Tippecanoe Lake
| Lake Tippecanoe | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Location | Kosciusko County, North Central Indiana, US |
| Coordinates | 41°19′40″N 085°45′35″W / 41.32778°N 85.75972°WCoordinates: 41°19′40″N 085°45′35″W / 41.32778°N 85.75972°W |
| Type | Glacial lake |
| Primary inflows | James Lake, Grassy Creek |
| Primary outflows | Oswego Lake to Tippecanoe River |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Surface area | 880 acres (360 ha) |
| Average depth | 37 ft (11 m) |
| Max. depth | 123 ft (37 m) |
| Residence time | 4 years |
| Surface elevation | 837 ft (255 m) |
Tippecanoe Lake is a large, glacially created lake in Kosciusko County in north-central Indiana and, at 123 feet deep, is the deepest natural lake in the state.
Location
Tippecanoe Lake is about two miles west of the town of North Webster, Indiana, and Webster Lake with the small unincorporated area of Oswego located near its west-northwestern shore.
Recreation
Tippecanoe Lake is used mostly for recreational purposes such as fishing, boating and skiing, and is surrounded by mostly expensive residential housing. A prominent historical location is on the southwest shore of the lake: Tippy Dance Hall. Once a traditional concert hall which hosted acts such as Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong and the 1960s act The Byrds, Tippy Dance Hall is now a teen dance club with Saturday night dances from Memorial Day until just after Labor day.[1]
Geographic place names
- Bel Rohr Park is on Patona Bay on Tippecanoe's extreme northwest shore. Patona Bay Resort and Patona Bay Marina are found there.
- Black's Landing is on Tippecanoe's northern shore across from Government Point.
- Forest Glen is on Tippecanoe's central western shore and east of Stanton Lake.
- Government Point is located on Tippecanoe's southern shore, just north of Pie-Eyed Petey's Marina and just east of Indian Hills Golf Course.
- Kalorama Park is opposite Forest Glen on Tippecanoe's northern shore. This is also the home of Tippecanoe Lake Country Club.
- Mineral Springs is on Tippecanoe's southeastern shore.
- Stony Ridge is on Tippecanoe's northwestern shore and across Patona Bay from Bel Rohr Park.
- Walker's Landing is on Tippecanoe's northern shore west of Black's Landing.
Establishments
Tippecanoe Lake Country Club
Tippecanoe Lake Country Club is a private club and one of the lake's largest attractions. It is north of Kalorama Park at 7245 N Kalorama Road and accessed from Indiana State Road 13 via Kosciusko County Roads E650N and E800N. TLCC, a private club, was opened on April 15, 1926, with the clubhouse opening on June 11 of that year. The club joined the Chicago District Golf Association in the 1950s. From 1959 through the early 1960s, the club also hosted LPGA tournaments. Professionals such as Kathy Cornelius of Phoenix, Arizona, and Mickey Wright of Port St. Lucie, Florida, played Tippecanoe.[2] Aside from golf, T.L.C.C. also provides tennis, swimming and boating, and holds a fireworks display for the 4 July.
Marinas
Patona Bay Marina and Resort
Patona Bay Marina consists of a full-service marina, defined as a new and used boat/PWC dealership as well as a full-service parts and service department. The marina also offers repairs, seasonal services (installing/removing boat lifts) and other services.
Patona Bay Resort has existed since the 1920s and has grown into several-hundred unit seasonal resort, which allows patrons to pay a seasonal rent to reside at the Resort during the summer months (April–October). Pier spaces do cost an additional fee, but if one has a boat/PWC the price is relatively affordable. As the real estate prices for individual homes on Lake Tippecanoe have reached nearly $450,000 for a small cottage (roughly 1,200 square feet), Patona Bay Resort is a relatively affordable way for families to enjoy the lake in the summer without the hassle of a year-round mortgage. The resort also includes a gift shop/arcade/snack bar during the summer, a separate swimming beach with several areas for children to play, other amenities such as a pet walk for dogs, family events during the summer holiday weekends, etc.
Pie-Eyed Petey's Restaurant and Bar
Pie-Eyed Petey's Restaurant and Bar, occupying the former site of Plaza Marina, is a full-service restaurant/bar, with a limited marina and fueling services. The marina offers a limited selection of boating accessories, as well as a store with T-shirts, hand painted signs and other lake-oriented accessories.
Pie-Eyed Petey's is the only full-service restaurant and bar on the lake. The menu consists of pizzas, subs, tenderloins, chicken fingers, hamburgers, etc. The decor in the bar reflects Lake Tippecanoe's heritage; from the early days of pull-start outboard motors hanging on the wall, to water skis dating from the 1960s, to the teak MasterCraft Decks from the 1990s, this eatery has a strong flair for Lake Tippecanoe nostalgia. A newly completed "Tiki" Bar is located outdoors, with flat-screen TVs and a full-service bar to serve outdoor patrons. The outdoor dining area has grown in recent years, and much of it is covered by canopies, with large outdoor heaters if the temperatures require them. Most recently, a red lighthouse has been constructed just onshore.
Tippecanoe Boat Co Inc
Tippecanoe Boat Co. Inc. is a marina on the northeast side of Lake Tippecanoe. The access point is through a long channel which is clearly marked by a large sign, underneath a footbridge, and into a lagoon. Gas is available at TBC, and there is a full boat dealership as well.
Public access
Public access to Tippecanoe Lake is available via:
- Grassy Creek, a tributary that connects, by way of a manually operated lock, the east shore of Tippecanoe Lake to Sawmill, Sechrist, Banning, Irish, Little Barbee, Big Barbee and Kuhn lakes upstream. The ramp is on the east shore of the creek along Armstrong Road, just north of the lock.
- Patona Bay Resort on the northwest shore
- Tippy Dance Hall on the southwest shore
- Tippecanoe Boat Company on the northeast shore
- Pie-Eyed Petey's Marina and Restaurant on the southeast shore
Drainage
Tippecanoe is drained by the Tippecanoe River which flows generally south to the Wabash River. The river ends near Battle Ground, Indiana, in Tippecanoe county.
Two reservoirs (man-made lakes), Lake Shafer and Lake Freeman, are fed by the Tippecanoe River. The reservoirs both have dams controlling flow of the Tippecanoe River into them.
Notable residents
A notable resident was Chris Schenkel. Schenkel announced the Triple Crown horse races and the Masters Tournament on CBS. With ABC Sports he was Olympic anchorman, college football, NBA, and PBA bowling announcer.
Lore
There are some interesting myths surround Tippecanoe Lake. The most famous is how the "bottom" of the lake is a false bottom made up of silt, under which lies a spring that extends 200 feet (61 m)—300 feet (91 m) feet below the surface of the lake. Other myths are that somewhere in the lake lies a crashed airplane, (either a B-17 Flying Fortress or a small private airplane, depending on who you talk to), and that SCUBA divers went the deepest depths of the lake only to surface when the fish became larger than the divers.