Editing Lake Tahoe (section)

==Human history==
===Native peoples===
The area around Lake Tahoe was previously inhabited by the [[Washoe people|Washoe]] [[Native Americans in the United States|Native Americans]]. Lake Tahoe was the center and heart of Washoe Indian territory, including the upper valleys of the [[Walker River|Walker]], [[Carson River|Carson]] and Truckee Rivers.

[[Cave Rock (location)|Cave Rock]] is a large rock formation located on the southeastern shore of the lake and considered a sacred site for the Washoe Indians. The Washoe people called Cave Rock ''deʔek wadapush'' ([[Washo language|Washo]] for Standing Gray Rock). Part of why the Washoe felt the Cave was sacred was due to "The Lady of the Lake" a rock formation on the side of the Cave which looks like the profile of a woman's face gazing out towards the lake. Washoe ancestors performed religious ceremonies inside the cave. There were significant but ultimately unsuccessful protests from the tribe when a [[Cave Rock Tunnel|tunnel]] was blasted through the rock in 1931 for Highway 50.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://sierranevadageotourism.org/entries/cave-rock/44075513-fee3-4532-9ca6-715a1ae400d2 |title=Cave Rock |website=Sierranevadageotourism.org |access-date=October 8, 2021 }}</ref>

===Exploration and naming===
Lt. [[John C. Frémont]] was the first European-American to see Lake Tahoe, during his second exploratory expedition on February 14, 1844.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.trpa.org/default.aspx?tabindex=5&tabid=95 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120205131013/http://trpa.org/default.aspx?tabindex=5&tabid=95 |archive-date=February 5, 2012 |title=Lake Tahoe Facts and Figures |access-date=October 26, 2008 |publisher=Tahoe Regional Planning Association |url-status=dead }}</ref> Fremont named it "Lake Bonpland" after [[Aimé Bonpland]] (a French botanist who had accompanied [[Prussia]]n explorer [[Alexander von Humboldt]] in his exploration of [[Mexico]], Colombia and the [[Amazon River]]).<ref name=rubiconbay>{{cite web |url=http://www.rubiconbay.net/name.htm |title=Where does the name "Tahoe" come from? |publisher=rubiconbay.net |access-date=May 9, 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070315192037/http://www.rubiconbay.net/name.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = March 15, 2007}}</ref> Lake Bonpland's usage never became popular, and the name changed from "Mountain Lake" to "Fremont's Lake" several years after. [[John Calhoun Johnson]], Sierra explorer and founder of "Johnson's Cutoff" (now [[U.S. Route 50 (California)|U.S. Route 50]]), named it [[Fallen Leaf Lake (California)|Fallen Leaf Lake]] after his Indian guide. Johnson's first job in the west was in the government service carrying the mail on snowshoes from [[Placerville, California|Placerville]] to [[Nevada City, California|Nevada City]], during which time he named it "Lake Bigler" after California's third governor [[John Bigler]]. In 1853 William Eddy, the surveyor general of California, identified the lake as Lake Bigler.

[[Image:CalifNevada1860s.jpg|250px|right|thumb|An 1860s map of "Lake Bigler" during the name controversy]]
The usage never became universal. By the start of the [[American Civil War]] in 1861, former Governor Bigler, once a Free Soil Democrat, had become such an ardent [[Confederate States of America|Confederate]] sympathizer that Union advocates objected to the name. Unionists and [[United States Republican Party|Republicans]] alike derided the former governor's name on the lake on official state maps. Pro-Union papers called for a "change from this [[Secessionist|Secesh]] appellation" and "no [[Copperhead (politics)|Copperhead]] names on our landmarks for us."<ref name=rubiconbay/> Several Unionist members in the Legislature suggested changing the name to the fanciful sounding "Tula Tulia". The ''[[Sacramento Union]]'' jokingly suggested the name "Largo Bergler" for Bigler's widely perceived financial incompetency in his final term and contemporary Southern sympathies. Within a year, different maps referred to the lake not only as Bigler, but also as "Mountain Lake" and "Maheon Lake".

