Arkabutla Lake
Encyclopedia
Arkabutla Lake is a reservoir
on the Coldwater
River in the U.S. state
of Mississippi
. It is one of four Flood Damage Reduction reservoirs in northern Mississippi
. With an annual visitation exceeding 2 million people, Arkabutla Lake accommodates a wide variety of recreational interest throughout the entire year.
The Arkabutla Lake project includes 57250 acres (231.7 km²) of land and water. The dam
is 11500 ft (3,505.2 m) long with an average height of 67 ft (20.4 m). There are 37700 acres (152.6 km²) of land at the project which are open to the public for hunting.
After a series of disastrous floods during the mid-19th century and early 20th century, high priority was given to flood control
projects. The worst flood in modern history of the Lower Mississippi Valley occurred in 1927. The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
spawned a comprehensive program for flood control along the Mississippi River and its tributaries and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers became the planners, designers and builders of the flood control projects.
Engineers determined the headwaters of the Yazoo River contributed to or caused much of the flooding that occurred in Mississippi’s Delta region. In addition to the construction of levees along the Yazoo River, four flood control reservoirs were constructed in north Mississippi as part of the Yazoo Basin Headwater Project. Arkabutla Dam, the second of the dams to be built, was constructed on the Coldwater River.
The development of Arkabutla Dam even required the relocation of an entire town. In 1942, the U.S. Government moved the town of Coldwater and approximately 700 residents at a cost of $250,000 to its present location 1 miles (1.6 km) south of the original site. Today there is a monument dedicated to the old town of Coldwater just west of the Coldwater exit off Interstate 55. There you can see a few remnants of the old town; however a majority of the site remains underwater year round.
When completed, the Yazoo Headwater Project will protect 1209000 acres (4,892.7 km²) of land against flooding and will partially protect another 303000 acres (1,226.2 km²). Benefits of the Headwater Project are reduced flooding around the cities of Greenwood, Yazoo City, Belzoni, and other smaller communities within the Yazoo River Basin and increased agricultural and industrial productivity because more land is available for these purposes. As a result, the region’s national and international markets for produce have greatly increased and families have benefited from the growing job market.
, Everett McGill's treasure is buried at a cabin located in a valley that is flooded during the construction of Arkabutla Reservoir. A brief still shot of a newspaper dated Tuesday, July 13, 1937 has a headline which reads "T.V.A. FINALIZING PLANS FOR FLOODING OF ARKTABUTTA VALLEY".
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...
on the Coldwater
Coldwater River (Mississippi)
The Coldwater River is a river which flows for through northwestern Mississippi in the United States. It is a tributary of the Tallahatchie River, and part of the watershed of the Mississippi River, via the Yazoo River....
River in the U.S. state
U.S. state
A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...
of Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. It is one of four Flood Damage Reduction reservoirs in northern Mississippi
Mississippi
Mississippi is a U.S. state located in the Southern United States. Jackson is the state capital and largest city. The name of the state derives from the Mississippi River, which flows along its western boundary, whose name comes from the Ojibwe word misi-ziibi...
. With an annual visitation exceeding 2 million people, Arkabutla Lake accommodates a wide variety of recreational interest throughout the entire year.
The Arkabutla Lake project includes 57250 acres (231.7 km²) of land and water. The dam
Dam
A dam is a barrier that impounds water or underground streams. Dams generally serve the primary purpose of retaining water, while other structures such as floodgates or levees are used to manage or prevent water flow into specific land regions. Hydropower and pumped-storage hydroelectricity are...
is 11500 ft (3,505.2 m) long with an average height of 67 ft (20.4 m). There are 37700 acres (152.6 km²) of land at the project which are open to the public for hunting.
History
After a series of disastrous floods during the mid-19th century and early 20th century, high priority was given to flood control
Flood control
In communications, flood control is a feature of many communication protocols designed to prevent overwhelming of a destination receiver. Such controls can be implemented either in software or in hardware, and will often request that the message be resent after the receiver has finished...
projects. The worst flood in modern history of the Lower Mississippi Valley occurred in 1927. The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
Great Mississippi Flood of 1927
The Great Mississippi Flood of 1927 was the most destructive river flood in the history of the United States.-Events:The flood began when heavy rains pounded the central basin of the Mississippi in the summer of 1926. By September, the Mississippi's tributaries in Kansas and Iowa were swollen to...
spawned a comprehensive program for flood control along the Mississippi River and its tributaries and the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers became the planners, designers and builders of the flood control projects.
Engineers determined the headwaters of the Yazoo River contributed to or caused much of the flooding that occurred in Mississippi’s Delta region. In addition to the construction of levees along the Yazoo River, four flood control reservoirs were constructed in north Mississippi as part of the Yazoo Basin Headwater Project. Arkabutla Dam, the second of the dams to be built, was constructed on the Coldwater River.
The development of Arkabutla Dam even required the relocation of an entire town. In 1942, the U.S. Government moved the town of Coldwater and approximately 700 residents at a cost of $250,000 to its present location 1 miles (1.6 km) south of the original site. Today there is a monument dedicated to the old town of Coldwater just west of the Coldwater exit off Interstate 55. There you can see a few remnants of the old town; however a majority of the site remains underwater year round.
When completed, the Yazoo Headwater Project will protect 1209000 acres (4,892.7 km²) of land against flooding and will partially protect another 303000 acres (1,226.2 km²). Benefits of the Headwater Project are reduced flooding around the cities of Greenwood, Yazoo City, Belzoni, and other smaller communities within the Yazoo River Basin and increased agricultural and industrial productivity because more land is available for these purposes. As a result, the region’s national and international markets for produce have greatly increased and families have benefited from the growing job market.
Cultural references
In the movie O Brother, Where Art Thou?O Brother, Where Art Thou?
O Brother, Where Art Thou? is a 2000 comedy film directed by Joel and Ethan Coen and starring George Clooney, John Turturro, Tim Blake Nelson, John Goodman, Holly Hunter, and Charles Durning. Set in 1937 rural Mississippi during the Great Depression, the film's story is a modern satire loosely...
, Everett McGill's treasure is buried at a cabin located in a valley that is flooded during the construction of Arkabutla Reservoir. A brief still shot of a newspaper dated Tuesday, July 13, 1937 has a headline which reads "T.V.A. FINALIZING PLANS FOR FLOODING OF ARKTABUTTA VALLEY".
External links
- Arkabutla Lake official web page - USACEUnited States Army Corps of EngineersThe United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...
official web page.