Elephant Butte Lake State Park is a
state park of
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ke ...
, United States, located north of
Truth or Consequences
''Truth or Consequences'' is an American game show originally hosted on NBC radio by Ralph Edwards (1940–1957) and later on television by Edwards (1950–1954), Jack Bailey (1954–1956), Bob Barker (1956–1975), Steve Dunne (1957–1958), ...
along the shore of
Elephant Butte Reservoir
Elephant Butte Reservoir is a reservoir on the southern part of the Rio Grande in the U.S. state of New Mexico, north of Truth or Consequences. The reservoir is the 84th largest man-made lake in the United States and the largest in New Mexico by ...
in
Sierra County.
Description
The park is the largest state park in New Mexico and surrounds the state's largest
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 ...
. The reservoir, created in 1916 across the
Rio Grande, is long with more than of shoreline.
Named after a rock formation resembling an elephant, Recreation at Elephant Butte Reservoir is managed by the New Mexico State Parks under agreement with the
United States Bureau of Reclamation
The Bureau of Reclamation, and formerly the United States Reclamation Service, is a federal agency under the U.S. Department of the Interior, which oversees water resource management, specifically as it applies to the oversight and opera ...
.
Elephant Butte Dam, Crews began construction on the dam in 1911 and ended in 1916. This was a major engineering feat in its day. The enormous concrete dam is the major feature of the Elephant Butte National Register Historic District. New Mexico State Parks operates a visitor center that contains information on the construction of the dam. There are 3 developed camps on the lake, with over 200 camping and picnicking sites, concession-operated marinas, and stores.
Although the park is named after an elephant-shaped butte located at the head of the dam, an actual
stegomastodon fossil was discovered there on June 9, 2014. The dam serves as a way to ease flooding, control irrigation and provide electricity. Talk of a dam began in the 1880s after farmers in southern New Mexico, Texas and Mexico began to complain that they were not receiving their fair share of water. A legal battle over the water and where the dam should be built delayed its construction. The dam would get a few more names before the elephant took up permanent residence.
In the late 1800s, local newspapers were already referring to the area where the dam would eventually be built as Elephant Butte. Upper Town was designated for what was considered the higher class and more skilled workers including engineers, and supervisors.(There was even further segregated with Mexicans and Americans separated into different areas.
In 2019, a 9-year-old boy caught a 42-pound blue catfish there.
See also
*
List of New Mexico state parks
References
External links
Elephant Butte Lake State ParkElephant Butte Chamber of Commerce information for visitors
{{authority control
State parks of New Mexico
Parks in Sierra County, New Mexico
Protected areas established in 1964
Rio Grande