Mt. Kemble Lake – A Brief History

Mt. Kemble Lake is a private community adjacent to Primrose Brook in the southwest corner of Harding Township. In 1925 four men from Irvington bought 50 acres here and established Mt. Kemble Lake Community as a summer vacation resort, a retreat from strenuous daily living. They dammed the stream that ran through the property, dug a well for a common water supply, laid pipe, built roads and homes for themselves. They incorporated as the Lakeshore Company, and subdivided the land into several hundred 70-foot lots. By the mid thirties there were just 20 families living here and in 1936 the Lakeshore Company formed a "Country Club" to see if the community could run itself. Shortly thereafter, the current Clubhouse was built. In the early forties the community adopted a policy of selling lots to adjoining owners with the intent of consolidating small lots into larger lots. To further limit the size of the community, some deed restrictions prohibiting further subdivision of these larger lots were instituted. Building lot sizes where finally controlled when the current zoning requirements were enacted in 1951. By 1950 the community had grown to about 60 families. A committee of local residents bought out the remaining assets of Lakeshore Company—including unsold land, the lake, the dam, the roads and the water company — and Mt. Kemble Lake became a private community.

Three community organizations exist today. The Lakeshore Company, in which all landowners own at least one share, owns all community property and is responsible for the water supply and the dam. The Community Club maintains the community property—the nearly two miles of roads, the lake, and the tennis court—and owns and operates the beautiful clubhouse at the far end of the lake. Although road

maintenance and snow plowing are contracted out, semi-annual road clean-ups, yearly beach cleanup, tennis court maintenance and much other work is done by volunteers and elected club officials. The Country Club manages and organizes the social calendar and appoints "volunteers" to run regular

monthly social affairs. These are well attended by residents and their guests.

Ninety-four families live at Mt Kemble Lake today. Although active participation in community affairs is optional, most enjoy the friendly life in this close knit community and take full advantage of its opportunities for recreational activities and social events.

The lake is the major attraction, being used for swimming, boating, fishing, and ice skating. Therefore the health of the lake is of prime importance and must be constantly monitored and protected. The lake covers about 12 acres and is fed by a small, unnamed stream and one or more springs. The

watershed area that feeds the lake is more than 500 acres and most of this rainwater enters the lake through the stream. The design concept of the original builders remains excellent and conforms to modem standards. It includes a small lagoon, which acts as a primary silt trap at the stream entrance, and a larger retention pond above the small dam leading into the lake. This arrangement buffers the lake from rapid changes in the inflow from the stream.

The main problem with this type of lake, which is fed mainly by runoff from the surrounding watershed, is the potential for contamination from the surrounding area. Upstream contamination includes nitrogen and phosphorous from fertilizer and silt from construction or erosion of exposed soil. Every heavy

rainfall causes an influx of muddy water, most of which is the result of freshly disturbed soil close to the stream. Property adjacent to the lake offers the same potential for contamination and residents are well aware of this problem. The possibility of septic contamination is also a major concern in this un-sewered area so regular testing of the lake is performed by a licensed testing agency. Tests for bacteria and chemicals are run at regular intervals through-out the year.

Lakes go through three stages — oligotrophic, mesotrophic, and eutrophic, as they increasingly fill-in and become more vegetative. Mt. Kemble Lake started life in a more eutrophic condition as most manmade lakes do because they are artificially shallow. The first step in lake management requires knowledge of what condition the lake is in and what problems it has, in order to formulate plans to remedy these problems. Records back to 1950 provide the basis for this knowledge. During the growing season, the lake is treated for algae as needed and is tested for clarity. Although sediment buildup is a continuing concern, the lake design has provided the best possible on-site buffer. Further improvements in the control of sedimentation will require better maintenance of the area bordering the stream that feeds the lake and conformity to town ordinances regarding the disturbance of soil during construction. An important opportunity for slowing eutrophication is controlling the supply of nutrients into the lake from the use of fertilizers so the use of low-phosphate fertilizers is strongly recommended.

Weed control is necessary from time to time. Weeds grow; provide oxygen for the lake, food for fish and ducks in the lake, and then die, providing fertilizer for future weeds. Although weed growth has been somewhat accelerated in recent years, the dredging of the upper end of the Lake in 2006 should create a better balance. The fine condition of the lake is attested to by the size and number of fish that breed and thrive in the lake. Residents and their guests who fish the lake are rewarded with largemouth and smallmouth bass, sunfish, catfish and perch. The lake also supports turtles, frogs, and mammals such as chipmunks, squirrels, deer, raccoons and possums.

An expert bird watcher in the community has identified over 60 species of buds at the lake. In addition to the normal varieties of summer nesting birds and winter residents, these include the great blue heron, little green heron, brown thrasher, scarlet tananger and fox sparrow.

The main dam, an earthen dam over a concrete core, seemed adequate until heavy rains accompanying Hurricane Gloria in 1971 caused the lake to overflow. Since then the spillway was widened and reinforced in 1976 and the height of the dam increased by two feet in the mid-80s and by another 1½ feet in 2006. With the addition of an increased toe and new outlet structure for the dam, it is in full compliance with NJ State dam standards. The Lakeshore Company regularly inspects the dam, prohibits trespassing on the structure, and keeps the face of the dam properly cultivated, cutting back bushes and trees and maintaining a special grade of grass. Our maintenance of the dam is subject to inspection as regulated by the dam safety section of the NJDEP.

All residences at Mt. Kemble Lake have septic systems, most of which are of relatively modern design. Older systems have been modernized when possible. However, the vulnerability of the lake is recognized, and the situation is carefully monitored. Tests for coliform contamination have shown almost no problems that could not be traced to wildlife rather than malfunction of a system. All systems bordering the lake were tested in 1988 for proper function by the Community Club. Community members are strongly encouraged to be vigilant in maintaining their systems.

The Lakeshore Company operates a water system that provides fresh water for all homes at the lake. Water from the system's three wells is remarkably pure, but state drinking water regulations require chlorination, which is performed at the pump house. Water is stored in three tanks placed at the highest point on lake property. The system is licensed and regulated by the NJDEP. The water is tested daily, monthly, quarterly, and at other times as required. Test results are consistently excellent. The ground water feeding these wells is localized in cracks and crevices and the recharge area contains no known point sources of contamination.

A former resident described Mt. Kemble Lake as "a cooperative volunteer community of good will where folks have demonstrated for many years that they can live, work, and play together with a minimum of contention.” This is still a valid appraisal of this unique community. As true now as it was many years ago.

Mike Hardy, 1992

Additional editing: John Murray and Chris Allyn, 2006