I’m afraid that I’ve been preoccupied with Patoka and neglected this blog, my apologies. Single mindedly I researched my topic, carefully peeling away the layers of the onion when out of the blue, Lisa Gehlhausen asked me to speak. She’s the Executive Director of the Indiana 15 Regional Planning Commission.

“I think the Commission would like to hear about your book,” she asked. “We’re having a celebration for our 45^th anniversary, could you talk for ten minutes?”

Well, I’m not a public speaker, but I agreed. Which is why I stood on the dais last night and spoke to the Commission about the history they share with the Patoka Lake Regional Water and Sewer District. It went something like this:

I am writing a history of the Patoka Lake Regional Water and Sewer District, and it has been a fascinating journey. To date, I’ve recorded oral history interviews with 35 individuals. The three that were there at the beginning – Ed Pieper, President – Jim Burch, Engineer – Mike Phillips, Attorney.

I’ve spoken with current and former board members, and current and former District employees.

I talked with Bruce Heeke about his time at Patoka, and about the roles, his father Dennis, and Grandfather Ted played.

I interviewed with Midwestern and FmHA employees.

I visited with Lisa to talk about Indiana 15’s assistance with EDA grants and shared office space.

And with the contractors – Jerry Reynolds and Greg Nobel who have installed most of the Patoka system.

I’ve spoken with customers, utilities that purchase water from Patoka, and I spent an enjoyable evening north of Taswell interviewing the Fairview Church Cemetery Board.

Along the way, I’ve learned about capturing drinking water from roofs, about shallow wells that ran dry in the summer, and wells that smelled of sulfur.

I learned about wells that turned cloudy when it rained.

I learned about the Eastridge and Bobby Hall springs, where many folks got their water before the District and learned about the water hauling business.

There were stories about one room school houses with no wells – the teacher would select a “good” student to fetch water from a nearby home.

I heard about life in the valley before the lake, battles with the Corps of Engineers, and changes that have occurred since.

The history of the District begins with the lake itself, so that took me to 1945 when the Flood Control and Water Resources Commission was formed. Anton “Tony” Hulman was named chairman, the same year he bought the Speedway. He would remain chairman until the 60s.

The Flood Control Commission was responsible for all the Corps flood control projects in the state – dams, levees, and flood walls, and for all flood plain regulation. In 1965 the Commission was merged into the new IDNR.

I learned about the Wabash Valley Association, which formed in 1957. It was once 8,000 members strong. One of the first political action committees, it promoted flood control and navigation projects up and down the Wabash Valley – which drains much of Indiana, and a large part of Illinois. By 1970 the WVA was so influential that both Indiana Governor Whitcomb and Illinois Governor Ogilvie attended their annual meeting in French Lick.

I learned about the Dubois Chapter, which was instrumental in getting a Patoka reservoir included in the Corps proposed projects. I learned that Richard “Dick” Henderson was instrumental in the chapter’s formation in the late 50’s, while he was with the Jasper Chamber of Commerce. Dick would leave the area in 1960 and return a decade later as your Executive Director.

I leaned how the Cigarette Tax funded the Flood Commission’s early studies and reports on the lake. Comprehensive engineering reports, and soil studies that formed the foundation for the Corps Report, which in turn was the basis for Congress’ authorization of Patoka Lake.

I learned that water supply was a critical component of the Flood Commission’s early work. In the Corps report, I learned that the State wanted to purchase the entire 167,000 acre-ft of storage provided the lake, which it did.

However, as I dug deeper one question remained unanswered – Where did the idea of the water district originate. No one seemed to remember. The Corps report didn’t mention a water district, they indicated that the water would just be released from the dam for downstream communities to use, Jasper, Huntingburg, Winslow, and Princeton.

So where did the District originate?

Once in a while, I ran across intriguing clues.

– Dennis Heeke worked on the legislation to form both Regional Planning Commissions and Regional Water and Sewer Districts. Legislation spurred in part by development problems around Lake Monroe, and Brookville Reservoir.

– Mike Phillips told me that he thought Dick Henderson’s job was to shepard the formation of the district through the counties. But he was not sure.

So that led me back to Indiana 15 and Lisa. She dug out the Planning Commission’s original minute books, of course back then it was called The Patoka Lake Regional Planning Commission.  The commission’s first official meeting was October 23, 1973.

Anyway – In that dusty old minute book I found my answer – By the Planning Commission’s third meeting the need for a Regional Sanitary Sewer District was second on the agenda.

By their fourth meeting, Dick Henderson was the executive director, Spencer and Perry Counties had requested to be included in the Commission.

At the fifth meeting Joe Lauck, from the Stream Pollution Control board, was there to discuss the step by step process required to form a sewer and/or water district. The Planning commission tasked Dick Henderson with contacting Dubois, Crawford, and Orange Counties to begin the process.

By the sixth meeting, in June of 1974, Henderson reported that Crawford and Dubois Counties had passed the suggested resolutions for the formation of a sewer district, Orange County, however, had passed the resolution with the stipulation that the district be authorized to include both Water and Sewer Utilities. Since all three resolutions had to have identical language. What would the Commission do?

In history, you run across moments where people are faced with simple decisions that change the path of future events. This was one of those moments. Two counties said sewage, one said sewage and water. The commission could side with the majority and ask Orange County to revise their resolution, or they could ask Crawford and Dubois to change their resolutions. Thankfully for this area, the Commission choose what was perhaps the harder path, and asked Crawford and Dubois to change their resolutions.

From that point on, as they say, the rest is history. Dick Henderson, on behalf of the Commission, did indeed shepard the formation of the Water and Sewer District through the three counties, and then through the Stream Pollution Control board, ably assisted by the Commission’s attorney Clemence Nordhoff.

On March 18, 1975, barely a year and a half after the Planning Commission’s formation, the District was born. And the Patoka Lake Regional Planning Commission had been the midwife.

So tonight, there are nearly six thousand retail customers, and customers of 24 utilities, that get water from the Patoka Lake Regional Water and Sewer District. That’s almost 40,000 homes in parts of 11 counties, that owe a massive thankyou to the Indiana 15 Regional Planning Commission, and in particular to Donald Crockett, who made the motion to include water utility service in the authority of the district, and to Everett Oxley who seconded it and to the Commission members who passed it unanimously.

That’s your shared history. It is likely that without Indiana 15 there would be no Patoka Lake Regional Water and Sewer District.

Thank you again, and congratulations on 45 years serving your communities.”

I think the talk went well, now its back to the keyboard. I hope to put this one to bed by the end of the year.

David L Dahl

Read about Olivia’s Story and my other works on my website