Lake Hancock is a lake located north of Bartow, Florida in Polk County, Florida. Lake Hancock is located in the Polk Upland area between the Winter Haven Ridge and Lakeland Ridge. As part of the upper Peace River watershed, the lake has ecological importance throughout southwest Florida according to the Southwest Florida Water Management District. Lake Hancock is shallow with an average depth of four feet and a maximum depth of 16 feet (4.9Â m). At 4,573 acres (18.51Â km2), the lake is one of the largest lakes in Polk County, Florida; the center of the cities of Bartow, Lakeland, and Winter Haven roughly form an equilateral triangle with sides of 12 miles (19Â km) and Lake Hancock forms over 25% of that triangle. The first settlements in the area occurred in 1849 when small farms were established in the area as a result of migration from a hurricane in the Tampa Bay area.
Flora and fauna
The lake is surrounded by cypress forests with the understory primarily red maple and black willow. The open areas of the lake are relatively free from native vegetation, although hydrilla can occasionally be an issue and algae is abundant.
There is a substantial American alligator presence along the shoreline feeding on one of the largest colonial wading bird rookeries in central Florida. Although many lakes in Polk County are utilized by sports fishermen, Lake Hancock has not been used for recreational fishing in decades. The dominant fish in the lake are blue tilapia and threadfin shad, and suckermouth catfish.
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