Following the purchase of this acreage from 27 land owners, American Central commenced construction of Oak Run in 1971. Oak Run is situated in an area long referred to by area residents as "Round Bottom". The 580-acre (2.3 km2) Spoon Lake was impounded by the construction of an earthen dam 61 feet (19 m) high and 550 feet (170 m) wide at its base. The lake is approximately 60 feet (18 m) deep at the dam and provides nearly 19 miles (31 km) of shoreline. The lake first reached pool elevation in 1973 and is fed by Sugar Creek and natural springs. More than 40 miles (64 km) of public hard surfaced roads have been constructed to county road specifications. The public Oak Run Golf Course opened in mid-summer of 1976.
Founding dates: Wikidata, Wikipedia, the U.S. post office records of Blevins & Helbock (CC0) and the Census. Homes by year built: Census ACS 2020–24. National Register of Historic Places: National Park Service (list of May 22, 2026). Old photos, postcards and papers: Wikimedia Commons, the Library of Congress and other public archives, credited on each item’s page. Maps: U.S. Geological Survey historical topographic maps (via Esri) and Sanborn fire-insurance maps (Library of Congress). History text and census tables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Places that used to be: USGS Geographic Names Information System (2021). How TownRatings grades history →
From Wikimedia Commons (1), Wikipedia and U.S. Geological Survey historical maps. Archive images are copied here with their credits and licenses, shown on each photo’s page. Refreshed monthly.
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