Genoa Wisconsin fishing history at Lock and Dam 8
Two things were finished at Genoa in 1937: a dam that turned twenty-three miles of moving river intoPool 8 above Lock and Dam 8, and a federal hatchery built by Depression-era relief labour. Neither was built for anglers. Both are the reason thefishing on this stretch of the Mississippi is what it is.
Why does 1924 keep coming up?
Because a single piece of legislation created most of what a modern angler encounters here. The Upper Mississippi Wildlife and Fish Act of 1924 authorised the national fish hatchery at Genoa and created the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge in the same act. The refuge now runs261 river miles from Wabasha, Minnesota to Rock Island, Illinois and protects more than 240,000 acres of floodplain, which is why so much of the backwater you can fish is public.
Genoa was chosen for its proximity to the Mississippi River and for a reliable supply of broodfish and artesian well water. That combination is unusual — most hatcheries make do with one good water source — and it is the reason the station can run many different rearing units at different temperatures.
What has the hatchery actually done?
| Year | What happened |
|---|---|
| 1924 | The Upper Mississippi Wildlife and Fish Act authorises the hatchery and creates the Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge in the same stroke. |
| 1932 | Construction begins as a Works Progress Act back-to-work project during the Great Depression. |
| 1937 | The hatchery is completed. |
| 1950s | Walleye and pike culture expands. |
| 1990s to 2000s | The mission shifts to native fish restoration, lake sturgeon and endangered freshwater mussel recovery. |
| 2018 | The Great River Road interpretive centre opens, covering the river, the area’s history and its natural resources. |
The mission has turned over completely. It opened raising bass and panfish for the United States Fish Commission to stock into area waters. Walleye and pike culture expanded through the 1950s. From the 1990s the work shifted again, to recovering endangered aquatic species — the Higgins eye pearly mussel, the winged mapleleaf, the Hine's emerald dragonfly — and restoring lake sturgeon.
That shift is worth noticing if you fish Pool 8, because it explains a regulation. Lake sturgeon has no open season on these boundary waters. The fish is being rebuilt, and the hatchery a mile from the dam is part of how.
What did the dam change?
Everything about the habitat. Lock and Dam 8 was constructed and put into operation in 1937, and underwent major rehabilitation from 1989 through 2003. Before it, this was a shifting braided channel that barges struggled through. After it, the water upstream becamePool 8 fishery above Genoa:20,800 acres held at a project elevation of 631.0 feet, with permanently flooded backwaters and sloughs behind the islands that had not existed as year-round habitat before.
That is why largemouth bass and panfish fishing on this stretch is a backwater game rather than a channel one. The dam did not just raise the water; it created a different kind of water, and theUpper Mississippi guide covers how the two pools below La Crosse fish as a result.
The tailwater below the dam is the other half of the story, and the reason Genoa has a reputation at all among anglers. Fish concentrate below a dam because they cannot pass it. That same current is strong enough to pull a boat under, which is why every page on this site that touches Pool 8 or Pool 9 carries the same warning.
What is here now?
Genoa sits at river mile 679.2 on Wisconsin State Highway 35, which is the Great River Road. The lock and dam has a public observation deck. The hatchery has a free interpretive centre that opened in 2018 and self-guided trails. The village has a harbour landing, and Blackhawk Park is twenty minutes south in Pool 9 below Genoa.
What is not here is the inn this domain is named after. We kept the domain and changed what it is for. Our about page explains who runs the site now.
Questions about Genoa and this site
Is this website the Big River Inn?
No. This domain previously belonged to a lodging business in Genoa, Wisconsin that no longer operates. Big River Fishing is an independent fishing resource with no connection to that business, its former owners or its former staff, and it offers no lodging, bookings or hospitality services.
When was Lock and Dam 8 built?
It was constructed and put into operation in 1937 as part of the Upper Mississippi River nine-foot navigation channel project, and it was rehabilitated between 1989 and 2003. It sits at river mile 679.2, adjacent to the village of Genoa.
What does the Genoa hatchery raise?
More than 15 species of fish and 15 species of freshwater mussel, plus one dragonfly and one salamander species. Its focus today is recovering federally endangered aquatic species, restoring lake sturgeon and supporting tribal and state conservation agencies rather than stocking sport fish.
Can you visit the hatchery and the lock?
Both. The hatchery interpretive centre opened in 2018 and is the starting point for self-guided tours and hiking trails. The Corps of Engineers keeps an observation deck open at Lock and Dam 8, which is the easiest place to watch a tow lock through.
Sources
- United States Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, Lock and Dam 8
The dam is a 934-foot concrete structure with five roller gates and ten Tainter gates, plus a 17,500-foot earth embankment with two submersible spillways. The lock chamber is 110 by 600 feet and the observation deck is open to the public.
- United States Army Corps of Engineers, St. Paul District, Master Water Control Manual appendix, February 2003
Total pool area at project pool elevation.
- United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Genoa National Fish Hatchery
Taken from the hatchery’s own published history. Genoa is one of 72 federal hatcheries and now rears more than 15 fish species and 15 mussel species, plus one dragonfly and one salamander.
- United States Fish and Wildlife Service, Upper Mississippi River National Wildlife and Fish Refuge
The refuge stretches 261 river miles from Wabasha, Minnesota to Rock Island, Illinois and protects more than 240,000 acres of floodplain. Pool maps showing closed areas and sanctuaries for Pools 4 through 14 are published on the same site.