Ellison Creek Reservoir

Ellison Creek Reservoir is just west of Lone Star in southern Morris County (at 32°55' N, 94°44' W). Its dam is a rolled-earth structure 4,000 feet long, with a maximum height of 48½ feet. The impounded water comes primarily from Ellison Creek, also known as Brutons Creek. The surface area of the reservoir is 1,516 acres at the service spillway crest at elevation 268.1 feet above mean sea level. Its capacity is 24,700 acre-feet. The drainage area of the Ellison Creek watershed is thirty-seven square miles. The reservoir dam was constructed by the United States Defense Plant in 1942–43 and acquired by the Lone Star Steel Company in 1947. The company uses reservoir water for plant tasks such as ore washing. The reservoir is also the site of a power plant constructed and operated by the Southwest Gas and Electric Company.