The debate took a new direction when William Henry Knight, mapmaker for the federal [[U.S. Department of the Interior]], and colleague Dr. Henry DeGroot of the ''[[Sacramento Union]]'' joined the political argument in 1862. As Knight completed a new map of the lake, the mapmaker asked DeGroot for a new name of the lake. DeGroot suggested "Tahoe", a local tribal name he believed meant "water in a high place". Knight agreed, and telegraphed to the Land Office in Washington, D.C., to officially change all federal maps to now read "Lake Tahoe". Knight later explained his desire for a name change, writing, "I remarked (to many) that people had expressed dissatisfaction with the name "Bigler", bestowed in honor of a man who had not distinguished himself by any single achievement, and I thought now would be a good time to select an appropriate name and fix it forever on that beautiful sheet of water."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.tahoeinfo.com/visit/history.htm |title=History of Lake Tahoe |publisher=South Lake Tahoe Chamber of Commerce |access-date=May 9, 2007 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20070502000925/http://www.tahoeinfo.com/visit/history.htm <!-- Bot retrieved archive --> |archive-date = May 2, 2007}}</ref>
[[File:Albert_Bierstadt_-_Lake_Tahoe,_California.jpg|alt=Painting with a view from the shore of Lake Tahoe. A boulder is perched on rocks on the shore, trees to the left, a bird is flying close to the water and a mountain is in the distance.|thumb|[[Albert Bierstadt]], ''Lake Tahoe, California'', 1867]]
"Lake Tahoe", also like "Lake Bigler", did not gain universal acceptance. [[Mark Twain]], a critic of the new name, called it an "unmusical cognomen". In an 1864 editorial regarding the name in the [[Virginia City]] ''[[Territorial Enterprise]]'', Twain cited Bigler as being "the legitimate name of the Lake, and it will be retained until some name less flat, insipid and spooney than "Tahoe" is invented for it."<ref>{{Cite news|title=Legislative Proceedings|first=Mark|last=Twain|url=http://www.twainquotes.com/18640212t.html|access-date=2023-01-02|via=www.twainquotes.com|newspaper=[[Virginia City]] [[Territorial Enterprise]]|date=February 1864}}</ref> In Twain's 1869 novel ''[[Innocents Abroad]]'', Twain continued to deride the name in his foreign travels. "People say that Tahoe means 'Silver Lake' – 'Limpid Water' – 'Falling Leaf.' Bosh! It means grasshopper soup, the favorite dish of the digger tribe – and of the Paiutes as well."<ref>{{cite book |author=Mark Twain|title=The Innocents Abroad |location=Mineola, NY |publisher=Dover Publications |year=2003 |orig-year=1869 |isbn=0-486-42832-X}}</ref> The [[Placerville, California|Placerville]] ''[[Mountain Democrat]]'' began a notorious rumor that "Tahoe" was actually an [[Native Americans in the United States|Indian]] renegade who plundered upon White settlers. To counter the federal government, the California State Legislature reaffirmed in 1870 that the lake was indeed called "Lake Bigler".

But to most surveys and the general public it was known as Lake Tahoe.<ref>{{cite book|last=Erwin|first=Gudde|title=California Place Names: The origin and etymology of current geographical names|date=2004|publisher=University of California Press|location=Berkeley, CA|page=121}}</ref>   By the end of the 19th century "Lake Bigler" had nearly completely fallen out of popular use in favor of "Tahoe". The California State Legislature reversed its previous decision in 1945, officially changing the name to Lake Tahoe.

===Mining era===
Upon discovery of gold in the [[South Fork of the American River]] in 1848, thousands of gold seekers going west passed near the basin on their way to the gold fields. Europeans first impinged upon the Lake Tahoe basin with the 1858 discovery of the [[Comstock Lode]], a silver deposit just {{convert|15|mi|km}} to the east in [[Virginia City, Nevada]]. From 1858 until about 1890, logging in the basin supplied large timbers to shore up the underground workings of the Comstock mines.<ref>{{Cite news|last=Brown|first=Julie|date=October 30, 2020|title=Why Tahoe never became a national park|url=https://www.sfgate.com/renotahoe/article/Why-Tahoe-isn-t-a-national-park-15685996.php|access-date=December 27, 2020|work=SFGATE|language=en-US}}</ref> The logging was so extensive that loggers cut down almost all of the native forest.<ref name="usgs water"/>

Lake Tahoe became a transportation hub for the surrounding area as mining and logging commenced prior to development of railroads. The first mail delivery was via a [[sailboat]] which took a week to visit each of the lakeside communities.<ref name=ofm/> The first [[steamboat]] on Lake Tahoe was the {{convert|42|ft|m|adj=on}} [[paddle wheel]] [[tugboat]] ''Governor Blasdel'' towing log rafts to a [[sawmill]] on the south side of Glenbrook Bay from 1863 until her [[boiler]] exploded in 1877. The {{convert|40|ft|m|adj=on}} ''Truckee'' and {{convert|55|ft|m|adj=on}} [[propeller]]-driven ''Emerald'' were also towing log rafts in 1870.<ref name=dso>{{cite web |url=http://www.dougstepsout.com/2015/01/12/lake-tahoe-the-lake-of-the-sky-part-ix-the-early-steamers-on-the-lake/ |title=The Early Steamers on the Lake |last=Noble |first=Doug |date=January 12, 2015 |publisher=Doug Steps Out |access-date=September 3, 2017 }}</ref> J.A. Todman brought steam-powered passenger service to Lake Tahoe in 1872 with the {{convert|100|ft|m|adj=on}} 125-passenger [[side-wheel steamer]] ''Governor Stanford'' which reduced the mail delivery trip around Lake Tahoe to eight hours.<ref name=mmc>{{cite web |url=http://www.sierrasun.com/entertainment/the-arts/sierra-history-a-look-at-lake-tahoes-wonderful-wood-powered-steamship-past/ |title=Sierra History: a look at Lake Tahoe's wonderful wood-powered steamship past |last=McLaughlin |first=Mark |date=August 3, 2015 |publisher=Sierra Sun |access-date=September 3, 2017 }}</ref> Todman expanded service with steamboats ''Mamie'', ''Niagara'', and ''Tod Goodwin''. Lawrence & Comstock provided competition with their steel-hulled steamboat ''Tallac'' in 1890 and later purchased Todman's steamboats ''Mamie'' and ''Tod Goodwin''. The [[Carson and Tahoe Lumber and Fluming Company]] purchased the {{convert|83|ft|m|adj=on}} ''Niagara'' and built the iron-hulled steamboats ''Meteor'' in 1876 and ''Emerald (II)'' in 1887. The {{convert|75|ft|m|adj=on}} ''Meteor'' was the fastest boat on Lake Tahoe with a speed of {{convert|22|mile|km}} per hour. [[Lake Tahoe Railway and Transportation Company]] dominated the passenger and mail route after launch of their 200-passenger steamboat ''[[SS Tahoe|Tahoe]]'' on June 24, 1896. The 154-ton ''Tahoe'' was {{convert|170|ft|m}} long with a slender {{convert|18|ft|m|adj=on}} beam so her {{convert|1200|HP|kW}} engines could push her over the lake at 18.5 knots. Lake Tahoe Railway and Transportation Company purchased ''Tallac'' and rebuilt her as ''Nevada'' with length increased by {{convert|20|ft|m}} to serve as a backup steamboat when ''Tahoe'' required maintenance.<ref name=ofm>{{cite book |last=McKean |first=Owen F. |title =Railroads and Steamers of Lake Tahoe |publisher =Francis Guido |location =San Mateo, California |pages =9, 14, 15,30&31 }}</ref>

