Lake Okeechobee Valley and the Everglades. The trough is underlain by clay deposits that compacted more than the limestone and sand deposits did along both coasts of peninsular Florida. Until about 6,000 years ago, the trough was dry land. As the sea level rose, the water table in Florida also rose and rainfall increased. From 6,000 to 4,000 years ago, wetlands formed building up peat deposits. Eventually the water flow into the area created a lake, drowning the wetlands. Along what is now the southern edge of the lake, the wetlands built up the layers of peat rapidly enough (reaching thick) to
Effects of the 1928 Okeechobee hurricane in Florida Fort Lauderdale hurricane, as well as the passage of the Flood Control Act of 1948. The dike was complete in 1961. A ceremony held in Clewiston on January 12, 1961, included a speech from former President Herbert Hoover. Since its completion, the dike almost completely encloses the lake. The only gap is at Fisheating Creek – the mouth located in Glades County near Lakeport – where the dike turns inland and parallels the stream on both sides for several miles, leaving Fisheating Creek as the only remaining free-flowing tributary of Lake Okeechobee. Since at least the 1990s, concerns related to