Geneva Lake
{{Short description|Lake in Walworth County, Wisconsin, US}}
{{About|the lake in Wisconsin|the city|Lake Geneva, Wisconsin}}
{{Other uses|Lake Geneva (disambiguation)}}
{{Infobox body of water
|name = Geneva Lake
|location = Walworth County, Wisconsin,
United States
|image = Lake Geneva Cruise Line boat tour April 2025 07.jpg
|caption =
|image_bathymetry =
|caption_bathymetry =
|coords = {{coord|42|33|54|N|88|30|14|W|region:US-WI_type:waterbody_source:dewiki|display=inline,title}}{{cite GNIS|1565459|Lake Geneva|Jan 15, 2021}}
|type =
|inflow =
|outflow = White River
|catchment =
|basin_countries = United States
|length = 12 km (7.8 mi)
|width = 3.2 km (2 mi)
|area = {{convert|5401|acre|ha sqmi km2|lk=on}}
|depth = {{convert|61|ft|m}}
|max-depth = {{convert|135|ft|m}}
|volume =
|residence_time =
|shore =
|elevation =
|islands =
|cities = Lake Geneva, Fontana-on-Geneva-Lake, Williams Bay
| pushpin_map = Wisconsin#USA
| pushpin_label_position = top
| pushpin_map_alt = Location of Geneva Lake in Wisconsin, US.
| pushpin_map_caption =
| website =
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}}
Geneva Lake (Potawatomi: Kishwauketoe 'Clear Water'){{Cite journal|last=Lahey|first=Sarah T.|date=May 25, 2016|title=The Potawatomi At Geneva Lake|url=https://atthelakemagazine.com/potawatomi-geneva-lake/|journal=At the Lake: Geneva Lakes Area Magazine|access-date=July 11, 2021}} is a body of freshwater in Walworth County in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Wisconsin.{{cite web
| url = http://dnr.wi.gov/lakes/lakepages/lakedetail.aspx?wbic=758300
| title = Geneva Lake, Walworth County, 5401 Acres
| publisher = Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources
| quote = Name: Geneva Lake, Area: 5401 acres, Maximum Depth: 135 feet, Mean Depth: 61 feet
| accessdate = 2017-09-16
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20170916225314/http://dnr.wi.gov/lakes/lakepages/lakedetail.aspx?wbic=758300
| archive-date = 2017-09-16
| url-status = live
}} On its shores are the city of Lake Geneva and the villages of Fontana-on-Geneva-Lake and Williams Bay. The lake covers an area of approximately {{convert|5401|acre|ha sqmi km2|lk=on}}, with a maximum length of {{convert|7.8|mi|km}}, a mean depth of {{convert|61|ft|m}}, and a maximum depth of {{convert|135|ft|m}}. Geologists believe that it is a filled-in kettle formed from a receding glacier.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}}
History
Geneva Lake was home to a band of Prairie Potawatomi prior to colonial settlement. During the first three decades of the nineteenth century, the band was led by Big Foot.{{citation needed|date=July 2022}} This led the settlers on Geneva Lake to refer to it as Big Foot Lake.{{Cite journal|last=Manierre|first=George|date=December 1917|title=Early Recollections of Lake Geneva (Big Foot Lake), Wisconsin|url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/4630064|journal=The Wisconsin Magazine of History|volume=1|issue=2 |pages=142–148|jstor=4630064 }}
In the 1830s, a government surveyor named John Brink renamed the lake and the town on it for Geneva, New York, another lakeside town which he thought they resembled.{{cite web | url = http://www.universityoflakegeneva.com/zGeneva_Lake/GenevaLakeHistory.php | title = A short history of Geneva Lake | publisher = University of Lake Geneva | date = 2003 | accessdate = 2013-08-16 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120306230512/http://www.universityoflakegeneva.com/zGeneva_Lake/GenevaLakeHistory.php | archive-date = 2012-03-06 | url-status = dead }} To avoid confusion with the nearby town of Geneva, Illinois, the city was renamed Lake Geneva; later,{{when|date=July 2022}} the lake was renamed Geneva Lake.{{citation needed|date=October 2015}}
The lake is known as the only place in the world where mail jumping is practiced, an unusual mail delivery system maintained as a local tradition.
