J C Murphey Lake

Newton County, Indiana · IN DNR bathymetric survey

8ft Max
depth

1,014 acres 4 contours Public access 82% weedy

Paddling Index73Goodelectric motors only · wooded shoreline · away from major roads

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Depth scale

02468

The lake

Survey readout

J C Murphey Lake is mapped to a depth of 8 ft on the Indiana DNR survey and covers about 1,014 acres in Newton County, Indiana. Coverage is sparse: about 56% of this lake lies well away from any surveyed contour, so most of the shape shown there is interpolated between distant measurements rather than mapped. Depths come from the Indiana DNR survey of 2016.

Measured from the Indiana DNR lake bathymetry survey.

Deepest mapped contour: 8 ft
Survey year: 2016
Surface area: 1,014 acres
Shoreline: 14.11 mi · irregular
Aquatic vegetation: 82% of surface · NDVI estimate
Public access: Boat Ramp · J.C. Murphey Lake · Indiana DNR site · 1 more

Additional depth details4 contours

Contour depths: 0–8 ft
Recorded point soundings: 8 ft, 6 ft, 6 ft, 6 ft, 4 ft, 4 ft

Compare with another lake

Location

Newton County, Indiana · the only mapped lake in this county

Chart data

Provenance

Sources: IN DNR Lake Bathymetry, USGS 3DEP, USDA NAIP (public domain), OpenStreetMap (ODbL).

⚠ Not for navigation

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Map details & sources4 sources

All layers registered to one bounding box; positions in WGS 84.

Survey-derived depth contours drape over USGS 3DEP elevation, with a USDA NAIP aerial basemap and OpenStreetMap shoreline. Color shows surveyed depth; dark lines are the survey's own isobaths.

Coordinates: 40.97918, -87.50510
IN DNR lake ID: 154247560
Basemap: USDA NAIP · public domain
Model size: 2.1 MB

Paddling

Paddling Index methodology v1.0 · calculated 2026-09-21

73 / 100GoodData confidence: High

J C Murphey Lake has a heavily wooded and largely undeveloped setting, moderate open-water exposure, limited nearby major-road exposure. Watercraft controls: Electric motors only.

Why this score?5 components

Included in the index

Component	Rating	Points of weight	Measurement
Natural setting	Excellent	26.8 of 30	87% natural land cover within 150 m of shore (33% forest, 51% wetland; 6% developed)
Geometric wind exposure	Good	8.6 of 25	mean fetch 1,977 m · 3% of sampled water within 500 m of shelter · moderate open-water fetch
Watercraft controls	Electric motors only	14.2 of 15	Electric motors only
Public access	Good	12.8 of 15	2 DNR fishing access sites · boat ramp · ADA-accessible · fishing pier
Road isolation	Very Good	10.7 of 15	limited nearby major-road exposure · 1 INDOT-classified segment within 1.2 km, peak 425 vehicles/day

Additional paddling considerations

These describe the lake but are not part of the v1 Paddling Index and do not change the number above.

Wake sensitivity: Low — wide enough that wakes disperse over most of the lake
Aquatic vegetation: High — approximately 82% mapped coverage · NAIP aerial imagery (NDVI)
Observed motorized activity: Unknown — No lake-level measurement of boat traffic is available. Legal permission to operate motors is not evidence of use.
Wildlife habitat potential: High — 33% forest and 51% wetland cover within 150 m of shore

Compare Indiana lakes by Paddling Index →

How this index is calculated. The Paddling Index is a relative composite derived from lake geometry and public environmental, access, roadway and watercraft-control data. It is not a user review, a safety rating, or a prediction of an individual outing. Differences of a few points should not be treated as meaningful — an 84 and an 82 are broadly comparable. Components and weights: natural setting 30%, geometric wind exposure 25%, watercraft controls 15%, public access 15%, road isolation 15%; observed motorboat activity is weighted 0% because no defensible lake-level measurement exists. Where a component has no data the remaining weights are renormalized and the confidence rating is lowered; below Medium confidence no number is shown. Sources: USGS NHD waterbody outline, USGS/MRLC NLCD Land Cover (2021), IN DNR Fishing Access Sites (motor restrictions) (2026-08), IN DNR Fishing Access Sites (2026-08) and INDOT Annual Average Daily Traffic (2021). Conditions change quickly — check current weather and local conditions before going out.

