Lake Norman is the largest man-made body of fresh water in North Carolina. It was created between 1959 and 1964 as part of the construction of the Cowans Ford Dam by Duke Energy. Wikipedia Lake Norman is an artificial lake that is 33.6 miles (54.1 km) long, 9 miles (14 km) wide and 520 miles (840 km) of shoreline. Its average depth is 33.5 feet (10.2 m), but at its outlet it reaches a depth of 110 feet (34 m).
The lake is mainly supported by an interspersed igneous and metamorphic bedrock. North Carolina's Piedmont is a region of great biodiversity, and Lake Norman is important for its diversity of birds, fish, mammals and plants. Lake Norman is the largest body of water in the Catawba River Basin and the largest lake in North Carolina. The Lake Norman shoreline is 520 miles (840 km) long and has an area of more than 50 square miles (130 km).
The surrounding ecology of Lake Norman includes mixed hardwood forest, dry oak and walnut forest, dry forest of Mexican oak and walnut trees, lowland forests of Piedmont, and alluvial forest of Piedmont and alluvial forest of Piedmont. Overcash's is just one example of a family whose land is now under the waters of the lake, which turns 50 this year. In 1963, when the lake began to fill up, it swallowed up farms, buildings and churches. The coastline stretches 520 miles and the area is about 32,000 acres, the size of about 25,000 football fields.
Its waters are found in four counties. The lake is so big that people call it “inland sea”. The land around the lake was very underdeveloped and many different groups of people inhabited the lake region. The basin is also home to a wide variety of resident animals, many of them unique and rare in the Piedmont area, which thrive thanks to the resources provided by Lake Norman.
The local newspaper record of the late 1950s and early 1960s showed little concern for lands and communities that would be flooded and displaced due to the creation of Lake Norman. Other regulations include the creation of the Lake Norman Commission, comprised of Lincoln, Catawba, Iredell and Mecklenburg counties. Lake Norman was the last and largest of the river's seven lakes, from just above Morganton to where the Catawba joins the Santee-Cooper in South Carolina. The main cause of erosion problems in Lake Norman is the density of residential neighborhoods located so close to the shores of the lake.
George Fawcett, a North Carolina resident and UFO enthusiast, has kept records of Lake Norman sightings for the UFO Research Center and Museum, located in Roswell, New Mexico. The fishing and boating regulations on Lake Norman follow the guidelines of the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission. Since Duke Power Company built Lake Norman, the company has played an integral role in encouraging recreation on the lake. The North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission has introduced certain species of fish to the lake, such as blue catfish and striped bass.
Duke Energy has permission to pour wastewater into a section upstream of the river, provided that the water that the company draws from the lake is of the same quality as the water that is discharged into the lake. Duke Power Company donated 1,328 acres of land that eventually became Lake Norman State Park in September 1962. Lake management is complicated by the presence of multiple stakeholders in lake management, often with conflicting interests and priorities. Duke had predicted that the lake would fill the pond at 760 feet above sea level in 1964, but the heavy spring rains surprised everyone and, by mid-July, the lake was full and open to the public.
