I have been working on research for the
Living New Deal Project the past few months, and constantly checking out the areas in which I travel in the hopes of locating undocumented projects from Roosevelt's New Deal administration projects completed during the 1930s and early 1940s to help the US recover from the Great Depression. I thought I had remembered hearing that the Lake Cisco Dam and amusement complex was a Civilian Conservation Corp (CCC) project when I worked briefly at Cisco College. My brother, who attended CJC--as it was known then--in the 1970s said he thought the zoo was a WPA project. We were both wrong. Nonetheless, it was fun to revisit the complex where I once sustained a major injury to my left great toe during an outing while attending McMurry College in the late 60s. Randy, who spent many summers there visiting his grandparents, filled in many of the gaps for me in terms of the complex.
Lake Cisco was formed when Williamson Dam was constructed on Sandy Creek. It opened September 7, 1923 (wdr.waterusgs.gov, Water Data Report 2007). The dam is 1,064 feet in length, and the old road from Cisco to Moran traversed the dam. Due to the overgrowth, and the fencing of a portion of the area, it is difficult to capture a photo that shows just how immense the "world's largest concrete swimming pool" was, but you can get a glimmer of an idea in the picture of the dam at the end of the pool. Unfortunately, the dam cost more than a town the size of Cisco could afford, and in 1929, at the beginning of the depression, an audit revealed "the town was going broke" paying for it (A. C. Greene, 1972,
The Santa Claus Robbery, Denton: University of North Texas Press).
The pool had 3 sections: this is a portion of the deep end (depth up to 25ft) and this portion of the pool was natural bottom with concrete sides. Just to the left are the remains of the old "high diving" tower, which reached a height of about 40 feet (Wikipedia, Talk: Cisco, Texas).
The deep end of the pool was connected to the "shallow" end (depth of 2 feet to around 4 feet) with a narrow walkway under which water flowed.
The sloped grassy area held concrete steps used for seating, for the huge (at times, thousands) crowds of folks who visited the area, which was a major tourist draw during the 40s and 50s.
The walkway also connected to the island in the pool, which also was used as a diving platform and the location of the giant slide which deposited the swimmers into the shallow end of the pool. The remains of the swing set, also in the water and which were used to propel the brave back into the water, are barely visible just to the left of the concrete island. It was on those swing legs that I stumped my toe, driving a shard of rusted metal under the toe nail. I was spending the day there with friends during an outing of the HEI (Eta Epsilon Iota) social club, and by nightfall, could hardly stand at the ballgame. My date promptly returned me to my dorm, citing he was tired of listening to me talk about the pain in my toe. In hind site from my current vantage point of age, I am sure that was true, but as an 18 year old, it seemed like a pretty big deal and I was getting no sympathy.
The shallow end was concrete bottom, and held a kiddie pool (about 6,000 square feet) next to the dam.
The dam was an "...Ambursen-type slab and buttress all concrete dam" with a "270 foot long, uncontrolled ogee-type spillway with hollow core" (war.waterusgs.gov, Water Data Report 2007). The dam interior was open to the public for the years prior to the pool closing, and venturing inside the dark and damp corridors was allegedly a test of bravery. Water is still discharged into the old pool through an underground concrete conduit, which was used to flush the pool water during its years of operation as the pool was not chlorinated. The water system for Cisco is at the dam site, and following processing, some of it is discharged into the pool.
The pool was closed in the 1970s. An article in the Abilene Reporter News (Kathy Edwards, 2008) reported there were city plans to redevelop the site into a water park, although clearly, those plans have not come to fruition.
Part of the complex also included a two-story skating rink, miniature golf course, amusement park, park with picnic tables, and zoo. I speculate that this small pavilion was a dance floor, as many parks in the area held them. Bob Wills is one of the entertainers who played the park.
Cabins were located on the premises, and a few still remain in various stages of deterioration. The old lodge at the top of the hill is nothing more than foundation and a few crumbling walls.
The zoo was behind these cabins, carved out of the boulders in the hillside. Remnants of the cages still remain, although it was way too steep and overgrown for us to venture up on a warm day when the snakes might be out. My brother told tales of their going out there to "explore" the old cages during his time at the college.
A few foundation slabs, steps, and this intact bench were visible from the roadway. Perhaps after I get my knee repair in a few weeks, and subsequent recovery time, I will put on my snake-proof hiking boots and give it a whirl during a cool fall day. I'd like to see those pens carved out of Texas rock.
