The Hawkeye State isn't exactly famous for its grand bodies of water. Iowa sits outside the Great Lakes region, it's nowhere near an ocean, and less than 1% of the entire state is covered in water.

But beneath Iowa's largest reservoir lies a hidden story - the underwater ghost towns of once thriving communities that are now, forever buried beneath the bottom of a lake.

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Over the years, Iowa has watched plenty of vanish from its map for all kinds of reasons. Some were bypassed by the railroads or the interstate highway system, and others dissolved when local industry dried up. But in the 1960s, several Iowa towns were intentionally abandoned - and what's left still lies beneath the surface of Lake Red Rock.

Credit: Canva
Credit: Canva
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Lake Red Rock is the largest lake in the entire Hawkeye State by a considerable margin. It's also an underwater graveyard for six Iowa towns that were intentionally flooded in the 1960s to make way for the lake.

According to Only in Your State Iowa, these six ghost towns are Red Rock, Cordova, Dunreath, Rousseau, Fifefield, and Coalport. It seems these towns were repeatedly hit with massive floods in the twentieth century and it was decided to flood the area for greater good in the 1960s.

To learn more about the abandoned towns of Red Rock, Cordova, Dunreath, Rousseau, Fifefield, and Coalport, along with what it took to build the man-made Lake Red Rock check out the article from Only in Your State Iowa.

You can also learn more about Iowa's largest lake, Lake Red Rock in the IPTV YouTube video below.

Story Source: Only in Your State Iowa Website

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