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Dried-Up Lake Reveals a Forgotten Oregon Town
Another lake, another hidden treasure.
By Jay Bennett
Jan 6, 2016
The historic drought that has plagued the West for more than four years recently uncovered a surprise in northern Oregon. Under Detroit Lake, which had record low water levels in 2015, the abandoned town of Old Detroit has reemerged.
In October, Marion County Sheriff's Deputy Dave Zahn was driving along the reservoir when he discovered a wagon made in the 1870s partially sunk in the mud. At the time, Detroit Lake was 143 feet below capacity. The low oxygen levels at the bottom of the lake kept the wagon in pristine condition. U.S. Forest Service archaeologist Cara Kelly told the Statesman Journal that the wagon was probably damaged more in the weeks that it has been on land than in the decades it has lurked underwater.
The wagon, along with a nearby concrete octagonal pit that has yet to be identified, have now sunken back beneath Detroit Lake—the water levels rose due to recent rainstorms. The Marion County Sheriff's department and local Ranger station decided to keep the archaeological site a secret until water levels rose again to prevent looting or vandalism. A 400-year-old church in Mexico was also recently uncovered by receding water levels.
The 200-person town of Old Detroit was abandoned in 1952 in preparation for the construction of a new dam that would flood the area, about an hour east of Salem, creating the reservoir called Detroit Lake. Every winter, when the spillways of the Detroit dam are opened to make room for spring snowmelt, parts of the old town become visible above the water. But there is no record of the wagon ever being discovered before, and the water levels haven't been as low as they were in October 2015 since 1969.
It could be decades before Detroit Lake's water levels fall that low again, which is exactly how Zahn and the Forest Service would like it.
Another lake, another hidden treasure.
By Jay Bennett
Jan 6, 2016
The historic drought that has plagued the West for more than four years recently uncovered a surprise in northern Oregon. Under Detroit Lake, which had record low water levels in 2015, the abandoned town of Old Detroit has reemerged.
In October, Marion County Sheriff's Deputy Dave Zahn was driving along the reservoir when he discovered a wagon made in the 1870s partially sunk in the mud. At the time, Detroit Lake was 143 feet below capacity. The low oxygen levels at the bottom of the lake kept the wagon in pristine condition. U.S. Forest Service archaeologist Cara Kelly told the Statesman Journal that the wagon was probably damaged more in the weeks that it has been on land than in the decades it has lurked underwater.
The wagon, along with a nearby concrete octagonal pit that has yet to be identified, have now sunken back beneath Detroit Lake—the water levels rose due to recent rainstorms. The Marion County Sheriff's department and local Ranger station decided to keep the archaeological site a secret until water levels rose again to prevent looting or vandalism. A 400-year-old church in Mexico was also recently uncovered by receding water levels.
The 200-person town of Old Detroit was abandoned in 1952 in preparation for the construction of a new dam that would flood the area, about an hour east of Salem, creating the reservoir called Detroit Lake. Every winter, when the spillways of the Detroit dam are opened to make room for spring snowmelt, parts of the old town become visible above the water. But there is no record of the wagon ever being discovered before, and the water levels haven't been as low as they were in October 2015 since 1969.
It could be decades before Detroit Lake's water levels fall that low again, which is exactly how Zahn and the Forest Service would like it.
