Chautauqua Lake is located entirely within Chautauqua County,

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...

, United States. The

lake A lake is often a naturally occurring, relatively large and fixed body of water on or near the Earth's surface. It is localized in a basin or interconnected basins surrounded by dry land. Lakes lie completely on land and are separate from ...

is approximately long and wide at its greatest width. The surface area is approximately . The maximum depth is about . The shoreline is about of which all but are privately owned. The lake's name comes from the now-extinct Erie language. Because the

Erie people The Erie people were an Indigenous people of the Northeastern Woodlands historically living on the south shore of Lake Erie. An Iroquoian-speaking tribe, they lived in what is now western New York, northwestern Pennsylvania, and northern Ohio b ...

were defeated in the

Beaver Wars The Beaver Wars (), also known as the Iroquois Wars or the French and Iroquois Wars (), were a series of conflicts fought intermittently during the 17th century in North America throughout the Saint Lawrence River valley in Canada and the Great L ...

before a comprehensive study of their language could be made, its meaning remains unknown and a source of speculation, with two longstanding folk translations being “bag tied in the middle” and “place where fish are taken out,” the latter having some support based on similar words in other Iroquoian languages. A Seneca legend, dating at least to the days of Seneca diplomat John Cornplanter Abeel, attests to the Chautauqua having a reputation as a "place of easy death."

Geography

While the lake has a similar geologic structure (a very long, narrow valley) to the

Finger Lakes The Finger Lakes are a group of eleven long, narrow, roughly north–south lakes located directly south of Lake Ontario in an area called the ''Finger Lakes region'' in New York (state), New York, in the United States. This region straddles th ...

in the east, it is not considered one of the Finger Lakes. Chautauqua Lake runs perpendicular to the westernmost of those lakes (much like an

opposable thumb The thumb is the first digit of the hand, next to the index finger. When a person is standing in the medical anatomical position (where the palm is facing to the front), the thumb is the outermost digit. The Medical Latin English noun for thumb ...

), lies in a different watershed, and was likely formed by a different process. Chautauqua Lake, at an elevation of above sea level, is higher than any of the Finger Lakes. It is also one of the highest navigable lakes in North America. The lake's water level is regulated by Warner Dam, with the water level lifted during the summer to allow for recreational boat use and lowered during the winter months. Instead of flowing north into the

Great Lakes The Great Lakes, also called the Great Lakes of North America, are a series of large interconnected freshwater lakes spanning the Canada–United States border. The five lakes are Lake Superior, Superior, Lake Michigan, Michigan, Lake Huron, H ...

, the water from Chautauqua Lake drains to the south, emptying first into the Chadakoin River in

Jamestown, New York Jamestown is a city in southern Chautauqua County, New York, United States. The population was 28,712 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Situated between Lake Erie to the north and the Allegheny National Forest to the south, Jamesto ...

, before traveling east into Cassadaga Creek and Conewango Creek, south into the

Allegheny River The Allegheny River ( ; ; ) is a tributary of the Ohio River that is located in western Pennsylvania and New York (state), New York in the United States. It runs from its headwaters just below the middle of Pennsylvania's northern border, nor ...

Warren, Pennsylvania Warren is a city in and the county seat of Warren County, Pennsylvania, United States, located along the Allegheny River. The population was 9,404 at the 2020 census. It is home to the headquarters of the Allegheny National Forest and the Cornp ...

, and the

Ohio River The Ohio River () is a river in the United States. It is located at the boundary of the Midwestern and Southern United States, flowing in a southwesterly direction from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to its river mouth, mouth on the Mississippi Riv ...

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, United States, and its county seat. It is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, second-most populous city in Pennsylvania (after Philadelphia) and the List of Un ...

. Chautauqua Creek and Little Chautauqua Creek have their headwaters near the lake, but flow north into lake Erie. The drainage divide was spanned by Pierre-Joseph Céloron de Blainville in his 1749 Ohio River expedition that started from Montreal, and the town of Celoron at the southern end of the lake is named for him. The lake's drainage area is about . Also at the southern end of the lake is the City of Jamestown while the Village of Mayville is located at the northern end. Other communities located on the lake are Bemus Point, Maple Springs, Lakewood and

Chautauqua Chautauqua ( ) is an adult education and social movement in the United States that peaked in popularity in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Chautauqua assemblies expanded and spread throughout rural America until the mid-1920s. The Cha ...

, the site of the influential

Chautauqua Institution The Chautauqua Institution ( ) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit education center and summer resort for adults and youth located on in Chautauqua, New York, northwest of Jamestown, New York, Jamestown in the western southern tier of New York (state), N ...

founded in 1874. There are many other settlements located on the lake, including Fluvanna, Greenhurst, Dewittville, Stow, and Ashville Bay.

Civil division

As of February 19, 2008, Chautauqua Lake has the unique distinction of being an unorganized territory within Chautauqua County. Unlike most large bodies of water in New York which are administratively divided up among the surrounding towns, villages, and cities, Chautauqua Lake is demarcated by the

USGS The United States Geological Survey (USGS), founded as the Geological Survey, is an government agency, agency of the United States Department of the Interior, U.S. Department of the Interior whose work spans the disciplines of biology, geograp ...

and

U.S. Census Bureau The United States Census Bureau, officially the Bureau of the Census, is a principal agency of the U.S. federal statistical system, responsible for producing data about the American people and economy. The U.S. Census Bureau is part of the U ...

as a nonfunctioning political division of its own.

