John Redmond Reservoir
| John Redmond Reservoir | |
|---|---|
|
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| Location | Coffey County, Kansas |
| Coordinates | 38°13′30″N 95°46′36″W / 38.22500°N 95.77667°WCoordinates: 38°13′30″N 95°46′36″W / 38.22500°N 95.77667°W |
| Type | Reservoir |
| Primary inflows | Neosho River |
| Primary outflows | Neosho River |
| Catchment area | 3,015 sq mi (7,810 km2) |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Managing agency | U.S. Army Corps of Engineers |
| Built | June 18, 1959 |
| First flooded | November 17, 1964 |
| Surface area | 9,400 acres (38 km2) |
| Max. depth | 12 ft (3.7 m) |
| Water volume |
Full: 67,302 acre·ft (83,016,000 m3) Current (Jan. 2016): 88,024 acre·ft (108,576,000 m3) |
| Shore length1 | 59 miles (95 km) |
| Surface elevation |
Full: 1,041 ft (317 m) Current (Jan. 2016): 1,043 ft (318 m) |
| Islands | 3 on South section |
| Settlements | Burlington, New Strawn, Ottumwa |
| References | |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
John Redmond Reservoir is a reservoir on the Neosho River in eastern Kansas. Built and managed by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, it is used for flood control, recreation, water supply, and wildlife management. It borders the Flint Hills National Wildlife Refuge to the northwest.
The Neosho River valley flooded more than 50 times in the 30 years leading up to 1950 when the U.S. Congress authorized the flood control project that later became John Redmond Dam and Reservoir. It was authorized and awaiting construction during the Great Flood of 1951 which inundated downtown Burlington and Strawn where some locations had floodwater 30 feet (9.1 m) deep.
Originally, Congress authorized the project under the Flood Control Act of 1950 as Strawn Dam in reference to Strawn, the town located where the reservoir is today. Strawn was relocated 6 miles (9.7 km) to the east on higher ground and renamed New Strawn at the time the dam was constructed. In 1958, Congress renamed the project John Redmond Dam and Reservoir in honor of the late John Redmond, the publisher of the Burlington Daily Republican who had been a long-time advocate for flood control and water conservation along the Neosho River. Redmond had died in 1953.
The entire design and construction of the project was conducted by the Tulsa District of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers at a total cost of $29,264,000. The dam began to undergo construction on June 18, 1959 and went into service on November 17, 1964, several weeks before final completion, in order to protect the Neosho River valley from the expected winter and spring floods.
During the Great Flood of 1993, floodwaters reached up to the top of the dam's release gates. The reservoir reached capacity in July 1993, necessitating the first release of the spillway.
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Wikipedia