Fish you might catch

from DNR surveys

16 species with recent evidence in this lake — sized relative to each other. Illustrations are AI-generated representative adults in everyday colors, not photographs (provenance).

Common Carp

Lake Chubsucker

Hybrid Sunfish

Golden Shiner

Central Mudminnow

Starhead Topminnow

About these fish → the Fish of Indiana guide

Fishing rules for this lake Beta

Size and daily limits for the 16 species found here — 6 open to harvest, 4 with a special rule or closed season.

These are hook-and-line size and daily limit rules. The fishing code sets no closed season for these species on inland lakes, but posted property rules can close a water — see the notes. Gear, spearing and bow fishing, netting and bait collection are set by other sections of 312 IAC 9 and are not shown here.

Black CrappieSpecial rulesJ.C. Murphey Lake: 25 per day of bluegill, redear sunfish and crappie COMBINED (312 IAC 9-7-14(e)(1)) — bluegill is unlimited elsewhere in Indiana.

BluegillSpecial rulesJ.C. Murphey Lake: 25 per day of bluegill, redear sunfish and crappie COMBINED (312 IAC 9-7-14(e)(1)) — bluegill is unlimited elsewhere in Indiana.

Beta. This panel is newly published. Every value is transcribed from the Indiana Administrative Code (312 IAC 9-7) and checked against the Indiana DNR's 2026-27 Fishing Regulations Guide, but the coverage and wording are still under review. If anything here disagrees with 312 IAC 9-7 or the Indiana DNR's guide, the DNR is right — the Administrative Code is the legal text; the guide summarizes it.

No closed season in the fishing code: 312 IAC 9-7 sets no season for these species on inland lakes (trout and salmon “at any time of year”, 9-7-13(d)(1)). Posted property rules can still close a water or bar entry (312 IAC 8-2-1) and 312 IAC 9-6-6 closes a few named areas, so check the property before you go. The possession limit is twice the daily bag limit (312 IAC 9-1-12.1); fish already processed and stored at your primary residence do not count toward it (312 IAC 9-2-8(d)).

Black CrappieSpecial rulesJ.C. Murphey Lake: 25 per day of bluegill, redear sunfish and crappie COMBINED (312 IAC 9-7-14(e)(1)) — bluegill is unlimited elsewhere in Indiana.

BluegillSpecial rulesJ.C. Murphey Lake: 25 per day of bluegill, redear sunfish and crappie COMBINED (312 IAC 9-7-14(e)(1)) — bluegill is unlimited elsewhere in Indiana.

Brown BullheadOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Bullhead”)

Central MudminnowRule not confidently resolvedNot named in 312 IAC 9-7 or in the DNR guide's limits table. Please check with the Indiana DNR (317-232-4200) before keeping this species.

Channel CatfishOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: 10 (312 IAC 9-7-3(b), (d)) The 10 is catfish in aggregate of any size from a lake or reservoir. Of those, not more than one channel catfish 28 inches or longer, one blue catfish 35 inches or longer and one flathead catfish 35 inches or longer per day.

Common CarpOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Carp”)

Golden ShinerOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: none stated (312 IAC 9-7-15) A minnow under the code’s definition (312 IAC 9-6-1). Minnows may be taken at any time of year by minnow trap, dip net, seine, cast net or lawful sport-fishing methods; the section states no bag or size limit, caps transport out of Indiana at 100 minnows in any 24-hour period (licensed bait dealers, scientific-purposes licensees and those commercially raising minnows in private waters for sale excepted), and requires a bait dealer’s license to sell (312 IAC 9-7-15).

Hybrid SunfishRule not confidently resolvedNot named in 312 IAC 9-7 or in the DNR guide's limits table. Please check with the Indiana DNR (317-232-4200) before keeping this species.

Lake ChubsuckerOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Sucker”) Greater redhorse is endangered in Indiana (312 IAC 9-6-9) and may not be taken — identify redhorse carefully.

Largemouth BassSpecial rulesLargemouth bass here: 2 per day, at least 18 inches (312 IAC 9-7-6(i)) — not the statewide 5 at 14 inches.

PumpkinseedRule not confidently resolvedNot named in 312 IAC 9-7 or in the DNR guide's limits table. Please check with the Indiana DNR (317-232-4200) before keeping this species.

Redear SunfishSpecial rulesJ.C. Murphey Lake: 25 per day of bluegill, redear sunfish and crappie COMBINED (312 IAC 9-7-14(e)(1)) — bluegill is unlimited elsewhere in Indiana.