''Tod Goodwin'' burned at Tallac, and most of the other steamboats were retired as the sawmills ran out of trees and people began traveling by automobile.<ref name=ofm/> ''Niagara'' was scrapped at Tahoe City in 1900.<ref name=mmc/> ''Governor Stanford'' was beached at Glenbrook where its boiler was used until 1942 heating cottages at Glenbrook Inn and Ranch. Steamboats continued to carry a mail clerk around Lake Tahoe until 1934, when the mail contract was given to the {{convert|42|ft|m|adj=on}} motorboat ''Marian B'' powered by two [[Chevrolet]] engines. Mail delivery moved ashore after the ''Marian B'' was lost on May 17, 1941, when her owner and the mail clerk attempted mail delivery during a storm.<ref name=ofm/> The {{convert|60|ft|m|adj=on}} ''Emerald (II)'' left Lake Tahoe in 1935 to become a fishing boat in [[San Diego]].<ref name=dso/> Historic ''Tahoe'', ''Nevada'', and ''Meteor'' were purchased with hope they might be preserved; but were scuttled in deep water after deterioration made preservation impractical. The latter two lie in Glenbrook Bay, but ''Tahoe'' sank in deeper water.<ref name=ofm/>

===Development===
Even in the mining era, the potential of the basin as a tourist destination was recognized. Tahoe City was founded in 1864 as a resort community for Virginia City.<ref name="usgs water">{{USGS|title=Stream and Ground-Water Monitoring Program, Lake Tahoe Basin, Nevada and California|url=http://pubs.usgs.gov/fs/FS-100-97/|access-date=November 24, 2009}}</ref>

Public appreciation of the Tahoe basin grew, and during the [[Sixty-second United States Congress|1912, 1913]] and [[Sixty-fifth United States Congress|1918 Congressional session]]s, congressmen tried unsuccessfully to designate the basin as a [[United States National Park|national park]].<ref name="usgs water"/>
[[File:Lake Tahoe Dam 1.jpg|thumb|left|The only outlet of Lake Tahoe and the headwaters of the [[Truckee River]] at [[Lake Tahoe Dam]]]]
While Lake Tahoe is a natural lake, it is also used for water storage by the [[Truckee-Carson Irrigation District]] (TCID). The lake level is controlled by [[Lake Tahoe Dam]] built in 1913 at the lake's only outlet, the [[Truckee River]], at Tahoe City. The {{convert|18|ft|m|1|adj=on}} high dam can increase the lake's capacity by {{convert|744600|acre.ft|m3|abbr=on|lk=in}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.usbr.gov/mp/lbao/water_projects.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111012215418/http://www.usbr.gov/mp/lbao/water_projects.html |archive-date=October 12, 2011 |title=Water Delivery Projects and Facilities |website=Lahontan Basin Area Office |publisher=U.S. Bureau of Reclamation |access-date=November 24, 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref>

During the first half of the 20th century, development around the lake consisted of a few vacation homes. The post-World War II population and building boom, followed by construction of gambling casinos in the Nevada part of the basin during the mid-1950s, and completion of the interstate highway links for the [[1960 Winter Olympics]] held at [[Olympic Valley, California|Olympic Valley]] (then known as "Squaw Valley"), resulted in a dramatic increase in development within the basin. From 1960 to 1980, the permanent residential population increased from about 10,000 to greater than 50,000, and the summer population grew from about 10,000 to about 90,000.<ref name="usgs water"/> Since the 1980s, development has slowed due to controls on land use.

