Photos show what Lake Medina looked like 100 years ago

MEDINA COUNTY, Texas “Lake Medina has made headlines in recent years for all the wrong reasons because of low water levels, but it hasn’t always been this dry.

At present, Lake Medina is just 6.3% completedwhich is about 20% less than a year ago.

The lake is actually a reservoir that was created by the construction of the Medina Dam in 1913. The reservoir was created to help local farmers irrigate their crops.

“Lake Medina has higher fluctuations compared to most other reservoirs and lakes,” explained KSAT meteorologist Justin Horne. “This is due to the fact that its main purpose is irrigation, and also because its catchment area is rather small. During dry stretches, you will see significant swings. But as we know from history, all it takes is one lucky chance of rain and it will fill up again.”

Here are some old photos from University of Texas at San Antonio Digital Special Collection which show what Lake Medina looked like 100 years ago:

The photo shows a man sitting on the hood of a Ford Model-T holding on to a rope (tow rope?) as the car sits in a swollen creek. There are two women in the car. Around 1918. (UTSA Special Digital Collections)

Family T.V. The Mastersons in a boat on Lake Medina. The photo shows a family on a wooden pleasure boat near the pier. Around 1924. (UTSA Special Digital Collections)

Lake Medina, 1924 (UTSA Special Digital Collections)

Medina Diversion Reservoir, Medina County, Texas, June 21, 1924. (UTSA Special Digital Collections)

Medina Dam, 1924 The photo shows a view of the dam from a short distance below it. (UTSA Special Digital Collections)

Boats in a bay on Lake Medina, Texas. Around 1927-1931 (UTSA Special Digital Collections)

The photograph shows both shores of Lake Medina in June 1929. (UTSA Special Digital Collections)