Jim Chapman Dam (originally Cooper Dam, National ID # TX08012) is a dam in Delta County and Hopkins County,

Texas Texas ( , ; or ) is the most populous U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. It borders Louisiana to the east, Arkansas to the northeast, Oklahoma to the north, New Mexico to the we ...

United States 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 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

. The earthen dam was constructed in 1991 by the

Southwestern Division The United States Army Corps of Engineers Southwestern Division (SWD) is one of the eight permanent divisions of the Army organization, providing civil works and military water resource services and infrastructure. It also supports economically ...

of the

United States Army Corps of Engineers The United States Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) is the military engineering branch of the United States Army. A direct reporting unit (DRU), it has three primary mission areas: Engineer Regiment, military construction, and civil wo ...

with a height of 95 feet, and a length of 28,072 feet at its crest. It impounds the south fork of the

Sulphur River The Sulphur River is a river in northeast Texas and southwest Arkansas in the United States. It is a tributary of the Red River. Geography The Sulphur River begins at the confluence of its north and south forks forming (following earlier mean ...

for municipal water supply and recreation. The dam is owned and operated by the Corps of Engineers. The reservoir it creates,

Jim Chapman Lake Jim Chapman Lake (also known as Cooper Lake) is a impoundment operated by the United States Army Corps of Engineers, Army Corps of Engineers and is located east of the Dallas/Fort Worth Metroplex in the state of Texas. The reservoir was create ...

, has a water surface and a maximum capacity of . The lake is known as a preferred location for fishing in the region. Species likely to be caught are blue and channel

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 ...

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 ...

, Florida

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 ...

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 ...

and hybrid

striped bass The striped bass (''Morone saxatilis''), also called the Atlantic striped bass, striper, linesider, rock, or rockfish, is an anadromous perciform fish of the family Moronidae found primarily along the Atlantic coast of North America. It has ...

. The

Texas Parks and Wildlife Department The Texas Parks & Wildlife Department (TPWD) is a Texas state agency that oversees and protects wildlife and their habitat (ecology), habitats. In addition, the agency is responsible for managing the state park, state's parks and historical ar ...

's two separate units of

Cooper Lake State Park Cooper Lake State Park is a Texas State Park in Delta and Hopkins counties, about three miles (5 km) south of Cooper, Texas. The park is situated on Jim Chapman Lake, formerly known as Cooper Lake. There are actually two geographically se ...

are located on Jim Chapman Lake. The Dam was formerly known as Cooper Dam. Both lake and dam were renamed by an act of

Congress A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of ...

in 1998 to honor Jim Chapman, a former

congressman A member of congress (MOC), also known as a congressman or congresswoman, is a person who has been appointed or elected and inducted into an official body called a congress, typically to represent a particular constituency in a legislature. The t ...

from nearby Sulphur Springs.

References

Dams in Texas United States Army Corps of Engineers dams Dams completed in 1991 Buildings and structures in Delta County, Texas Buildings and structures in Hopkins County, Texas Earth-filled dams 1991 establishments in Texas {{US-dam-stub