===Government and politics===
====Interstate boundary dispute====
Lake Tahoe is divided by the prominent interstate boundary between California and Nevada, where the two states' edges make their iconic directional turn near the middle of the lake. This boundary has been disputed since the mid-nineteenth century.<ref name="Dispute1850">{{cite news |last=Brean |first=Henery |date=May 2, 2009 |title=Nevada and California have a border dispute going back to 1850 |url=https://www.reviewjournal.com/ |work=Las Vegas Review-Journal |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20010215013824/http://www.reviewjournal.com/ |archive-date= February 15, 2001 |access-date=June 4, 2018}} [http://www.boitano.net/history/california/Nevada%20and%20California%20have%20a%20border%20dispute%20going%20back%20to%201850%20%20www_rgj_com%20%20Reno%20Gazette-Journal.htm Alt URL]</ref>

As part of the [[compromise of 1850]], California was speedily [[Admission to the Union|admitted to the Union]]. In doing so, Congress approved the [[California Constitution]] which defined the state's boundary in reference to [[geographical coordinates]]. This includes the section of the [[120th meridian west|120th meridian]] that is between the [[42nd parallel north|42nd parallel]] at the [[Oregon]] border and the [[39th parallel north|39th parallel]] amid Lake Tahoe, and an [[Angle#Types of angles|oblique]] line continuing from that point southward to where the [[Colorado River]] crosses the [[35th parallel north|35th parallel]].<ref name="CA v. NV">{{cite court |litigants=California v. Nevada |vol=44 |reporter=U.S. |opinion=125 |court=[[Supreme Court of the United States]] |date=1980 |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/447/125 |access-date=June 4, 2018 |quote=The two straight-line segments that make up the boundary between California and Nevada were initially defined in California's Constitution of 1849. The first, the "north-south" segment, commences on the Oregon border at the intersection of the 42d parallel and the 120th meridian and runs south along that meridian to the 39th parallel. And the second, the "oblique" segment, begins at that parallel and runs in a southeasterly direction to the point where the Colorado River crosses the 35th parallel. Cal.Const., Art. XII (1849). In 1850, when California was admitted to the Union, Congress approved the 1849 Constitution, and with it California's eastern boundary. Act of Sept. 9, 1850, 9 Stat. 452.}}</ref> Fourteen years later, Congress approved the [[Nevada Constitution]] when it was admitted as a state in 1864, which defined its western border at the forty third degree of Longitude West from [[Washington meridians#Old Naval Observatory meridian|Washington, D.C.]], and its southwestern border along the oblique section of the boundary line of California. While 43 degrees of longitude west from the [[Washington meridians#Old Naval Observatory meridian|Washington Meridian]] does not really coincide with the 120 degrees longitude west of [[Prime meridian (Greenwich)|Greenwich]], the 1864 Congress was of the belief that the two lines were identical; the former was [[International Meridian Conference|abandoned]] nationally in 1884. The centuries long [[Territorial dispute|dispute]] that erupted began with [[Boundary (real estate)|boundary]] discrepancies across many [[Cadastral surveying|surveys]] within which were valuable mineral deposits; Nevada also had a wish that California would assent to [[Cession|cede]] its land east of the [[Great Basin Divide|Pacific crest]] as had been preauthorized by Congress in 1850.<ref name="Dispute1850"/> The first consequential attempt to [[Survey marker|mark]] the California-Nevada boundary was the 1863 [[J.F. Houghton]] and [[Butler Ives]] line. An 1867–1868 survey of the California-Oregon border by [[Daniel G. Major]] for the [[United States General Land Office]] found the 120th meridian more than two miles west of the prior line, so it was followed by the 1872 survey by [[Alexey W. Von Schmidt]]. Against initial instructions, Von Schmidt began his survey with the [[1872 California-Nevada State Boundary Marker]]<ref name="NGS Data Sheet-KS1363">{{cite web |title=NGS Data Sheet – California Nev Iron Mon |url=https://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/ds_mark.prl?PidBox=KS1363 |website=Survey Marks and Datasheets |publisher=NOAA: National Geodetic Survey}}</ref> which was six-tenths of a mile east of the Houghton-Ives line. When he discovered the [[Colorado River]] had shifted at the 35th parallel, he simply changed the endpoint resulting in a survey that was neither straight nor accurate. Substantial doubts led Congress in 1892 to fund the [[United States Coast and Geodetic Survey]] to remark the oblique line.<ref name="NGS Data Sheet-JR1261">{{cite web |title=NGS Data Sheet – Initial Mon – 1 CA NV |url=https://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/ds_mark.prl?PidBox=JR1261 |website=Survey Marks and Datasheets |publisher=NOAA: National Geodetic Survey}}</ref> This new survey found the Von Schmidt line to be 1,600 to 1,800 feet too far west, but both surveys were then used by both states.<ref name="Abbe">{{cite web|url={{NRHP url|id=81000387}}|author=Abbe, Donald|title=1872 California-Nevada State Boundary Marker|website=National Register of Historic Places Inventory-Nomination Form|publisher=National Park Service|year=1979|access-date=June 20, 2018|quote=Between 1855 and 1900, six different surveys of California's eastern boundary were made. None of them agreed as to the location of the boundary or the 120th degree of longitude. Various surveys were conducted in 1855, 1863, 1872, 1889 and 1893. The 1872 Von Schmidt survey is the only one that was clearly marked along its entire length with stone, rock, wood and iron markers. The 1872 survey also was accepted longer than any other survey before its inaccuracy became widely known. It was not until 1893 that the Von Schmidt line was found to be 1,600 to 1,800 feet too far west. However, even after 1893, the Von Schmidt line remained the accepted boundary, and is still used more today than the more accurate 1893 version. Oddly enough, both the 1872 and 1893 lines have been recognized and are used by both California and Nevada.}}</ref> Unsurprisingly, the combination of the 1893 C.G.S. survey's oblique line and Schmidt's well marked north–south line do not intersect precisely at the 39th parallel as mandated by the California Constitution. Congress does not have the [[Article Four of the United States Constitution#Clause 1: New states|constitutional power]] to unilaterally move state boundaries.

