Every Lake
Millerton Lake
Behind Friant Dam, the San Joaquin backs up over the drowned site of Fort Miller.
- 8 ft · first step
- 16 ft
- 25 ft
- 33 ft
- 41 ft
- 49 ft · bottom
About Millerton Lake
Millerton Lake was formed in 1942 when the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation completed Friant Dam across the San Joaquin River as part of the Central Valley Project, storing water for irrigation across the San Joaquin Valley. The reservoir submerged the original town of Millerton and the site of Fort Miller, an 1851 Army post built to oversee relations with local Native tribes during the Gold Rush era. Both sites now sit underwater near the lake's northern reaches, marked today only by a reconstructed fort building moved above the waterline before the flooding.
Fed by Sierra Nevada snowmelt, the lake sits at the foot of the mountains northeast of Fresno, straddling the Fresno-Madera county line near the small community of Friant. Millerton Lake State Recreation Area manages much of the shoreline, drawing houseboaters, bass anglers, and water-skiers from the Fresno metro area, roughly twenty miles south. The lake's level fluctuates significantly with the Sierra snowpack and irrigation demand, a reminder that its primary purpose is water storage rather than recreation.
- 2 shore towns named, with a star on each
- 179 roads engraved around the shore, 3 of them labeled
- 6 depth layers, each step engraved with its depth in feet
- Compass rose, title block with coordinates, max depth and area; keyhole hanger on the back
Turn it in your hands
Live 3D of the actual cut files — drag to orbit, pinch to zoom. Every road you see is engraved on the real thing.
Viewer not showing? Open it full screen.
Millerton Lake depth chart, in wood
This is a Millerton Lake depth chart you can hang: 6 stacked layers of birch, each one a depth contour — 8 ft, 16 ft, 25 ft, 33 ft, 41 ft and deeper, down to the deepest hole at about 49 ft. The lake covers about 6.4 square miles, and 179 shore roads are engraved around it. The shape of the bottom is the real one from published soundings, so anglers recognise their drop-offs and points.
A Millerton Lake map for the wall — or a gift
Most of these go to a cabin wall, a lake house entry, or a home office; a lot are gifts — the family that has been on Millerton Lake for three generations, the retirement move, the first boat. The 12-inch is the desk-and-shelf size; the 24- and 30-inch boards read across a room. Add a line under the title and star your place on the shore, and it becomes the map of your Millerton Lake.
Millerton Lake map — the details
How big is the map?
Four sizes: 12, 17, 24 and 30 inches on the long side, from $149. Every size is cut from the same depth data of Millerton Lake; the bigger boards carry more shoreline roads and place names.
Is it made from real depth data?
Yes. Millerton Lake is cut layer by layer from published bathymetric soundings — each layer of birch is a depth contour, so the shape of the bottom is the real one, not decorative.
Can I add my own place on it?
Yes. At checkout you can add a line under the title (a family name, a cabin name, a year) and star the spot on the shore that matters to you.
How long does it take?
Made to order in Waterford, Pennsylvania and shipped in 7–10 days; shipping is free in the lower 48.
Can you make a lake that isn't listed?
Any lake in the United States — we hold depth data for 104,419 of them. Search for yours; if it isn't built yet we build it when you order.
- 6 depth layers down to 49 ft
- 6.4 square miles of water
- 179 shore roads engraved, 3 named
- Title block, compass rose and depth markers
- Birch plywood, keyhole hanger, made in Waterford, PA