Attractions and public access
Lakeshore attractions include Big Foot Beach State Park, Lake Geneva Yacht Club, the George Williams College campus of Aurora University, and Yerkes Observatory. The observatory is no longer owned by the University of Chicago, which transferred ownership of it to the non-profit Yerkes Future Foundation in May 2020.{{cite web| url = https://www.lakegenevanews.net/news/local/foundation-celebrates-donation-and-takes-ownership-of-yerkes-observatory/article_1701caaf-8a68-5e12-89ab-d7d2ab2eb380.html| title = Foundation celebrates donation and takes ownership of Yerkes Observatory| publisher = lakegenevanews.net| date = 2020| accessdate = 2021-01-18| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200602021326/https://www.lakegenevanews.net/news/local/foundation-celebrates-donation-and-takes-ownership-of-yerkes-observatory/article_1701caaf-8a68-5e12-89ab-d7d2ab2eb380.html| archive-date = 2020-06-02| url-status = live}}
Public access to the lake is allowed as the result of a decision by early European settlers that "20 feet [6 meters] of land leading up to the shoreline should be public domain."
A shorepath, which is open to the public, completely surrounds the lake.{{cite news| title = A Hike Around Lake Geneva Is A Walk For All Seasons| date = August 28, 1988| author = Timothy J. Tuomey and Magdalene Wise Tuomey| newspaper = Chicago Tribune| url = https://www.chicagotribune.com/1988/08/28/a-hike-around-lake-geneva-is-a-walk-for-all-seasons/| access-date = 2013-08-16| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130801165808/http://articles.chicagotribune.com/1988-08-28/travel/8801260683_1_walkers-path-schwinn-bicycle| archive-date = August 1, 2013| url-status = live}}{{cite web|url=http://www.lakegenevawi.com/c/Play/Geneva_Lake_Shorepath_Walk.aspx |title=Geneva Lake Shorepath Walk |publisher=Lake Geneva Area Convention & Visitors Bureau |accessdate=2013-08-16 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130806140732/http://lakegenevawi.com/c/Play/Geneva_Lake_Shorepath_Walk.aspx |archivedate=2013-08-06 }}{{cite web |url=http://streetsoflakegeneva.com/walk-hike-or-run-on-the-lake-geneva-lake-shore-path/ |title=Walk, Hike, or Run on the Lake Geneva Lake Shore Path |publisher=The Downtown Lake Geneva Business Improvement District |accessdate=2013-08-16 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20130731081840/http://streetsoflakegeneva.com/walk-hike-or-run-on-the-lake-geneva-lake-shore-path/ |archivedate=2013-07-31 }} Between {{convert|21|and|26|mi}} long, it follows the route taken by Potawatomi Indians. The path crosses the estates of the Schwinns, Swifts, Wackers, and Wrigleys.
File:Geneva Lake Shorepath Sign 1.jpg|Geneva Lake Shorepath sign
File:Yacht Racing On Lake Geneva (NBY 428822).jpg|Yacht Racing On Lake Geneva, postcard
File:Untitled - Resorts (NBY 697).jpg|Olivet Camp, postcard
References
{{Reflist}}
External links
{{Commons category}}
- [http://www.genevalakewest.com/ Geneva Lake West Chamber of Commerce]
- {{cite web|url= http://wi.water.usgs.gov/pubs/wrir-02-4039/wrir-02-4039.pdf |title=Hydrology and Water Quality of Geneva Lake, Walworth County, Wisconsin }} {{small|(2.0 MB)}}, report by USGS with history and environmental info.
- [https://archive.org/stream/myramblesinench00compgoog#page/n10/mode/2up My Rambles in The Enchanted Summer Land, 1881]
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