Tourism and recreation

The lake is used primarily for recreation, such as boating and fishing, and tourism. The majority of tourists flock to the

, which contains a wide variety of stores and restaurants and is home to live music entertainment and many public lectures during the summer months. Chautauqua Lake is known for its

muskellunge The muskellunge (''Esox masquinongy''), often shortened to muskie, musky, ski, or lunge, is a species of large freshwater predatory fish native to North America. It is the largest member of the pike family, Esocidae. Origin of name The name ...

fishing and

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, Windsurfing, windsurfer, or Kitesurfing, kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (Land sa ...

. There are two very popular boating locations on the lake, "Sandy Bottoms" (aka "The Sand Bar") in the northernmost part of the lake, and "Party Bay," located to the east/southeast of Long Point State Park, near Maple Springs. On busy, warm weekends, it is not uncommon to see nearly 100 boats in this area of the lake. Every

Fourth of July Independence Day, known colloquially as the Fourth of July, is a federal holiday in the United States which commemorates the ratification of the Declaration of Independence by the Second Continental Congress on July 4, 1776, establishing th ...

fireworks Fireworks are Explosive, low explosive Pyrotechnics, pyrotechnic devices used for aesthetic and entertainment purposes. They are most commonly used in fireworks displays (also called a fireworks show or pyrotechnics), combining a large numbe ...

are launched from communities around the lake. There is one bridge that connects the opposite sides of the lake, the Veterans Memorial Bridge (also known as the Chautauqua Lake Bridge). The structure was completed on October 30, 1982, and joins Bemus Point to Stow on I-86 (at the time known as Route 17). Prior to the construction of the bridge, the only means for cars to cross the lake was the Bemus Point–Stow ferry, a nine-car cable guided ferry, which still operates during the summer months and has become more of a tourist attraction. The cost of the ferry ride is free, though donations are accepted, and it is operated by the Sea Lion Project Ltd. The lake is the home of the '' Chautauqua Belle'', a replica sternwheeler steamboat constructed in 1975 for the US Bicentennial, which offers sightseeing cruises on the lake. The Village of Bemus Point has several popular attractions on the lake during the summer months. Prior to 2018, a popular tourist location was the Bemus Point restaurant, The Italian Fisherman, since renamed "The Fish." Prior to its change in name and ownership, the Italian Fisherman boasted a popular floating stage that hosted an annual summertime concert series. As of 2020 plans were underway to move the floating stage series to Mayville. Bemus Point offers The Village Casino, a restaurant and bar that can easily be reached by boat. Boaters are able to tie up at the Casino's dock where waitresses will serve them from their location. This establishment also has historical value in the area and offers nightlife on the lake. Contrary to its name, the Casino does not offer gambling. From the late 1990s until September 2018, visitors could schedule a lake tour or dinner cruise on ''The Summer Wind,'' a large leisure boat that departed from Celoron at the southern end of the lake. The Summer Wind was damaged in a storm in 2019 and missed the 2020 tourist season. ''The Summer Wind'' was sold in late 2021 and moved out of Chautauqua County. Two

yacht club A yacht club is a boat club specifically related to yachting. Description Yacht clubs are mostly located by the sea, although there some that have been established at a lake or riverside locations. Yacht or sailing clubs have either a mar ...

s are located at the lake, Chautauqua Lake Yacht Club in Lakewood and Chautauqua Yacht Club in

. Chautauqua Lake supports a diverse sportfishery, with angling for walleye, muskellunge, largemouth bass, smallmouth bass and several species of panfish. Additional species include yellow perch, pumpkinseed, bluegill, black crappie, white crappie, white perch, white bass, brown bullhead, yellow bullhead, white sucker, common carp, rock bass, longnose gar and golden shiner.

In popular culture

Chautauqua Lake is mentioned in at least one episode of ''

I Love Lucy ''I Love Lucy'' is an American sitcom that originally aired on CBS from October 15, 1951, to May 6, 1957, with a total of 180 half-hour episodes spanning six seasons. The series starred Lucille Ball and her husband Desi Arnaz, along with Vivian ...

''.

Lucille Ball Lucille Désirée Ball (August 6, 1911 – April 26, 1989) was an American actress, comedian, producer, and studio executive. She was recognized by ''Time (magazine), Time'' in 2020 as one of the most influential women of the 20th century for h ...

(a native of nearby

Celoron, New York Celoron ( ) is a village in Chautauqua County, New York, United States. It is part of the town of Ellicott and sits on the west boundary of the city of Jamestown. The population of Celoron was 1,082 at the 2020 census. History Celoron Park ...

), playing the role of Lucy Ricardo, finds a stuffed and mounted fish in a trunk in her attic and recalls that Ricky caught it at Chautauqua Lake, and was so thrilled that he had mounted and kept it.For further information, see Lucille Ball-Desi Arnaz Center an
SaveLucyDesiCenter.org
. Chautauqua Lake is of major significance in the novel ''Wish You Were Here'' by Stewart O'Nan, published in 2002. The German translation of the title was ''Abschied von Chautauqua'', which means "A Farewell from Chautauqua". It is also the origin and namesake of the

adult education movement, which was heavily referenced in the novel '' Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance'' by

Robert M. Pirsig Robert Maynard Pirsig (; September 6, 1928 – April 24, 2017) was an American writer and philosopher. He is the author of the philosophical books ''Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: An Inq ...

References

External links