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Dedicated in 1975, just five years after the Rend Lake reservoir was constructed, Wayne Fitzgerrell SRA encompasses 3,300 acres of former farmland leased to the IDNR by the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers. The site is named in honor of the late Wayne Fitzgerrell, a state representative from nearby Sesser who was an advocate for the construction of Rend Lake.
Approximately 2,000 acres of the site are developed for picnicking, boating access, camping and other activities, while another 1,000 acres have been set aside for hunting, field trials, wildlife observation, hiking and other land uses.
The area contains many fence rows, abandoned crop fields and cleared farmsteads interspersed with small oak-hickory woodlands. Three quarters of the site’s perimeter is Rend Lake shoreline. This varied topography provides excellent habitat for a variety of upland and woodland wildlife, as well as waterfowl, shorebirds and raptors.
