
. The spillway
on the west side of the lake lets water into a canal
to the Trinity River. Other major creeks that contribute to the inflow are Caney Creek, Clear Creek, and King's Creek
.
, Channel catfish
, Flathead catfish
, Largemouth bass
, White bass
, Hybrid striped bass
, and Crappie
. The best fishing areas for Largemouth bass are in the southern portion of the lake, where the water is clearer, especially the southern third of the lake in the large coves and inlets. The lake's record Largemouth bass weighed 14.65 pounds (6.52 kg). Catfish can be found everywhere, with more Blues than Channels. Fishing is particularly good in the spring and into summer. Due to the many smaller streams, creeks, and run-offs flowing into the lake, running jug lines in the channels of the many coves using goldfish, shad, and small sunfish makes for very good Blue catfish and Flathead (Yellow) catfish fishing grounds.
filled up all the way, then Eagle Mountain, and then on June 30, 2007 Lake Bridgeport was full for the first time since May 15, 2001. More than six years since the flood gates had been open. It was a milestone for Tarrant regional water district having 7 of 7 of their lakes full. On the night of July 5 more than 5 in (127 mm) of rain fell sending Cedar Creek lake from a half foot (15 cm) over to 1.5 feet (45 cm) over beating the old 1.47 ft (0 m) set back in November 2001.
Cedar Creek Powerboat Association
Reservoir
A reservoir , artificial lake or dam is used to store water.Reservoirs may be created in river valleys by the construction of a dam or may be built by excavation in the ground or by conventional construction techniques such as brickwork or cast concrete.The term reservoir may also be used to...
located in Henderson
Henderson County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 73,277 people, 28,804 households, and 20,969 families residing in the county. The population density was 84 people per square mile . There were 35,935 housing units at an average density of 41 per square mile...
and Kaufman
Kaufman County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 71,313 people, 24,367 households, and 19,225 families residing in the county. The population density was 91/sq mi . There were 26,133 housing units at an average density of 33/sq mi...
Counties, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
(USA
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
), 60 miles (97 km) southeast of Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Dallas is the third-largest city in Texas and the ninth-largest in the United States. The Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex is the largest metropolitan area in the South and fourth-largest metropolitan area in the United States...
. It is built on Cedar Creek
Cedar Creek (Texas)
Cedar Creek is a creek in Kaufman, Van Zandt, and Henderson counties in Texas. It is most known for being the creek impounded to create Cedar Creek Lake. It is a tributary to the Trinity River, flowing into it south of Trinidad...
, which flows into the Trinity River
Trinity River (Texas)
The Trinity River is a long river that flows entirely within the U.S. state of Texas. It rises in extreme north Texas, a few miles south of the Red River. The headwaters are separated by the high bluffs on the south side of the Red River....
. Floodwaters are discharged through a gated spillway
Spillway
A spillway is a structure used to provide the controlled release of flows from a dam or levee into a downstream area, typically being the river that was dammed. In the UK they may be known as overflow channels. Spillways release floods so that the water does not overtop and damage or even destroy...
into a discharge channel that connects to the Trinity River.
Basic Information
The lake has a drainage area of over 1,000 square miles (2,600 km²). The Texas Parks and Wildlife Department maintains three islands, totalling 160 acreAcre
The acre is a unit of area in a number of different systems, including the imperial and U.S. customary systems. The most commonly used acres today are the international acre and, in the United States, the survey acre. The most common use of the acre is to measure tracts of land.The acre is related...
s (65 ha
Hectare
The hectare is a metric unit of area defined as 10,000 square metres , and primarily used in the measurement of land. In 1795, when the metric system was introduced, the are was defined as being 100 square metres and the hectare was thus 100 ares or 1/100 km2...
), as a Wildlife Management Area for aquatic birds. The lake is owned by the Tarrant Regional Water District
Tarrant Regional Water District
The Tarrant Regional Water District is a water district in Texas.- History :A devastating flood occurred in Fort Worth on April 12, 1922. The damage and loss of life was catastrophic. As a result, the Tarrant County Commissioner's Court on October 7, 1924, created the Tarrant County Water...
