History

The DeGray Lake area was originally inhabited by the Caddo Indians for whom the Caddo River was named.  A hunter-gathering people, the Caddo were also skilled in agriculture.  They cultivated maize (corn), beans, squash, sunflowers, and tobacco.

The history of the Caddo in this region has been traced to AD 700.  They were the people living in this area at the time of the DeSoto expedition in 1541.  DeSoto probably learned of the location of the hot springs from the Caddo who used the springs for medical purposes.

The Caddo way of life was changed forever by their contacts with Spanish explorers, who introduced them to the horse. French fur trappers followed in the 1700’s, bringing increased trade to the area with their extensive trapping of the river otter and beaver. DeGray itself was named for a French fur trapper named DeGraff, who settled near the dame site. The DeGray community, the first settlement downstream of the dam site provided the name for the Lake. In 1803, with the Louisiana Purchase, settlers began moving into the region in large numbers.

There are several artifacts of the Caddo on display at the DeGray Lake Visitor Center, including projectile points, tools, pottery, and clothing. This display is provided in cooperation of the Arkansas Archeological Survey with the artifacts on loan from the Henderson State University Museum in Arkadelphia.

History – DeGray Dam and Powerhouse

DeGray Dam formed the lake in 1972 when it impounded the water's of the Caddo River.  The project was authorized by the River and Harbor Act of 1950. Originally, DeGray's authorized purposes were to control floods and produce hydroelectric power. The Federal Water Pollution Act of 1963 authorized recreation as a purpose, making DeGray Lake the only lake within the Vicksburg District to have recreation as an original authorized purpose. Water supply was later included as an authorized purpose by the Water Supply Act of 1958, providing water for municipal and industrial needs.

The dam located near Arkadelphia, Arkansas contains about 7 million cubit yards of compacted earth fill. Construction began in 1963 and completed in 1972 at a cost of $63,800,000.

Located on the downstream side of the dam near the west abutment, a 40,000 KW conventional hydraulic turbine and a 28,000 KW reversible turbine generate electricity use in parts of Arkansas, Texas, and Oklahoma (Southwest Power Grid).

DeGray Dam and Power Plant was a model of hydropower efficiency in 2007, generating at a 98% percent availability rate, more than 7 percent over the standard performance measure!   Thanks to the dedicated personnel at the plant, this efficiency resulted in producing 87,588,000-kilowatt hours of clean dependable energy for America, serving 8,933 homes with clean renewable hydro-power. This translates into considerable revenue for the Government, saving 140,140 barrels of precious crude oil which at the present time cost an estimated $140 per barrel is equal to a dollar savings of over $14,100,000.

Butterfly valve

The lake impounds the waters of the Caddo River forming a flood control reservoir covering 13,400 acres with a shoreline of 207 miles at elevation 408.0 NGVD.  The entire project consists of 31,800 acres and is located on National Scenic 7 Byway.