The Lake O' the Pines Red Hatters Club invited me to go with them for lunch and a tour of Caddo Lake this week. We all had a wonderful time and enjoyed good fellowship with each other.
Caddo Lake has always been special to me because my father grew up around Caddo Lake. It is the largest natural lake in Texas and one of the largest in the entire south. It covers over 28,000 acres at normal water levels. There are many species of fish and over 200 species of birds found there.
The giant Bald Cypress trees cover the lake and are draped with Spanish Moss making it a mystical place to visit. The Caddo Indians once lived where parts of the lake are now. At one time there was a huge log jam blocking the Red River and Black Cypress. Over 2600 steamboats came into Jefferson to pick up cotton. At one time Jefferson was the second largest city in Texas. Later the corp of engineers blasted the log jam and the river dried up considerably causing flooding which increased the size of Caddo Lake. This caused the Caddo Indians to move from their home. Over 2,400 moved up into Oklahoma, but the area is still named after their tribe. They were a peace loving tribe and kept the Comanches pushed back out of their homeland. Once the river decreased steamboats could no longer come to port so they went to Shreveport, Louisana to pick up cotton. Unfortunately, when the river dried up so did the town of Jefferson. It is a great place to visit with its beautiful old homes and great history.
The Graceful Ghost is an original steam powered boat built in the 1800s. Wood is burned to produce to steam power. Our guide told the history of the lake and its inhabitants. It was a beautiful cool sunny day with temperature only reaching about 80 degrees.
It was a wonderful day of history and seeing the beauty created by our LORD.
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