Of the 90 lakes in Marquette County, Buffalo Lake has about 50% of the water surface area. Buffalo Lake was formed by a downstream deposit of sediment in 1871. The level of the natural basin was increased by four feet. The Army Corps of Engineers constructed a low head dam under authorization of the River and Harbor Act of 1958, the Federal Government turned over control of the upper Fox River above the mouth of the Wolf River to the State of Wisconsin in June 1962. Buffalo Lake was named for the buffalo grass growing around the lake.

Physical Data of Buffalo Lake

• Acres = 2,500

• Mean Depth = 4.5 ft.

• Maximum Depth = 8 ft.

• Length = 13.1 miles

• Width = 1/2 mile

• Shore Length = 32.2 miles

• Watershed area = 600 sq. miles

• Normal outflow: 12 days from the time water enters Buffalo Lake to the time it goes over the dam at Montello