History In Focus

Take a close look at this week’s photographs, and especially at all those cars! It may be hard to imagine the Noblett Lake parking lot looking this crowded today, but these photographs show just how popular the lake once was. I have written about Noblett Lake many times over the years, but the photographs featured this week tell a different part of its story. 

 

One photograph shows a parking lot filled with automobiles in 1941, only about a year after the lake was completed. Two others, taken in 1967, show another packed parking lot and a swimming area full of people enjoying the water. For generations of families throughout Willow Springs and the surrounding Ozarks, Noblett was the place to swim, picnic, camp, fish, and spend a summer afternoon together.

 

Before it became the recreation area that so many people remember, however, the site had already played a part in the history of the Ozarks timber industry.

 

The Williams Brothers built a sawmill dam at the site in 1886, meaning Noblett Creek was being used as an industrial water-power site more than 50 years before construction began on the lake we know today. Noblett Creek received its name from the Noblett Lumber Company, which operated a large sawmill near the creek’s headwaters during the 1880s and 1890s. Although “Noblett” has become a familiar local name, it did not come from a local family. The lumber company came to the Ozarks from Michigan during the region’s timber boom.

 

The Civilian Conservation Corps, better known as the CCC, was a federal work program created during the Great Depression that provided employment for young men while completing conservation and public improvement projects across the country. Construction of Noblett Lake began in June 1938 under Project Superintendent Joseph N. Newton and Forestry Engineer James E. Lowe. The work was completed entirely by the enrollees of Camp Willow, CCC Company 1739, and the lake was finished in July 1940.

 

Noblett Lake covers approximately 30 acres and is about 16 feet deep at the dam. The entire dam structure measures 281 feet, including a 115-foot concrete portion, and was completed at a cost of approximately $34,000. On some days, as many as 95 men were working on the project at one time.

 

The way the concrete portion of the dam was built is especially interesting. Four concrete mixers were used, and each could mix only one bag of concrete at a time. Three mixers ran continuously, while the fourth was kept on reserve in case one of the others broke down. Every load of concrete was hauled by hand in wheelbarrows from the mixers to the pouring site. There, it was emptied into vats, and tubes carried the concrete to its proper place within the dam. The concrete portion of the dam was poured in five sections, averaging 23ft wide each. As you can see in the construction photograph, two sections were already poured.

 

The new lake featured a sandy swimming area known as Clearwater Beach, along with a bathhouse containing men’s and women’s showers and changing rooms. The grounds also included a concession stand, a comfort station with flush toilets, a pump house, a picnic area, and a picnic shelter. Several camping areas were developed as well, including Sugar Hill Campground and another campground below the dam.

 

The crowded parking lot shown in the 1941 photograph makes it clear that people did not waste much time discovering the new recreation area. Automobiles fill nearly every available space, and visitors can be seen throughout the grounds. 

 

By 1967, the parking area had been paved, the trees had grown, and the automobiles had certainly changed, but Noblett Lake was still drawing a crowd. One photograph shows the parking lot once again filled with vehicles. Another shows children and adults gathered along the shoreline and throughout the swimming area, with swimmers surrounding a floating platform in the lake.

 

Just imagine how many family outings, church picnics, camping trips, and summer afternoons took place at Noblett over the years. These photographs do more than show us what the recreation area looked like. They help us understand what it meant to the people who knew and enjoyed it.

 

Of course, preserving the photographs is only part of the story. Caring for the historic places that still remain is also something I care deeply about. I believe my work as your museum curator does not stop at the museum doors—it also means doing what I can to preserve the history that can still be found outside them.

 

In 2024, the Howell County News reported on the limited funding and staffing that had contributed to declining conditions at Noblett Lake. Maintaining a recreation area requires funding, available crews, planning, and approval, and those resources have often been limited. The condition of Noblett has concerned many area residents who remember what it once was and would like to see it better maintained.

 

Thankfully, there is now some definite good news concerning one of Noblett Lake’s original CCC structures.

 

The smaller picnic shelter nearest the trail leading to the dam had previously been scheduled for demolition. That decision has officially been reversed, and the shelter is now fully approved for repair.

 

The work will not take place in 2026. It is hoped that a crew will be available to complete the repairs in 2027, although the project could be delayed until 2028 depending on crew availability. Fingers crossed for 2027! Most importantly, the planned demolition has been stopped, and this historic CCC structure will be preserved.

 

I do want to make it clear that the shelter repair is the only part of this update that is formally approved. Several other encouraging possibilities are being discussed, but they remain in the early planning stages.

 

The former bathhouse, now used as the larger pavilion, remains structurally sound but needs cleanup, repainting, and general upkeep. I have worked directly with U.S. Forest Service Heritage and Recreation staff for many years, and under a current service agreement covering cultural resource management and National Forest site upkeep projects, I am now exploring the possibility of organizing volunteer workdays at Noblett. Trail maintenance and newer picnic equipment, including picnic tables and grills, are also being discussed.

 

None of these additional ideas have been approved or scheduled. If you would like to help, please reach out to me so I can keep track of potential volunteers and make sure all work is properly organized and coordinated. Individuals should not begin working at the site independently. If everything comes together, organized volunteer workdays could possibly begin in early 2027.

 

Anyone interested in volunteering may contact me at the museum, send a message through the Willow Springs Historical and Genealogical Society Museum Facebook page, or email wshandgs@gmail.com. At this point, I am simply gathering a list of interested volunteers. More information will be shared once plans, approvals, and possible dates are in place.

 

The young men of CCC Company 1739 could not have known how many thousands of people would enjoy Noblett Lake during the decades that followed. The crowded scenes from 1941 and 1967 show that their work became an important part of life in this area. With careful planning, cooperation, and community support, I hope Noblett Lake can remain a place where future generations will continue making memories of their own.

 

 Museum Notes

 

We have more historic canvas prints in stock that came in last week! Come in and check them out—you may find a familiar Willow Springs scene that you would like to take home.

 

More exciting photographs are being uncovered nearly every day as I continue scanning and bringing these old photographic negatives back to life. I will be sharing more of them in future editions of History in Focus.

 

Be sure to follow our Facebook page as well, where I post historic photographs daily. You can find us at www.facebook.com/WillowSpringsHistoricalAndGenealogicalSociety or scan the QR code provided in this column with your phone to visit the page. 

 

Please remember that our work is not limited to Willow Springs! We continue to collect, preserve, and share history from communities throughout the surrounding area, making it accessible for everyone.

 

The museum is regularly open every Thursday from 1:00pm to 5:00 p.m. at 211 N. Harris Street in downtown Willow Springs. We have been receiving more and more donated materials to add to the museum’s collection, and we are thrilled by the cooperation and generosity of local residents who are helping us preserve our history!