The wealth in natural resources between the Sierra Crest and the easternmost sections of survey lines created a powerful source for conflict. Major [[Aurora, Nevada|mining sites]] in the Tahoe area were in disputed territory. In a striking display of [[opportunism]] which ostensibly occurred because the boundary was still "officially" unsurveyed, settlers arrogated parts of California up to the irregular Sierra Crest tens of miles east of the boundary—defined over six years prior—in an attempt to create [[Nataqua Territory]]. An armed skirmish known as the [[Sagebrush War]] included gunshots exchanged between militia.<ref>{{cite news |first=Henry |last=Brean |title=Four Corners mistake recalls long border feud between Nevada, California |url=http://www.lvrj.com/news/43760307.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402150233/http://www.lvrj.com/news/43760307.html |archive-date=April 2, 2012 |work=Las Vegas Review-Journal |date=April 27, 2009 |access-date=April 27, 2009 |url-status=live}}</ref> Even after six surveys, conflict remained over which of them, if any, were legally binding in marking the boundary;<ref name="Abbe"/> this was partially heard by the [[Supreme Court of the United States]] in 1980, where the doctrine of [[acquiescence]] was invoked.<ref name="CA v. NV"/>

A boundary defined in terms of [[Geographic coordinate system|geographical coordinates]] is theoretically precise, but poses pragmatic challenges to implement. Where a particular coordinate actually lies on the surface of the earth is dependent on the [[figure of the Earth]]. In the mid-1800s the [[Bessel ellipsoid|Bessel ellipsoid of 1841]] or the [[Alexander Ross Clarke#Length comparisons and Figure of the Earth, 1866|Clarke ellipsoid of 1866]] were widely used; the [[John Fillmore Hayford|Hayford ellipsoid of 1910]] may later have been used by the United States Coast and Geodetic Survey. The standard ellipsoid for western states in 1849—which is generally congruent with that year's version of the [[Astronomical Almanac]]—is [[Implicit assumption|implicit]] in California's constitutional boundary definition; incessant invention of new [[Geodetic datum|datums]] by new and potentially interested parties do not re-render the old boundary definition. Holding assumptions of the earth back-in-time, modern [[Global Positioning System|satellite]] assisted survey techniques can determine location and [[Geographic coordinate conversion|transform]] them onto old [[Earth ellipsoid|ellipsoids]] to within a centimeter. [[Celestial navigation]]<ref name="NGS Data Sheet-KS1400">{{cite web |title=NGS Data Sheet – Von Schmidts Iron Monument|url=https://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/ds_mark.prl?PidBox=KS1400 |website=Survey Marks and Datasheets |publisher=NOAA: National Geodetic Survey |quote=The south face has the lettering inscribed – 1872 longitude 120 west of Greenwich A.W. Von Schmidt U.S. astronomer and surveyor}}</ref><ref name="NGS Data Sheet-JS3908">{{cite web |title=NGS Data Sheet – Upper Truckee |url=https://www.ngs.noaa.gov/cgi-bin/ds_mark.prl?PidBox=JS3908 |website=Survey Marks and Datasheets |publisher=NOAA: National Geodetic Survey |quote=It was placed near the old blocks that mark the astronomical station of Van Schmidt.}}</ref> techniques by contrast, are accurate up to two-fifths of a mile; uncertainty in the latter was known, but precision then was unobtainable.

The legacy of this dispute continues.<ref name="Abbe"/> There is an official federal<ref name="NGS Data Sheet-JR1261"/> obelisk-shaped [[Survey marker|monument]] marking the oblique California border, which is now surrounded by [[Edgewood Tahoe Resort|Edgewood Tahoe golf resort]] that is claimed and taxed by Nevada.<ref name="NGS Data Sheet-JR1261"/><ref name="USGS SL82">{{cite map |author = [[United States Geological Survey]] |year = 1982 |title = South Lake Tahoe, Calif. – Nev. |url = https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/img4/ht_icons/Browse/CA/CA_South%20Lake%20Tahoe_300625_1955_24000.jpg |format = JPEG |type = Topographic map |series = 7.5 Minute Series |scale = 1:24,000 |location = Reston, VA |publisher = United States Geological Survey |access-date= July 17, 2018}}</ref>  A federal survey monument was removed to the Lake Tahoe Historical Society circa 2018.<ref name="NGS Data Sheet-JS3908"/> The Von Schmidt line crosses US 50 on the west edge of present-day [[Applebee's]], and the east edge of the Marcus Ashley Gallery in Tahoe Crescent V Shopping Center.<ref name="USGS SL82"/><ref name="USGS Markleeville 1891">{{cite map |author = [[United States Geological Survey]] |year = 1891 |title = Markleeville Sheet |url = https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/img4/ht_icons/Browse/CA/CA_Markleeville_299437_1891_125000.jpg |format = JPEG |type = Topographic map |scale = 1:125,000 |location = Reston, VA |publisher = United States Geological Survey |access-date= July 17, 2018}}</ref> The Nevada community of [[Stateline, Nevada|Stateline]] has been moved east.<ref name="USGS SL92">{{cite map |author = [[United States Geological Survey]] |year = 1992 |title = South Lake Tahoe, Calif. – Nev. |url = https://ngmdb.usgs.gov/img4/ht_icons/Browse/CA/CA_South%20Lake%20Tahoe_295270_1992_24000.jpg |format = JPEG |type = Topographic map |series = 7.5 Minute Series |scale = 1:24,000 |location = Reston, VA |publisher = United States Geological Survey |access-date= July 17, 2018}}</ref>

