With the frequent flooding of the Kaskaskia River, citizens of Clinton County formed an organization in 1933 to discuss the Kaskaskia River Valley Project. This group made efforts to study all of the physical, economic, and social aspects of the Kaskaskia River throughout the state of Illinois. After completing this report the possibilities of Carlyle Lake were discussed. In 1938, Congress approved the Flood Control Act of June 28, 1938, which authorized a major reservoir at Carlyle, levees downstream, and a plan for the development of the Kaskaskia Basin, but World War II put a temporary halt to the construction of the Carlyle reservoir.