Nature Bulletin No. 112   April 19, 1947
Forest Preserve District of Cook County
William N. Erickson, President
Roberts Mann, Supt. of Conservation

****:MAN-MADE LAKES AND PONDS

Conservation is on the march. Slowly, we are stopping the pollution of 
our streams by sewage and industrial wastes; we are restoring many 
lakes and ponds and marshes, or creating new ones. In the Middle 
West, where soils are rich and land values high, we are finding many 
locations, unsuitable or marginal for farming, where we can easily and 
cheaply impound a body of water benefiting the community more than 
any agricultural use of that land. Because of the benefits to wildlife, the 
various forms of recreation provided, and their benefit to the adjacent 
land, these are called multiple-use water areas.

The Illinois Department of Conservation is beginning the construction 
of a carefully planned state-wide system which will provide publicly 
owned lakes and ponds in every county. In the Palos section of the 
Forest Preserve District of Cook County there are 86 lakes, ponds and 
sloughs, varying from one to 325 acres in area, totaling 1027 acres, 
existing or planned. Missouri, Iowa, Indiana, Ohio, and other states are 
building thousands of lakes and farm ponds.

Such lakes near cities and villages can serve as sources of water supply 
and, if sufficient land surrounding them is purchased, recreation in the 
form of fishing, swimming, boating, picnicking and camping. In m any 
counties there is no publicly owned land for outdoor recreation other 
than the " square" in the center of a town or, perhaps, a small city park. 
For the farmer, a pond will furnish water for his livestock, swimming, 
and ample fishing for his family. If bottom-feeding fish, like carp and 
suckers, are kept out and a natural shoreline allowed to develop, the 
desirable fish will thrive, a variety of aquatic plants will grow, and the 
songbirds, wild ducks and shorebirds will be attracted. Muskrats and 
mink will make the lake or pond their home; the tracks of possum and 
raccoon will be seen in the mud; crawfish and turtles and minnows will 
provide fun for boys and girls.

Water, like fire, has an irresistible attraction. Some folks come to 
paddle a canoe or row a boat. Some swim. Some come to hunt. Some 
come to fish for sport or food. Some come to rest and dream.