Whale of history behind Potter Lake
By Barbara Phillips
Potter Lake, long a springtime retreat for couples and ducks, has had a long and turbulent history which includes six drownings, a regatta, a golf course, countlesslakings, and (believe it or not) a whale.
Begun in 1911, the lake was to serve as part of the fire protection facilities for KU. The Board of Regents selected the ravine north of Marvin Hall as the site of the lake, A 60-foot dam was to cross the ravine and impound the drainage of the
A motor - driven 'pump and pumphouse completed the firefighting facilities.
After completion in March, 1911, the lake was the site of the commencement regatta, which had previously been held on the Kaw River.
The Regents meanwhile named it Potter Lake in honor of State Senator T. M. Potter of Peabody, a former member of the board.
The Potter Lake Regatta was something of a dedication for the
lake, complete with band concert and competitions in canoeing, swimming and diving.
And during that afternoon, June 5, 1911, with hundreds of students on the bank watching the activities, it happened. A whale was spotted in Potter Lake.
The whale was seen spouting water in the middle of the lake. A few brave students set out in a boat to capture the beast, but their boat capsized and the whale, fearing capture, plunged into the 16-foot depths of Potter. It has not been seen since.
Near the end of the schoolyear in 1911, Potter Lake claimed its first victim. A group of civil engineering students on the way home from a party decided to cool off by taking a swim in the new lake.
The men swam across the lake successfully, but on the return trip, one went down in 12 feet of water. Before lifeguards and diving boards were installed in 1924, five more students drowned in the lake.
Another page in Potter's history was added in 1948 when a
golf course which had wound around Potter was permitted to deteriorate. The Athletic Department was rather adverse to this situation, or at least, Phog Allen, basketball coach, commented, "Nature lovers have completely ruined the course by planting shrubs all over the fairway."
A Potter laking has also served as a reward for students who get pinned, engaged, have birthdays, win honors, or have just earned a laking on general principles.