Little Grassy Lake
Encyclopedia
Little Grassy Lake is a 1,200-acre (4.8 km²) reservoir
in southern Illinois
, created by the damming of Little Grassy Creek, a tributary of Crab Orchard Lake
and the Big Muddy River
. Most of the lake is located in Williamson County
, southeast of Carbondale, Illinois
. The lake is accessible from Giant City Road out of Carbondale, Illinois. Two arms of the lake penetrate into adjacent Jackson County
. The lake is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge
.
. The surrounding hills, forested with oak
and hickory
trees, did not offer good farming potential, and the federal government condemned the farms to construct the lake.
In 1959, activity around the lake increased when the Illinois Department of Natural Resources
(IDNR) chose a land parcel near the Little Grassy dam as the site for its primary warm-water hatchery for the production of fish such as largemouth bass
, bluegill
, channel catfish
, and redear sunfish
for stocking. , 15.0 million fingerlings are produced annually.
ing, with largemouth bass, bluegill, channel catfish, and crappie
stocked and caught. There is a power limit on the lake, with motors restricted to 10 h.p. or less. A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service permit is required for use of the lake. A campground and marina operates during fishing season.
Little Grassy Lake is IDNR's sole catfish hatchery. For catfish, the spawn
ing and fish maturation process requires at least one year, with mature fish spawning on or around June 1; the fish take at least 13 months to grow to a "nonvulnerable" length of 8 inches (20 cm) and are typically ready for delivery to their new homes in July of the following summer. IDNR distributes Little Grassy catfish to 220 separate Illinois waterways.
A stretch of spillway
directly below the Little Grassy dam, measuring 0.2 miles (0.3 km) in length, is a noted whitewater
spot, rated at Class II-IV depending on spillway flow conditions. The spillway tends to operate during rain or snow meltwater runoff events in winter and early spring.
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...
in southern Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
, created by the damming of Little Grassy Creek, a tributary of Crab Orchard Lake
Crab Orchard Lake
Crab Orchard Lake is a 6,965-acre reservoir in Williamson County, Illinois. It is the centerpiece of the Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge...
and the Big Muddy River
Big Muddy River
The Big Muddy River is a river in southern Illinois. It joins the Mississippi River south of Murphysboro. The Big Muddy has been dammed near Benton, forming Rend Lake.The Big Muddy has a mud bottom for most of its length.-Hydrography:...
. Most of the lake is located in Williamson County
Williamson County, Illinois
-2010:Whereas according to the 2010 U.S. Census Bureau:*92.7% White*3.8% Black*0.4% Native American*0.8% Asian*0.0% Native Hawaiian or Pacific Islander*1.7% Two or more races*0.4% Other races*2.0% Hispanic or Latino -2000:...
, southeast of Carbondale, Illinois
Carbondale, Illinois
Carbondale is a city in Jackson County, in the state of Illinois, within the Southern Illinois region. It is located at the junction of Illinois Route 13 and U.S. Route 51, southeast of St. Louis, Missouri, on the northern edge of the Shawnee National Forest...
. The lake is accessible from Giant City Road out of Carbondale, Illinois. Two arms of the lake penetrate into adjacent Jackson County
Jackson County, Illinois
Jackson County, incorporated January 10, 1816, is a county located in the U.S. state of Illinois. According to the 2010 census, it has a population of 60,218, which is an increase of 1.0% from 59,612 in 2000...
. The lake is managed by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service as part of the Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge
Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge
Crab Orchard National Wildlife Refuge is a 43,890 acre National Wildlife Refuge primarily in southwestern Williamson County, but with small extensions into adjacent eastern Jackson and northeastern Union counties of southern Illinois, in the United States. Its land and water contain a wide...
.
History
Little Grassy Lake was built in 1940 as part of federal relief efforts surrounding recovery from the Great DepressionGreat Depression
The Great Depression was a severe worldwide economic depression in the decade preceding World War II. The timing of the Great Depression varied across nations, but in most countries it started in about 1929 and lasted until the late 1930s or early 1940s...
