Toledo Bend Reservoir is a

reservoir A reservoir (; ) is an enlarged lake behind a dam, usually built to water storage, store fresh water, often doubling for hydroelectric power generation. Reservoirs are created by controlling a watercourse that drains an existing body of wa ...

on the Sabine River between Texas and Louisiana. The lake has an area of , the largest man-made body of water partially in both Louisiana and Texas, the largest in the South, and the fifth largest by surface acre in the United States. The dam is capable of generating 92

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

s of electrical power. The dam itself is located in the northeast corner of

Newton County, Texas Newton County is the easternmost county in the U.S. state of Texas. As of the 2020 census, its population was 12,217. Its county seat is Newton. The county is named for John Newton, a veteran of the American Revolutionary War. Newton County ...

; however, that county includes very little of the reservoir, as most of it extends northward into parts of

Sabine The Sabines (, , , ; ) were an Italic people who lived in the central Apennine Mountains (see Sabina) of the ancient Italian Peninsula, also inhabiting Latium north of the Anio before the founding of Rome. The Sabines divided int ...

and DeSoto parishes in Louisiana, and

, Shelby, and Panola counties in Texas.

Historical development

The land along the

Orange Orange most often refers to: *Orange (fruit), the fruit of the tree species '' Citrus'' × ''sinensis'' ** Orange blossom, its fragrant flower ** Orange juice *Orange (colour), the color of an orange fruit, occurs between red and yellow in the vi ...

area often flooded from the Sabine, with destructive effects. Also, the considerations for municipal, industrial, agricultural, and recreational purposes were part of the reasons the

Texas State Legislature The Texas State Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Texas. It is a bicameral body composed of a 31-member Senate and a 150-member House of Representatives. The state legislature meets at the Capitol in Austin. It is a po ...

formed the ''Sabine River Authority of Texas'' (SRA-T) in 1949, and in 1950 the

Louisiana State Legislature The Louisiana State Legislature (; ) is the state legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is a bicameral legislature, body, comprising the lower house, the Louisiana House of Representatives with 105 ...

created the ''Sabine River Authority, State of Louisiana'' (SRA-L) for the project. The two autonomous entities formed the ''Sabine River Compact'', a memorandum of agreement, approved by the Legislatures of the States of Texas (1953) and Louisiana (1954), The U.S. Congress, and the President. These organizations and the compact were a result of efforts that began with the ''Sabine River Watershed Association'' of Texas after World War II as well as citizens from Louisiana, to create a freshwater supply, that included hydroelectric power, as well as providing recreation. With both authorities in agreement, in 1955 a feasibility report was initiated and by 1959, the two states allocated 30 million dollars for the project. The land was acquired in 1963, with the work following the subsequent year. The ''Massman-Johnson Construction Company'' served as the general contractor, and by the completion of the project in , Texas' estimated share of the funds was $70 million. The dam was built by the two states, without any assistance from the federal government.

History

Beginning in May 1963, land acquisitions for Toledo Bend Reservoir started as a joint management project of Texas and Louisiana River Authorities. Construction on the Toledo Bend Dam, spillway, and power plant, began on May 11, 1964. The closure section of the earthen embankment and impoundment of water was begun in October 1966. The power plant was completed and began operating in the early part of 1969. The Toledo Bend Project was constructed primarily for the purposes of water supply, hydroelectric power generation, and recreation. Toledo Bend Reservoir forms a portion of the boundary between the states of Texas and Louisiana. From the dam site, which is north of Burkeville, TX, the reservoir extends up the river for about to Logansport, LA, and inundates land in Sabine, Shelby, Panola, and Newton Counties, Texas, and Sabine and DeSoto Parishes, Louisiana. In 2003, during recovery operations following the Space Shuttle ''Columbia'' disaster, some remains of the astronauts were recovered west of the Reservoir.

Area impact

Many communities were affected in the impacted parishes and counties.

Sabine Parish

In Sabine Parish, there were several communities that included houses and other buildings such as schools and churches predominantly poor and minority, that were inundated. *Pine Flat Community (100 individuals and included about 50 homes and a school), *Barlake community, *Richard Neck community, *Kites Landing The water, normally covering an area of about has a controlled storage capacity of . Toledo Bend is the nation's only public water conservation and hydroelectric power project to be undertaken without federal participation in its permanent financing.

Public recreation

Toledo Bend, with its of shoreline, offers a large variety of recreational activities and is a major element in serving the growing demand for water oriented outdoor recreation. Both private and public facilities are available for swimming, boating, picnicking, fishing, camping, hunting, and sightseeing. The reservoir is a popular location for freshwater fishing with many clubs hosting tournaments. The western shores of the reservoir are largely within the boundary of

Sabine National Forest Sabine National Forest is located in East Texas near the Texas-Louisiana border. The forest is administered together with the other three United States National Forests and two National Grasslands located entirely in Texas, from common offices in ...

, Texas. At present, the lake is best suited to shallow draft power boats due to a large number of trees and stumps that are still in the body of the lake. Although there are numerous well marked boat lanes that have been cleared of stumps and trees, one should use caution even on the boat lanes; one should use extreme caution when off the boat lanes and maintain a watch for stumps and/or trees as well as floating logs. The lake is home to the Toledo Bend Army Recreation Park. The park is located on the south end of the lake, and is available only to active and retired military personnel and government employees. The park offers a convenience store with well-maintained fleet of pontoon boats, bay boats, bass boats, kayaks, and canoes for rent. A developed beach area with a bath house, cabins, and yurts are available. The park is operated by the US Army at nearby

Fort Johnson Fort Polk, formerly Fort Johnson, is a United States Army installation located in Vernon Parish, Louisiana, Vernon Parish, Louisiana, about 10 miles (15 km) east of Leesville, Louisiana, Leesville and 30 miles (50 km) north of DeRid ...

in Leesville, Vernon Parish.

References

External links

ToledoBendLake.com - The largest and oldest Toledo Bend Lake information siteToledoBendLakeCountry.com – Official site of the Toledo Bend (Sabine Parish) Tourist Commission
*
ToledoBend.Com – Complete source of information on Toledo Bend Lake
{{authority control Bodies of water of DeSoto Parish, Louisiana Bodies of water of Sabine Parish, Louisiana Bodies of water of Panola County, Texas Protected areas of Panola County, Texas Bodies of water of Newton County, Texas Bodies of water of Sabine County, Texas Bodies of water of Shelby County, Texas Dams in Louisiana Dams in Texas Reservoirs in Louisiana Reservoirs in Texas United States state-owned dams Sabine River (Texas–Louisiana)