Redfin PickerelRule not confidently resolvedNot named in 312 IAC 9-7 or in the DNR guide's limits table. Please check with the Indiana DNR (317-232-4200) before keeping this species.

Starhead TopminnowRule not confidently resolvedNot named in 312 IAC 9-7 or in the DNR guide's limits table. Please check with the Indiana DNR (317-232-4200) before keeping this species.

WarmouthRule not confidently resolvedNot named in 312 IAC 9-7 or in the DNR guide's limits table. Please check with the Indiana DNR (317-232-4200) before keeping this species.

Yellow BullheadOpen to harvestMinimum size: no size limit · Daily limit: no limit (312 IAC 9-7-14(d) · “Bullhead”)

Official rule text for this lake

“Twenty-five (25) of any combination of bluegill, redear sunfish, and crappie per day from J. C. Murphey Lake at Willow Slough Fish and Wildlife Area in Newton County.” — 312 IAC 9-7-14(e)(1), Indiana Administrative Code

“An individual may take minnows at any time during the year.” — 312 IAC 9-7-15(a), Indiana Administrative Code

“An individual must not take or possess more than two (2) largemouth bass per day, and an individual must not take or possess a largemouth bass unless the largemouth bass is at least eighteen (18) inches long from the following designated waters: (6) J. C. Murphey Lake at Willow Slough Fish and Wildlife Area in Newton County.” — 312 IAC 9-7-6(i), Indiana Administrative Code

From 312 IAC 9-7 (Sport fishing), Indiana Administrative Code (readopted 2025-03-25), and the 2026-2027 Indiana Fishing Regulations Guide · verified 2026-09-15. Regulations can change — the Indiana Administrative Code (312 IAC 9-7) is the controlling source; verify current regulations before fishing. Official regulations

Compiled from Indiana DNR fishery surveys. Silhouettes are stylized and scaled to typical adult sizes relative to one another. Presence is not a promise — fishing isn’t a sure thing.

Fishery

surveyed 2018, 2019, 2020 and 2021

2,552Fish sampled

16Species

Gamefish Largemouth Bass 236 · Channel Catfish 4

Panfish Bluegill 1,957 · Redear Sunfish 109 · Warmouth 78

All survey species16 species

Gamefish

Largemouth Bass236 caught · to 20″

Channel Catfish4 caught · to 24″

Panfish

Bluegill1,957 caught · to 9″

Redear Sunfish109 caught · to 12″

Warmouth78 caught · to 8″

Black Crappie14 caught · to 11″

Pumpkinseed14 caught · to 7″

Hybrid Sunfish8 caught · to 10″

Bullhead & catfish

Yellow Bullhead6 caught · to 13″

Brown Bullhead3 caught · to 14″

Forage & nongame

Golden Shiner75 caught · to 8″

Central Mudminnow21 caught · to 4″

Common Carp15 caught · to 25″

Redfin Pickerel7 caught · to 7″

Starhead Topminnow3 caught · to 2″

Lake Chubsucker2 caught · to 5″

Length is the largest fish netted in the survey, not an angler record. Source: Indiana DNR fish survey (Indiana Data Hub) (counts summed across survey years).

Non-native species records

No non-native species recorded in the available dataset. This does not confirm that no non-native species are present.

Source: Midwest Glacial Lakes Partnership Conservation Planner; underlying nonindigenous species records from the USGS Nonindigenous Aquatic Species database.

Quick answers

J C Murphey Lake — common questions

How deep is J C Murphey Lake?

The deepest contour on the Indiana DNR bathymetric survey of J C Murphey Lake is 8 ft. That is the deepest depth the historical survey map records, which may differ from the deepest point of the lake itself.

How big is J C Murphey Lake?

J C Murphey Lake covers about 1,014 acres in Newton County, Indiana.

What fish are in J C Murphey Lake?

Species with survey, catch or recent-stocking evidence include channel catfish, largemouth bass, black crappie, bluegill, brown bullhead, hybrid sunfish. The page lists all 16 species and the evidence behind each.

Is there public access to J C Murphey Lake?

Yes. The Indiana DNR lists 2 public access sites on J C Murphey Lake: J.C. Murphey Lake (boat ramp); J.C. Murphey Lake (Filbert Lane Ice Fishing Access) (shoreline fishing site).