. The surrounding hills, forested with oak
Oak
An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus Quercus , of which about 600 species exist. "Oak" may also appear in the names of species in related genera, notably Lithocarpus...
and hickory
Hickory
Trees in the genus Carya are commonly known as hickory, derived from the Powhatan language of Virginia. The genus includes 17–19 species of deciduous trees with pinnately compound leaves and big nuts...
trees, did not offer good farming potential, and the federal government condemned the farms to construct the lake.
In 1959, activity around the lake increased when the Illinois Department of Natural Resources
Illinois Department of Natural Resources
The Illinois Department of Natural Resources is a cabinet-level department of the state government of Illinois. It is headquartered in the state capital of Springfield...
(IDNR) chose a land parcel near the Little Grassy dam as the site for its primary warm-water hatchery for the production of fish such as largemouth bass
Largemouth bass
The largemouth bass is a species of black bass in the sunfish family native to North America . It is also known as widemouth bass, bigmouth, black bass, bucketmouth, Potter's fish, Florida bass, Florida largemouth, green bass, green trout, linesides, Oswego bass, southern largemouth...
, bluegill
Bluegill
The Bluegill is a species of freshwater fish sometimes referred to as bream, brim, or copper nose. It is a member of the sunfish family Centrarchidae of the order Perciformes.-Range and distribution:...
, channel catfish
Channel catfish
Channel catfish, Ictalurus punctatus, is North America's most numerous catfish species. It is the official fish of Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska, Kansas, and Tennessee, and is informally referred to as a "channel cat". In the United States they are the most fished catfish species with approximately 8...
, and redear sunfish
Redear sunfish
The redear sunfish , also known as the shellcracker, Georgia bream, cherry gill, chinquapin, improved bream, rouge ear sunfish and sun perch, is native to the southeastern United States, but since it is a popular sport fish it has been introduced to bodies of water all over North America...
for stocking. , 15.0 million fingerlings are produced annually.
The lake today
Little Grassy Lake is managed for warmwater fishFish
Fish are a paraphyletic group of organisms that consist of all gill-bearing aquatic vertebrate animals that lack limbs with digits. Included in this definition are the living hagfish, lampreys, and cartilaginous and bony fish, as well as various extinct related groups...
ing, with largemouth bass, bluegill, channel catfish, and crappie
Crappie
Crappie is a genus of freshwater fish in the sunfish family of order Perciformes. The type species is P. annularis, the white crappie...
stocked and caught. There is a power limit on the lake, with motors restricted to 10 h.p. or less. A U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service permit is required for use of the lake. A campground and marina operates during fishing season.
Little Grassy Lake is IDNR's sole catfish hatchery. For catfish, the spawn
Spawn (biology)
Spawn refers to the eggs and sperm released or deposited, usually into water, by aquatic animals. As a verb, spawn refers to the process of releasing the eggs and sperm, also called spawning...
ing and fish maturation process requires at least one year, with mature fish spawning on or around June 1; the fish take at least 13 months to grow to a "nonvulnerable" length of 8 inches (20 cm) and are typically ready for delivery to their new homes in July of the following summer. IDNR distributes Little Grassy catfish to 220 separate Illinois waterways.
A stretch of spillway
Spillway
A spillway is a structure used to provide the controlled release of flows from a dam or levee into a downstream area, typically being the river that was dammed. In the UK they may be known as overflow channels. Spillways release floods so that the water does not overtop and damage or even destroy...
directly below the Little Grassy dam, measuring 0.2 miles (0.3 km) in length, is a noted whitewater
Whitewater
Whitewater is formed in a rapid, when a river's gradient increases enough to disturb its laminar flow and create turbulence, i.e. form a bubbly, or aerated and unstable current; the frothy water appears white...
spot, rated at Class II-IV depending on spillway flow conditions. The spillway tends to operate during rain or snow meltwater runoff events in winter and early spring.