The boundary splits Lake Tahoe unevenly, with two-thirds in California and one-third in Nevada.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://water.nv.gov/WaterPlanning/truckee/truckee1.cfm#N_13_ |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20100825094729/http://water.nv.gov/WaterPlanning/truckee/truckee1.cfm |archive-date= August 25, 2010 |title= Truckee River Chronology |access-date=October 26, 2008 |publisher=Nevada Department of Conservation & Natural Resources }}</ref> In California, Lake Tahoe is divided between Placer County and El Dorado County. In Nevada, Lake Tahoe is divided among Washoe County, Douglas County and Carson City (an [[Independent city (United States)|independent city]]).

====Shorezone and beach ownership====
Lake Tahoe is a [[navigable waterway|U.S. Navigable Waterway]],<ref name="33 CFR 2.36">{{cite web |title=33 CFR 2.36(a)(3)(i) - Navigable waters of the United States, navigable waters, and territorial waters |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/33/2.36 |publisher=United States |quote=navigable waters of the United States, navigable waters, and territorial waters mean...Internal waters of the United States not subject to tidal influence that:...Are or have been used, or are or have been susceptible for use, by themselves or in connection with other waters, as highways for substantial interstate or foreign commerce, notwithstanding natural or man-made obstructions that require portage...}}</ref><ref name="444 US 164">{{cite court |litigants=Kaiser Aetna v. United States |vol=444 |reporter=[[United States Reports|US]] |court=[[Supreme Court of the United States]] |opinion=164 |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/444/164 |date=December 4, 1979 |quote= four tests for determining what constitutes navigable waters: whether the body of water (1) is subject to the ebb and flow of the tide, (2) connects with a continuous interstate waterway, (3) has navigable capacity, and (4) is actually navigable. Using these tests, courts have held that bodies of water much smaller than lakes and rivers also constitute navigable waters. Even shallow streams that are traversable only by [[canoe]] have met the test.}}</ref> under [[Federal jurisdiction (United States)|federal jurisdiction]],<ref name="18 U.S.C. § 7">{{Cite web|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/7|title=18 U.S. Code § 7 - Special maritime and territorial jurisdiction of the United States defined|website=Law.cornell.edu|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref><ref name="33 CFR 2.38">{{cite web |title=33 CFR 2.38(a) - Waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States; waters over which the United States has jurisdiction |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/33/2.38 |publisher=United States |quote=Waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States and waters over which the United States has jurisdiction mean the following waters...Navigable waters of the United States, as defined in § 2.36(a). }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=14 U.S. Code § 2 - Primary duties |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/14/2 |publisher=United States |quote=The Coast Guard shall—(1) enforce or assist in the enforcement of all applicable Federal laws on, under, and over the high seas and waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States;...(3) administer laws and promulgate and enforce regulations for the promotion of safety of life and property on and under the high seas and waters subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, covering all matters not specifically delegated by law to some other executive department}}</ref> and the public is allowed to occupy any watercraft as close to any shore as the craft is [[navigable]].<ref name="444 US 164"/> Public capacity to navigate across any land formerly inundated by the waterway is not extinguished by the lowering of the lake level; this federal easement is maintained under [[Enumerated powers (United States)|United States law]].<ref name="33 CFR 329.4">{{cite web |title=33 CFR 329.4 - General definition |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/33/329.4 |publisher=United States |quote=Navigable waters of the United States are those waters that are subject to the ebb and flow of the tide and/or are presently used, or have been used in the past, or may be susceptible for use to transport interstate or foreign commerce. A determination of navigability, once made, applies laterally over the entire surface of the waterbody, and is not extinguished by later actions or events which impede or destroy navigable capacity.}}</ref> Because small fluctuations in the height of the shoreline can result in substantive temporal immersions by the lake surface, the irreversible public easement slowly grows larger in size.

