222 



Judging from the contour of the land, the level of the lake has probably 

 never been more than 5 feet below its present level. 



TOPOGRAPHY OF THE SHORE. 



The shore of 20 miles is about equally divided between dry shores and marshy 

 shores. The shores of Syracuse Lake and of the west end of the main lake were 

 not carefully surveyed, but accurate measurements and notes were taken of the 

 shore line of the east end of the main lake from a point on the north shore three- 

 eighths of a mile to the northwest of Wawasee, around the east end of the lake to 

 a point directly south of the starting-point. These data were used in mapping a 

 ten-foot elevation line around this part of the lake. For this reason the shores of 

 the east end of the lake are treated more in detail than the otliers. 



The dry shores are composed of sand and gravel. Some are less than 5 feet 

 higli, but more often they are abrupt blufTs from 10 to 30 feet high, or hills which 

 ascend rapidly to a height of 40 feet. The west, nortii antl northeast shores of 

 Syracuse Lake are bluffs or hills. The east shore is marshy. The shore south of 

 Turkey Creek, the outlet, is also marshy, and these marshes extend along both 

 sides of the Channel between Syracuse Lake and the main lake. Pickwick Park 

 is located on a gravelly shore less than 10 feet above the level of the lake. Be- 

 tween Pickwick Park and Eppert's is the Gordoniere Marsh extending north- 

 west to the Channel. Pickwick Park and the land to the west of it is sur- 

 rounded by the main lake, the Channel and the (xordoniere Marsh and is known 

 as British Island. The shore between Eppert's and Jones' is mainly marsh. From 

 Jones' one-quarter of a mile east the shore is a bluff from 10 feet to 1.5 feet high. 

 From this point almost to Wawasee the land near the shore is at present a dry 

 marsh. The bluff at Wawasee is 15 feet high and extends along the shore 1,700 

 feet. This I)luff extends back from shore 500 feet where it joins the marsh which 

 stretches along the shore to Ogden Island, and also to the east to .Johnson's Bay. 

 Ogden Island, which is surrounded by the lake only on the southwest side and on 

 all other sides by marshes, extends a half mile to the noithwest of Ogden Point 

 and is from 300 feet to 1,000 feet wide. Its greater part is from 3 feet to 6 feet 

 above the level of the lake. About one-half of that part of the island which 

 touches tlie lake is a bluff from 10 feet to IS feet high. The area higher than 10 

 feet is 1,100 feet long and from 175 feet to 400 feet wide. The marsh around 

 Johnson's Bay is known as the Johnson Marsh. It skirts the southeast and east 

 sides of Ogden Island, surrounds a piece of timbered land 700 feet in diameter 



