Sabine Lake

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Sabine Lake
Sabine LakeWW.jpg
Depiction of the Sabine Lake with World Wind
Geographical location On the Gulf of Mexico
Tributaries Sabine River , Neches River
Places on the shore Port Arthur
Data
Coordinates 29 ° 53 ′  N , 93 ° 50 ′  W Coordinates: 29 ° 53 ′  N , 93 ° 50 ′  W
Sabine Lake (Louisiana)
Sabine Lake
surface 364 km²dep1
length 22 km
width 11 km
Middle deep 2 m
Template: Infobox Lake / Maintenance / EVIDENCE AREA Template: Infobox Lake / Maintenance / EVIDENCE LAKE WIDTH Template: Infobox Lake / Maintenance / EVIDENCE MED DEPTH

The Sabine Lake is a 364 km² large body of water, which is formed by the confluence of the Sabine River and the Neches River . According to the usual definitions, the body of water is a lagoon , but it is usually called a lake. It is about 22 kilometers long and 11 kilometers wide. The salty water flows through the Sabine Pass into the Gulf of Mexico . The lagoon is bordered by Jefferson County, Texas , Orange County, Texas , and Cameron Parish , Louisiana . The city of Port Arthur in Texas is located on the shore of Sabine Lake. The state line of Texas and Louisiana goes right through the lake.

Sabine Lake and the surrounding marshland are popular for fishing trips.

history

The area around the lagoon has been inhabited for around 1500 years. Europeans first came here around 1777 when the British under Captain George Gauld were mapping the lake. Several Spanish expeditions followed.

Although the outflow of the Sabine River was too shallow for ocean-going ships, the lagoon became an important trading point in the 1800's. Jean Laffite smuggled slaves into Louisiana across the lagoon in 1810 - there are legends to this day that he left gold hiding places on the banks. In the 1830s, Sabine Lake again became a transshipment point for smuggled goods, mainly slaves. Before the Civil War, cotton steamer regularly paced the lake's waters, and lumberjacks floated their logs to the lake.

Later parts of the lake were excavated as part of a canal system. In the 1940s the lake was extensively searched for oil .

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