Every Lake
Sardis Lake
Impounded on Jackfork Creek in 1982, fought over in court until 2016.
- 10 ft · first step
- 20 ft
- 30 ft
- 40 ft
- 50 ft
- 60 ft · bottom
About Sardis Lake
The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built Sardis Dam across Jackfork Creek, a tributary of the Kiamichi River, between 1975 and 1982, backing up water in the Ouachita foothills of southeastern Oklahoma near Clayton and Tuskahoma, not far from McAlester. The project was authorized for water supply, flood control, and recreation. The land sits within the treaty territory of the Choctaw Nation, and the lake's name comes from the nearby community of Sardis.
For years afterward, the lake was better known for a courtroom fight than a boat ramp. Oklahoma City held rights to draw water from Sardis for municipal use, but the Choctaw and Chickasaw Nations sued in 2011, arguing they'd been left out of the deal despite treaty claims to water in the Kiamichi basin. The dispute wasn't resolved until 2016, when the state, the city, and both tribes signed a water-rights settlement ratified by Congress. Anglers who fished it in the meantime came for smallmouth bass and water clear enough to see bottom in the coves.
- 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.
Sardis Lake depth chart, in wood
This is a Sardis Lake depth chart you can hang: 6 stacked layers of birch, each one a depth contour — 10 ft, 20 ft, 30 ft, 40 ft, 50 ft and deeper, down to the deepest hole at about 60 ft. The lake covers about 21.6 square miles. The shape of the bottom is the real one from published soundings, so anglers recognise their drop-offs and points.
A Sardis 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 Sardis 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 Sardis Lake.
Sardis 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 Sardis Lake; the bigger boards carry more shoreline roads and place names.
Is it made from real depth data?
Yes. Sardis 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 60 ft
- 21.6 square miles of water
- Title block, compass rose and depth markers
- Birch plywood, keyhole hanger, made in Waterford, PA