, and supplies water to Fort Worth
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...
and other cities and water districts in Tarrant
Tarrant County, Texas
Tarrant County is a county located in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2010 U.S. Census, it had a population of 1,809,034. Its county seat is Fort Worth. Tarrant County is the sixteenth most populous county in the United States and the third most populous in Texas. The county is named in honor...
and Johnson
Johnson County, Texas
As of the census of 2000, there were 126,811 people, 43,636 households, and 34,428 families residing in the county. The population density was 174 people per square mile . There were 46,269 housing units at an average density of 63 per square mile...
counties. Construction on the lake began in 1961, and was completed in 1965.
Settlements
Towns on or near the lake include KempKemp, Texas
Kemp is a city in Kaufman County, Texas, United States. The population was 1,133 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Kemp is located at ....
, Mabank
Mabank, Texas
Mabank is a town in Henderson and Kaufman Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 2,151 at the 2000 census. The population estimate as of January 1, 2007 was 2,816.-Geography:Mabank is located at ....
, Gun Barrel City
Gun Barrel City, Texas
Gun Barrel City is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 5,145 at the 2000 census.The town began as an unincorporated community known as the "Old Bethel Community" in the 1960s after completion of Cedar Creek Reservoir. It was incorporated in the late 1960s so it...
, Payne Springs
Payne Springs, Texas
Payne Springs is a town in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 683 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Payne Springs is located at ....
, Enchanted Oaks
Enchanted Oaks, Texas
Enchanted Oaks is a town in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 357 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Enchanted Oaks is located at ....
, Eustace
Eustace, Texas
Eustace is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 798 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Eustace is located at .According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , all of it land....
, Caney City
Caney City, Texas
Caney City is a town in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 236 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Caney City is located at ....
, Malakoff
Malakoff, Texas
Malakoff is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,257 at the 2000 census. The community is named after a Russian fort of Malakoff , which played a pivotal role during the siege of Sevastopol during the Crimean war.- History :The community was formerly known as...
, Star Harbor
Star Harbor, Texas
Star Harbor is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 416 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Star Harbor is located at ....
, Trinidad
Trinidad, Texas
Trinidad is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States, near the Trinity River from which the town's name was derived. The population was 1,091 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Trinidad is located at ....
, Tool
Tool, Texas
Tool is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,275 at the 2000 census. Located on the west side of Cedar Creek Lake, it is a popular second home and retiree destination.-Geography:Tool is located at ....
and Seven Points
Seven Points, Texas
Seven Points is a city in Henderson and Kaufman Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 1,145 at the 2000 census.The city is named for an intersection where seven roads converge. These are not Old West wagon trails, however; the town did not exist until nearby Cedar Creek Reservoir...
. Its proximity to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex makes it a popular weekend getaway.
Creeks and rivers
Cedar Creek Reservoir was built on Cedar CreekCedar Creek (Texas)
Cedar Creek is a creek in Kaufman, Van Zandt, and Henderson counties in Texas. It is most known for being the creek impounded to create Cedar Creek Lake. It is a tributary to the Trinity River, flowing into it south of Trinidad...
, a tributary
Tributary
A tributary or affluent is a stream or river that flows into a main stem river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean...
to the Trinity River
Trinity River (Texas)
The Trinity River is a long river that flows entirely within the U.S. state of Texas. It rises in extreme north Texas, a few miles south of the Red River. The headwaters are separated by the high bluffs on the south side of the Red River....
. The dam is at the south end of the lake in the town of Malakoff
Malakoff, Texas
Malakoff is a city in Henderson County, Texas, United States. The population was 2,257 at the 2000 census. The community is named after a Russian fort of Malakoff , which played a pivotal role during the siege of Sevastopol during the Crimean war.- History :The community was formerly known as...
. The spillway
Spillway
A spillway is a structure used to provide the controlled release of flows from a dam or levee into a downstream area, typically being the river that was dammed. In the UK they may be known as overflow channels. Spillways release floods so that the water does not overtop and damage or even destroy...
on the west side of the lake lets water into a canal
Canal
Canals are man-made channels for water. There are two types of canal:#Waterways: navigable transportation canals used for carrying ships and boats shipping goods and conveying people, further subdivided into two kinds:...
to the Trinity River. Other major creeks that contribute to the inflow are Caney Creek, Clear Creek, and King's Creek
King's Creek (Texas)
King's Creek is a creek in Rockwall and Kaufman counties in Texas.It flows from central Rockwall County south past US 80, IH 20, US 175, and SH 274 into Cedar Creek Lake near Kemp. At one time it also flowed into Cedar Creek, which in turn flowed into the Trinity River....
.
