Crab Orchard Lake was built in 1936 between Marion and Carbondale. It has a maximum depth of 30 feet and averages about 9 feet deep. The refuge was created in 1947 when the War Department, which had used a portion of the property for a munitions plant, transferred ownership to the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service. More than one million people visit the refuge each year. At least 170,000 geese find sanctuary at Crab Orchard each fall and winter.