While the [[Submerged Lands Act|submerged lands]] generally belong to the state,<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/43/chapter-29|title=43 U.S. Code Chapter 29 - SUBMERGED LANDS|website=Law.cornell.edu|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref> the water held in the lake is federally controlled by the [[US Bureau of Reclamation]],<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.usbr.gov/projects/index.php?id=368 |title=Newlands Project |publisher=U.S. Bureau of Reclamation |website=Usbr.gov|date=May 11, 2011 |access-date=July 6, 2018}}</ref> and immersion of the shoreline itself would be a [[common law]] trespass against east lakefront property owners if it were not for the land—below the theoretical maximum elevation of the lake—being in a perpetual federal easement.<ref name="100 Cal. App. 4th 550">{{cite court |litigants=Rancho Viejo v. Tres Amigos Viejos |vol=100 |reporter=Cal. App. 4th |opinion=550 |pinpoint= |court=[[Court of Appeals of California]] |date=July 25, 2002 |url=https://law.justia.com/cases/california/court-of-appeal/4th/100/550.html |access-date=February 1, 2016 |quote=Many activities will give rise to liability both as a trespass and a nuisance, if they result in the violation of a person's right of exclusive possession of land and also constitute an unreasonable and substantial interference with the use and enjoyment of the land. A trespass is an invasion of the interest in the exclusive possession of land, as by entry upon it. A nuisance is an interference with the interest in the private use and enjoyment of the land and does not require interference with the possession of it.}}</ref><ref name="33 CFR 329.4"/><ref name="watermaster"/> Neither state has the authority to rescind navigability along the shoreline below the highmark of the waterbody, because it has been granted under federal law through the [[Enumerated powers (United States)|Enumerated powers of the United States]]. The entire waterbody is navigable; it is common for the majority of users to be operating negligible [[Draft (hull)|draft]] one-person craft such as [[kayaks]] and [[Standup paddleboarding|standup paddleboards]].<ref name="444 US 164"/> The [[Tahoe Regional Planning Agency]] does not have the authority to override existing federal law even if it was also created by Congress.

Like the interstate boundary itself, the high watermark has been disputed as well.<ref name="87 Cal.App.3d 225"/><ref name="29 Cal.3d 240"/> The theoretical maximum elevation of the lake is {{convert|6,229.1|feet|m}}, using the Lake Tahoe datum. The yearly maximum is commonly {{convert|0.35|ft|m}} lower.<ref name="87 Cal.App.3d 225"/> Strong winds across the lake's substantial [[Fetch (geography)|fetch]] can create a [[Storm surge#Mechanics|surge]] which further lifts the high-water line on [[leeward]] shores, known as a [[seiche]].

