Prior to the building of Glen Elder Dam, the present-day site of Waconda Lake was the location of Waconda Spring, a natural flowing artesian well. To capitalize on it, the Cawker City Mineral Company opened a resort on the site in 1904. In 1907, G.F. Abraham of Mankato, Kansas converted the resort into a health spa. Part of the Pick–Sloan Missouri Basin Program authorized by the Flood Control Act of 1944, Glen Elder Dam was one of six units in the Smoky Hill River basin specified as necessary for flood control and irrigation. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation began purchasing rights-of-way in June 1963 and started constructing the dam and Waconda Lake in November 1964. Despite efforts to preserve Waconda Spring as a national monument, the health spa was torn down, and, in 1968, the spring itself was sealed. Construction finished in January 1969, and the spring was submerged beneath the new reservoir. Finding the Solomon River inadequate as a municipal water supply, the nearby city ofBeloit, Kansas successfully requested use of Waconda Lake. In addition, the reservoir went on to provide water to three rural districts. In November 1976, the Kansas StateBoard of Agriculture approved Glen Elder Irrigation District-No. 8, enabling use of the reservoir for irrigation.
Geography
Waconda Lake is located at at an elevation of. It lies in north-central Kansas in the Smoky Hills region of the Great Plains. Most of Waconda Lake lies in Mitchell County with a small portion of its northwestern arm extending into Osborne County. The reservoir is impounded at its eastern end by Glen Elder Dam. The dam is located at at an elevation of. The North Fork Solomon River and South Fork Solomon River are the reservoir's primary inflows from the west. The Solomon River is its primary outflow to the east. Smaller tributaries, from west to east, include Oak Creek and Granite Creek which flow into the reservoir from the north and Carr Creek, Mill Creek, and Walnut Creek which flow into the reservoir from the south. U.S. Route 24 and Kansas Highway 9 run concurrently east-west along the reservoir's north shore. Glen Elder Dam Road, a paved county road, runs north-south across the top of the dam. Lake Drive, another paved county road, runs north-south across the reservoir's western end. There are two settlements on Waconda Lake's north shore: Cawker City at the western end and Glen Elder at the eastern end.
Hydrography
The surface area, surface elevation, and water volume of the reservoir fluctuate based on inflow and local climatic conditions. In terms of capacity, the Bureau of Reclamation vertically divides the reservoir into a set of pools based on volume and water level, and it considers the reservoir full when filled to the capacity of its active conservation pool. When full, Waconda Lake has a surface area of, a surface elevation of, and a volume of. When filled to maximum capacity, it has a surface area of, a surface elevation of, and a volume of. The streambed underlying the reservoir has an elevation of. Since the reservoir's initial flooding, sedimentation has gradually accumulated on the reservoir bottom thus raising its elevation.
Infrastructure
Glen Elder Dam is an earth-fill embankment dam with a structural height of tall and length of. At its crest, the dam has an elevation of. A spillway structure controlled by twelve 50-foot radial gates is located at the south end of the dam. It empties into a channel that joins the Solomon River approximately one mile to the east. A separate outlet works structure at the north end of the dam manages outflow into the river itself.
Management
The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation operates and maintains both Glen Elder Dam and Waconda Lake. The Kansas Department of Wildlife, Parks and Tourism manages of land around the reservoir as the Glen Elder Wildlife Area.
Parks and recreation
The KDWPT operates Glen Elder State Park located on the north shore of the reservoir's eastern end. The park includes a visitor's center, a marina, an amphitheater, boat ramps, hiking trails, swimming beaches, camping facilities, and the Waconda Heritage Village. It also hosts the annual Waconda Indian Festival. Waconda Lake is open for sport fishing year-round. The lake contains many top fishing spots, such as The Bluffs, The Dam, Granite Creek and the River. More than of public land is open for hunting.
Points of interest
The Waconda Heritage Village is a living museum in Glen Elder State Park. It features Hopewell Church, which was relocated to the park in 1994, and a full-scale replica of Waconda Spring.
