page_title: History of Lake Wawasee
section_title: Kale Island
hierarchical_section_title: History of Lake Wawasee / Wawasee geographical places / Kale Island
caption_attribution_description: English: USGS orthophoto showing remnants of Dog Creek Dam. Uploader added reference point of red to show boundary of the fish trap on the north side. Noles1984 20:54, 26 August 2007 (UTC)
context_page_description: Lake Wawasee is a large, natural, freshwater lake southeast of Syracuse in Kosciusko County, Indiana. It is the largest natural lake within Indiana's borders.
context_section_description: In 1862 or 1863 Kale Island was settled by two brothers by the name of Thomas and Kale Oram. They made their livelihoods catching fish by net for sale in Goshen and cleared some 20 acres (81,000 m²) of land. Trees were floated through the main channel to a saw mill on Turkey Creek or one just south of Vawter Park. The poplar trees going to homes in Syracuse and oak made into barrel staves and firewood. The Oram brothers planted the area with Concord 
  and Delaware grapes. During the Civil War, Thomas Oram joined the Union army and later moved to Kansas. Kale later married a woman named "Mam" who lived with her son Bill in a lowly cabin on Syracuse Lake. They lived on Kale Island until 1874 when the land was purchased by Mart Hillabold during the building of the B&O Railroad. Kale, Mam and her son moved to her cabin on Syracuse Lake.
  In 1873 or 1874, John Wysong and March McCory built Island House on Kale Island, Lake Wawasee's first summer hotel. Badly built, it declined in popularity becoming a poker and boozing hang-out and eventually burned down. Kale Island was finally acquired by George W. Miles who had it developed into an upscale area for homes.
caption: Remnants of Dog Creek Dam show as a "V" pointing north at bottom of photo.
exif: {}