Fishing
The predominant fish species of Cedar Creek Lake are Blue catfishBlue catfish
The blue catfish, Ictalurus furcatus, is one of the largest species of North American catfish. Blue catfish are distributed primarily in the Mississippi River drainage including the Missouri, Ohio, Tennessee, and Arkansas rivers...
, Channel catfish
Channel catfish
Channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, is North America's most numerous catfish species. It is the official fish of Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, and Tennessee, and is informally referred to as a "channel cat". In the United States they are the most fished catfish species with approximately 8...
, Flathead catfish
Flathead catfish
The flathead catfish , also called the yellow cat, opelousas, and shovelhead cat, are large North American freshwater catfish. This is the only species of the genus Pylodictis...
, Largemouth bass
Largemouth bass
The largemouth bass is a species of black bass in the sunfish family native to North America . It is also known as widemouth bass, bigmouth, black bass, bucketmouth, Potter's fish, Florida bass, Florida largemouth, green bass, green trout, linesides, Oswego bass, southern largemouth...
, White bass
White bass
The white bass or sand bass The white bass or sand bass The white bass or sand bass (MoroneIt is the state fish of Oklahoma.- Range :White bass are distributed widely across the United States, particularly in the midwest. They are very abundant in Pennsylvania and the area around Lake Erie...
, Hybrid striped bass
Hybrid striped bass
A hybrid striped bass, also known as a wiper or whiterock bass, is a hybrid between the striped bass and the white bass . It can be distinguished from the striped bass by broken rather than solid horizontal stripes on the body...
, and Crappie
Crappie
Crappie is a genus of freshwater fish in the sunfish family of order Perciformes. The type species is P. annularis, the white crappie...
. The best fishing areas for Largemouth bass are in the southern portion of the lake, where the water is clearer, especially the southern third of the lake in the large coves and inlets. The lake's record Largemouth bass weighed 14.65 pounds (6.52 kg). Catfish can be found everywhere, with more Blues than Channels. Fishing is particularly good in the spring and into summer. Due to the many smaller streams, creeks, and run-offs flowing into the lake, running jug lines in the channels of the many coves using goldfish, shad, and small sunfish makes for very good Blue catfish and Flathead (Yellow) catfish fishing grounds.
History
Cedar Creek Lake is a fourth water source for Tarrant Regional Water District's water supply. Its normal system capacity is 322.00 ft (98.15 m) above sea level. When the lake gets over that point gates from the spillway are opened releasing water. 2005 and 2006 were dry years sending the lake to a record low on December 12, 2006. The lake fell to 8.04 ft (2.45 m) below normal, at 313.96 ft (95.7 m). This passed the old record of 6.22 ft (2 m) low set on May 8, 1981. That afternoon the lake received over 4 in (102 mm) of rain causing the lake to rise about 6 in (152 mm). This was the first significant rainfall since April 2006. It was the big turnpoint for the drought in North Texas as more rain continued through the month. By January 1 the lake was only a little over 6 feet (2 m) low. Huge rainstorms throughout January would bring the lake to only 2 feet (0.6 m) low. A bit of a break came in February as mainly snow and ice added to the lake rising. By March 31, 2007 the lake was at 322.12 ft (98.18 m) and the flood gates were open for the first time since April 20, 2005. It was a huge success and it only got better. Lake Benbrook, Lake Worth, and Lake Arlington also filled up in these rains. Later on Richland-Chambers ReservoirRichland-Chambers Reservoir
Richland-Chambers Reservoir is the third largest inland reservoir by surface area and the 8th largest reservoir by water volume in Texas formed by the impoundment of Richland Creek and Chambers Creek east-southeast of the town of Corsicana and south of Kerens, in Navarro County and Freestone...
filled up all the way, then Eagle Mountain, and then on June 30, 2007 Lake Bridgeport was full for the first time since May 15, 2001. More than six years since the flood gates had been open. It was a milestone for Tarrant regional water district having 7 of 7 of their lakes full. On the night of July 5 more than 5 in (127 mm) of rain fell sending Cedar Creek lake from a half foot (15 cm) over to 1.5 feet (45 cm) over beating the old 1.47 ft (0 m) set back in November 2001.
See also
- Trinity River AuthorityTrinity River AuthorityThe Trinity River Authority or TRA was formed in 1955 by the Texas legislature. Its main concerns are water supply and water conservation in the Trinity River Basin. The authority extends over , including all or part of 17 counties...
Cedar Creek Powerboat Association