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Convict Lake (Mono: Wit-sa-nap) is a lake located in Mono County, California, United States, situated in the Sherwin Range of the Sierra Nevada. It is known for its turquoise-blue water, the dramatic mountains (including Mount Morrison) that surround it, the trout fishing it affords, and its unusual history. The lake was renamed from its traditional Mono name by American settlers after an incident on September 23, 1871, in which a group of convicts escaped from prison in Carson City, Nevada, and took refuge near the lake. They were pursued by a posse, and after it caught up to the convicts, a shootout followed, in which a number of both posse members and convicts were killed or wounded. The remaining convicts who survived initially escaped but were eventually captured to be taken back to prison. They were lynched instead.

Geography

thumb|Sevehah Cliff, composed of folded [[metamorphic rock, provides a colorful backdrop to Convict Lake.]]

Convict Lake was originally carved out by glaciers. The lake's surface is approximately above sea level, with its greatest depths approximately deep in various places; it is among the deepest lakes in the Sierra Nevada mountains. The lake is oblong in shape and is surrounded by a box canyon set in the mountains. Mount Morrison, the tallest mountain in the area at , lies to the south-east of the lake.

The lake and canyon area is dominated by light colored granite. The sedimentary and metamorphic rocks in this area once overlaid the entire Sierra Nevada range but have now been eroded away, revealing the underlying granite that uplifted the range. During the formation of the Sierra Nevada mountain range, magma rose from great depths and obliterated much of the sedimentary rock with which it came in contact. Just below the surface, the magma cooled and formed the granite typical of the range. In the process, extreme heat and pressure deformed the immediate overlying sedimentary rocks into numerous and striking shapes. <blockquote>"The streams which flowed from the mountains were supposed to be filled with Pot-sa-wa-gees, water babies, who lived in spirit, but were visible to the eye, having the face of an Indian child and the body of a fish." — According to Indian legend, Hi-na-nu was a wise and noble man, whose spirit was revered by the Indians and to whom they looked for guidance in earthly matters."</blockquote>

Convict Lake, then known to Europeans as Monte Diablo, The prisoners split into two groups, one of which was led by convicted murderer Charlie Jones. Jones previously had lived in Mono and Inyo counties and led his group south toward the Mammoth Lakes area. Needing food and supplies, the escaped convicts robbed several people as they went along their way. Crossing the Sierra Nevada mountain range, Jones had hoped to reach the range's western slope, where they would be safe from pursuit. Jones correctly assumed that a Carson City posse was on their trail, but the posse, from Benton, California, led by Deputy Sheriff George Hightower, had given up within a couple of days and turned back. Meanwhile, on horseback, Billy Poor, a mail rider who was delivering mail for his first time, had accidentally encountered the group camped out near Convict Creek, a few miles south from the lake. after which they took his horse and clothing and dressed his body in discarded prison clothes. The remaining convicts were either killed in the shootout, or captured and lynched on the trip back to the prison. were there on a holiday outing. At least four teenagers and both adults fell through the thin ice and into the water. By the time the first rescuer arrived on the scene, only one teenager had been able to pull himself out of the water, but the other teenagers were no longer in sight, having apparently already drowned.

In all, three teenagers from the camp and four would-be rescuers drowned in the freezing water. Another youth and a volunteer fire chief were rescued. Shortly before their deaths, the youths had been advised that the ice was too thin to support their weight but failed to heed the warning.

As a result of the drownings, Camp O'Neal was investigated and subsequently shut down due to findings of abuse and neglect. The biggest fish caught in Convict Lake was a German brown, in 1956. More recently, a brown trout was caught on October 17, 1993, which also was the biggest trout caught in the Eastern Sierra that year.

A trail for hiking goes around the lake. Another trail connects the lake to the Sierra Crest.

thumb|upright=1.1|Convict Lake, wide view looking west from the east end of the lake

  • The Western film The Secret of Convict Lake (1951) was largely based on the events that occurred at the lake in 1871.
  • The Western movie Nevada Smith (1966) was filmed here.

See also

  • List of lakes in California
  • Mammoth Lakes, California

References

Bibliography

  • Topographical map of Lake Convict and surrounding area