Green Lake (Texas)

Green Lake
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Location	Calhoun County, Texas
Coordinates	28°31′43″N 96°50′23″W / 28.5287°N 96.8397°W / 28.5287; -96.8397
Basin countries	United States
Surface area	10,000 acres (40 km2)

Green Lake is a natural tidal lake in Calhoun County, Texas, on the Guadalupe River flood basin. Known for its greenish waters, from which its name derives, the lake is located 12 miles (19 km) west of Port Lavaca and 22 miles (35 km) south of Victoria on the Gulf Coastal Plain. Despite being less than 3 miles (4.8 km) from the coast of San Antonio Bay, its waters are fresh.^[1] It is the largest natural freshwater lake entirely in Texas, covering an area of approximately 10,000 acres (40 km²).^[2]

Separated from San Antonio Bay by the Guadalupe River delta around 2,200 years ago, a wetland ecosystem supporting a wide variety of waterfowl developed along the lake shore and the Guadalupe River delta. Archaeological evidence supports claims of Karankawa settlement.

An affluent agricultural community of the same name was established near the lakeside in the mid-19th century, but dwindled in status, becoming virtually abandoned in the aftermath of the American Civil War. It was strategically important during the early stages of the war, due to its proximity to fresh water and the Gulf of Mexico. After reaching its low point during the Great Depression, the lakeside community modestly rebounded in 1947 following the nearby discovery of oil. A lake of the same name and with a similar history is featured in the 1998 novel Holes.