2009 Welcome to Wise.indd - Wise County Messenger

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Lake Bridgeport
MESSENGER PHOTO BY JOE DUTY
LAKE BRIDGEPORT AT SUNSET
More than 70 years ago, when Dallas and Fort Worth were mere shadows of what
they are today, the small town of Bridgeport, located on a tributary of the Trinity
River, became the home of Lake Bridgeport, one of the largest lakes in the state.
Today that lake still stands as a
huge warm-weather attraction, providing
fun on the water for families
from all over Texas.
“There are three main attractions in
this area,” Bridgeport Lake Superintendent
Richard Ellis said. “One is the
mass amount of limestone, another
is the Barnett Shale and the third is
the lake. It’s as simple as that. Lake
Bridgeport is a very important part of
the county.”
In 1922, severe rains plagued the
Trinity River area, causing heavy flood
damage to northern Tarrant County
and the city of Fort Worth, prompting
the formation of the Tarrant County
Water Conservation Association. In
1929, construction began on the Lake
Bridgeport dam, and two years later
the lake was finished.
Lake Bridgeport is located on the
west fork of the Trinity River in Wise
and Jack counties, about four miles
west of Bridgeport, and about 70
miles from DFW Airport.
With a surface area of just less than
12,000 acres and about 129 miles of
shoreline according to the Tarrant Regional
Water District, Lake Bridgeport
is one of the largest lakes in Texas.
The lake is 5.9 miles wide and 19
miles long at its maximum points and
has a conservation storage of 366,236
acre-feet. With an average depth of
29 feet, Lake Bridgeport can accommodate
most small fishing boats and
recreational crafts.
Ellis has worked for the Tarrant Regional
Water District since 1995 and
said that Lake Bridgeport provides
the area not only with recreation but
also with a sustainable water supply.
“This lake was built first and foremost
for flood control and water supply,
then for recreation. We provide
water to all the local cities and to
many of the powerplants in the area.”