History of the Turtle Flambeau Flowage

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In 1926 the Chippewa and Flambeau Improvement Company closed the gates on a newly constructed dam at the confluence of the Turtle and Flambeau rivers. As the waters behind the dam rose, they flooded more than a dozen natural lakes, a handful of river and creek beds, and thousands of acres of forest, swamp, and marshland.  The resulting impoundment—known today as the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage—is nearly 13,000 acres in size when the water is at full pool. Trude Lake, a natural lake that was flooded over as the flowage filled and that is connected to the flowage by a narrow waterway, adds an additional 786 acres to the waters of the flowage.

The Turtle Dam—later called the Flambeau or Turtle-Flambeau Dam—was not designed to generate electricity.  Rather, it was built to create a storage reservoir whose waters were released, as needed, to provide a more even flow for downstream users, primarily electric utilities and paper mills.  It still serves this purpose today.  The term “flowage” drives from the logging era, when flowages of various sizes were built to aid in flushing logs downstream for processing.

Though the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage had its roots in the industrial development of the state, it gained its public reputation from recreational use.  Its nutrient rich waters, coupled with standing dead trees and floating driftwood and slash, made for an ideal habitat for its many species of fish.  The burgeoning fish populations, in turn, drew ever increasing numbers of anglers who were attracted by the excellent fishing and the wilderness feel of the flowage.  In the 1930s and 1940s a vigorous resort industry arose to serve the needs of these anglers and their families.  It was in these years that the legendary character of the flowage began to be shaped—a character that has survived to the present day.

Statewide recognition of the Turtle-Flambeau Flowage as a special kind of place came in 1990 when Governor Tommy Thompson announced that the state would be purchasing the flowage from the Chippewa and Flambeau Improvement Company.  Using funds from the recently established Knowles/Nelson Stewardship Program, the state acquired 114 miles of mainland shoreline, 150 islands, 11,395 acres of water, 8,477 acres of woodland, and 3,700 acres of wetland.  What the governor called “one of the state’s crown jewels” now belonged to the people of Wisconsin.  In 1995, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources established the Turtle-Flambeau Scenic Waters Area (TFSWA), which encompassed the 23,572 acres of the initial purchase.  With subsequent additions, the TFSWA now comprises 37, 560 acres.

The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources manages the TFSWA on the basis of a master plan developed with substantial citizen participation. Management practices aim to perpetuate the natural character of the shoreline, preserve its scenic qualities, and protect its plant and animal communities. Managers strive to preserve the quality and wealth of outdoor recreation on the flowage including fishing, hunting, camping, nature observation, trapping, boating, and canoeing.

According to the terms of the purchase of the flowage, the Chippewa and Flambeau Improvement Company retained its rights to manage the dam and flowage water levels.  It did so under the aegis of a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources that was worked out in 1990.  The MOU, in addition to committing both parties to cooperate on water-related issues, sets guidelines for spring re-filling of the flowage and for winter and summer drawdowns.  Xcel Energy has since replaced the Chippewa and Flambeau Improvement Company as the business partner to the MOU.

In 2018, Mike Hittle, a long-time resident of the Flowage and a retired history professor at Lawrence University, completed a fascinating detailed book on the history of our magnificent water body. The book, An Accidental Jewel, is available at the Mercer Library or here for anyone interested-  http://littlecreekpress.com/bookstore/an-accidental-jewel/. And FYI, the mention of this book here came at the personal suggestion of another POA member and was not suggested by Mike Hittle as a means of promoting his book.