In 1971, approximately 20,000 acres of uplands and 10,000 acres of lake bottom were donated by the Florida Power Corporation to the State of Florida to form Lake Talquin State Recreation Area. The waters that now cover Lake Talquin’s floodplain are shallow except along the old channel of the river. The abundance of dead trees and stumps scattered about are reminders of the rich floodplain forest that once covered the area before the lake was formed.