Lake Lemon

Just 10 miles northeast of Bloomington, Indiana, among the picturesque rolling hills of south-central Indiana, is where you'll find Lake Lemon. Boaters and fishers travel as far as Kentucky and northern Indiana to enjoy the picturesque and serene environment. In order to provide the City of Bloomington's growing population with access to natural resources and a drinking water reservoir, Lake Lemon was constructed in 1953. Up until the late 1960s, Lake Lemon served as the City of Bloomington's main source of drinking water. Currently, Bloomington's backup water supply comes from the reservoir.

With 1,650 acres, 24 miles of shoreline, and an average depth of 9.7 feet, Lake Lemon is the 11th largest lake and 7th largest public reservoir in Indiana. The watershed of Lake Lemon drains an area of around 70 square miles. Due to the financial burden of having a water supply that was not being used, the City of Bloomington Utilities started looking for an organization interested in administering the reservoir in the late 1980s. Lake locals Earl Eberle, Larry Ritter, and Bud Howard spearheaded arduous grassroots efforts that resulted in the creation of the Lake Lemon Conservancy District (LLCD) in 1995.