Missouri’s Truman Lake

The Harry S. Truman Reservoir, also known as Truman Lake, is located in Missouri. It sits between Clinton and Warsaw, on the Osage River and extends south to Osceola. It is the largest lake in Missouri. Located adjacent to the Lake of the Ozarks, Truman features excellent fishing, a regional visitor center and powerplant exhibit area. Rugged hills, scenic bluffs, hardwood forest and prairie offer some of the best scenery in the state. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built and manages the lake and dam. It is used primarily for flood control. It is also used for power generation, recreation, and wildlife management. Truman Reservoir is the largest flood control reservoir in Missouri, with a storage capacity of more than 5 million acre-feet. Originally named Kaysinger Bluff Dam and Reservoir, construction began in August 1964. It was renamed the Harry S. Truman Dam and Reservoir, in honor of the former president from Missouri, by Congress in 1970. Construction was completed in 1979. The Kaysinger name refers to the bluff immediately north next to where the dam was eventually constructed. The bluff or cliff, a popular landmark even before the dam, overlooked the confluence of the South Grand River, Tebo Creek and the Osage River.

Visitor Center

The Harry S. Truman Visitor Center sits high atop Kaysinger Bluff, overlooking Truman Dam and the Osage River. It is one of 10 Corps Class A visitor centers in the United States and showcases Truman Lake, as well as all other lakes in the Kansas City District. More than 50,000 people visit annually to learn about Truman Lake and the surrounding area. Exhibits demonstrate social and natural history of the area to how hydroelectric power is created to artwork depicting scenes of yesteryear to the lake’s multiple purposes: hydroelectric power generation, fish and

wildlife management, recreational opportunities, and primarily—flood control. A 67-seat theater shows wildlife, history and water safety videos by request. The observation deck offers views of Truman Lake and part of the Lake of the Ozarks, as well as the dam. Park rangers provide scheduled tours to student and tour groups and also educate the public regarding water safety at every possible opportunity. The center offers an impressive array of brochures, maps, and water safety promotional items. Whether folks need information on camping, boat ramp locations, hunting areas or simply where to grab lunch, Visitor Center staff are ready to assist.

Recreation

Truman Lake is the largest flood control lake in Missouri. It covers about 55,000 acres. Over 8,000

acres of standing timber were left in the lake to provide aquatic habitat. It has some of the best crappie, catfish, bass, and hybrid fishing year round. There are many miles of Corps land surrounding the Truman Lake, which provides home to whitetail deer, turkey, waterfowl, and small game, as well as wintering bald eagles. The Truman Lake offers a wide variety of hunting, fishing and wildlife viewing opportunities. Half of the 110,000 acre project lies within the hills and hollows of the Ozarks region. Beautiful rock bluffs and mature oak timber make up the majority of the eastern side of the Lake, while the western half transitions into Midwest prairie. The lake provides ample opportunity to catch all species of fish and the small town of Warsaw, at times, has been referred to as the “spoonbill capital of the world”. In addition to recreational fishing, Truman Lake also plays host to numerous tournaments each year with the most famous being the 1989 B.A.S.S Missouri Invitational, and most

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recently, the 2015 Bowfishing World Championship.

Harry S. Truman State Park

Harry S. Truman State Park is a public recreation area occupying 1,440 acres on a peninsula on Truman Lake, a 55,000-acre impoundment of the Osage River, near Warsaw, Missouri. The state park offers boating, fishing, swimming, hiking trails, and campgrounds. Recreational development is extensive. Twenty parks and access areas, managed by or leased from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, are conveniently located around the reservoir. Parks at Truman Reservoir offer a wide variety of recreation facilities including boat launching ramps, campgrounds, full service marinas, picnic areas, and sand swimming beaches. Five marinas are located on Truman Lake offering a variety of boating supplies and services.

https://www.go-missouri.com/TrumanLake