=====California side=====
On the California side, the shorezone is expressly maintained in a constitutionally<ref name="Cal Const Art X § 4">{{cite web |title=California Constitution Article X Section 4 |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CONS&sectionNum=SEC.%204.&article=X |website=California Legislative Information |publisher=State of California |quote=No individual, partnership, or corporation, claiming or possessing the frontage or tidal lands of ... navigable water in this State, shall be permitted to exclude the right of way to such water whenever it is required for any public purpose, nor to destroy or obstruct the free navigation of such water; and the Legislature shall enact such laws as will give the most liberal construction to this provision, so that access to the navigable waters of this State shall be always attainable for the people thereof.}}</ref> and statutorily<ref name="Cal Government Code § 670">{{cite web |title=California Government Code Section 670 |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&sectionNum=[670. |website=California Legislative Information |publisher=State of California |quote=The State is the owner of all land below tide water, and below ordinary high-water mark, bordering upon tide water within the State; of all land below the water of a navigable lake or stream; of all property lawfully appropriated by it to its own use; of all property dedicated to the State; and of all property of which there is no other owner.}}</ref> protected [[Public trust doctrine|public trust]],<ref name="146 U.S. 387">{{cite court |litigants=[[Illinois Central Railroad v. Illinois]] |vol=146 |reporter=US |opinion=387 |court=[[Supreme Court of the United States]] |date=1892 |url= }}</ref> analogous to an [[easement]],<ref name="87 Cal.App.3d 225">{{cite court |litigants=Fogerty v. State of California |vol=87 |reporter=Cal.App.3d |opinion=225 |pinpoint= |court=[[Court of Appeals of California]] |date=November 24, 1986 |url=https://law.justia.com/cases/california/court-of-appeal/3d/187/224.html |access-date=June 6, 2018 |quote=Littoral property owners owned the shorezone of a lake in fee simple to the low watermark of the lake in its current condition; however, their fee simple title in the shorezone was impressed with a public trust, analogous to an easement, acquired by the state pursuant to the doctrine of prescription and held for the benefit of the public for purposes of commerce, navigation, fishing, recreation, and preservation of the land in its natural state. ... The uses of land subject to the public trust over the shorezone of navigable waters are broader than actual uses of the land previously by the public. [http://www.lexisnexis.com/clients/CACourts/ See Official Reports Annotated Here]}}</ref><ref name="29 Cal.3d 240">{{cite court |litigants=State of California v. Superior Court (Fogerty) |vol=297 |reporter=Cal.3d |opinion=240 |pinpoint= |court=[[Supreme Court of California]] |date=March 20, 1981 |url=https://scocal.stanford.edu/opinion/state-california-v-superior-court-fogerty-30560 |access-date=November 25, 2018 |quote= plaintiffs may use the shorezone for any purposes which are not incompatible with the public trust. Landowners who have previously constructed docks, piers and other structures in the shorezone may continue to use these facilities unless the state determines, in accordance with applicable law, that their continued existence is inconsistent with the reasonable needs of the trust. [http://www.lexisnexis.com/clients/CACourts/ See Official Reports Annotated Here]}}</ref> which is managed by the [[California State Lands Commission]]<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.slc.ca.gov/Meeting_Summaries/2011_Documents/04-06-11/Complete_Items/72.pdf|title=Calendar Item 72|website=Slc.ca.gov|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref> and under a concurrent federal easement. As public land, the shorezone on this side may be used for nearly any purpose,<ref name="87 Cal.App.3d 225"/> rather than just travel. Upland owner is not entitled to utilize their land subject to public trust in any manner incompatible with public's interest in the property—which includes broad recreational uses.<ref name="29 Cal.3d 210">{{cite court |litigants=State of California v. Superior Court (Lyon) |vol=29 |reporter=Cal.3d |court=[[Supreme Court of California]] |opinion=210 |pinpoint=222,230-231,232 |url=https://scocal.stanford.edu/opinion/state-california-v-superior-court-lyon-30546 |date=1981 |quote=California succeeded to the ownership of the beds of such waters upon its admission to the Union, to the high water mark...It is well settled that if the state holds these lands in trust for the benefit of the public, its conveyance of title to private persons does not necessarily free the property from the burden of the public trust. Instead, unless the conveyance is made for the purpose of promoting trust goals, the grantee takes title subject to the rights of the public...the public's rights in tidelands are not confined to commerce, navigation and fishing, but include recreational uses and the right to preserve the tidelands in their natural state...We hold that the same incidents of the trust applicable to tidelands also apply to nontidal navigable waters and that the public's interest is not confined to the water, but extends also to the bed of the water...Nothing in the language of section 830 requires a conclusion that riparian landholders take free of the public's rights in the lands between low and high water in navigable lakes and streams.}}</ref> Owner is akin to a trustee of public trust for benefit of all the people, and as such has [[fiduciary]] responsibilities to the beneficiaries; state remains trustee with duty to supervise trust.<ref name="209 Cal.App.3d 1276">{{cite court |litigants=Golden Feather Community Assn. v. Thermalito Irrigation Dist. |vol=209 |reporter=Cal.App.3d |court=[[Court of Appeals of California]] |opinion=1276 |pinpoint=1283 |date=1989 |quote=Any conveyance of trust property to a private individual is necessarily subject to the public trust and the state remains trustee with the duty to supervise the trust.}}</ref><ref name="6 Cal.3d 251">{{cite court |litigants=Marks v. Whitney |vol=6 |reporter=Cal.3d |court=[[Supreme Court of California]] |opinion=251 |pinpoint=259 |url=https://scocal.stanford.edu/opinion/marks-v-whitney-30094 |date=1971 |quote=the buyer of land under these statutes receives the title to the soil, the Jus privatum, subject to the public right of navigation, and in subordination to the right of the state to take possession and use and improve it for that purpose, as it may deem necessary. In this way the public right will be preserved, and the private right of the purchaser will be given as full effect as the public interests will permit.’}}</ref> It is a crime for anyone who hinders, prevents, or obstructs free passage over the state lands, trusts, easements,<ref name="Cal.Penal.Code. § 370">{{cite web |title=Cal.Penal.Code § 370 |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PEN&sectionNum=370. |publisher=State of California |quote=Anything which is...an obstruction to the free use of property, so as to interfere with the comfortable enjoyment of life or property by an entire community or neighborhood, or by any considerable number of persons, or unlawfully obstructs the free passage or use, in the customary manner, of any navigable lake, or river, bay, stream, canal, or basin, or any public park, square, street, or highway, is a public nuisance.}}</ref><ref name="Cal.Penal.Code. § 372">{{cite web |title=Cal.Penal.Code § 372 |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PEN&sectionNum=372. |publisher=State of California |quote=Every person who maintains or commits any public nuisance, the punishment for which is not otherwise prescribed, or who willfully omits to perform any legal duty relating to the removal of a public nuisance, is guilty of a misdemeanor.}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.slc.ca.gov/wp-content/uploads/2018/11/2017-PublicAccessGuide.pdf|title=A LEGAL GUIDE TO THE PUBLIC'S RIGHTS TO ACCESS AND USE CALIFORNIA'S NAVIGABLE WATERS |website=Slc.ca.gov |publisher=State of California |access-date=May 5, 2023}}</ref> or federal public easement.<ref name="Cal.Penal.Code. § 420">{{cite web |title=Cal.Penal.Code § 420 |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=PEN&sectionNum=420. |publisher=State of California |quote=Every person...who unlawfully hinders, prevents, or obstructs free passage over or through the public lands of the United States within the State of California, for the purpose of entry...is guilty of a misdemeanor.}}</ref>

Building new piers can infringe on the [[Public trust doctrine|public trust]], which among many things, is purposed to preserve the land in its natural state.<ref name="87 Cal.App.3d 225"/> Accretions created in the shorezone by artificial means remain as public land because they are part of the public trust.<ref name="457 US 273">{{cite court |litigants=California ex rel. State Lands Com'n v. United States |vol=457 |reporter=US |court=[[Supreme Court of the United States]] |opinion=273 |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/supremecourt/text/457/273 |date=June 18, 1982 |quote=Under California law where an accretion is caused by construction of artificial works on water, boundary does not move but becomes fixed at ordinary high-water mark at time artificial influence is introduced.}}</ref><ref name="63 Cal.App.2d 772">{{cite court |litigants=Carpenter v. Santa Monica |vol=63 |reporter=Cal.App.2d |court=[[Court of Appeals of California]] |opinion=772 |url=https://law.justia.com/cases/california/court-of-appeal/2d/63/772.html |date=April 17, 1944 |quote=Where title is deraigned from the United States, the question as to the extent of the grant is to be governed by federal and not by state law; but where title is deraigned from a federal patent confirming a Mexican grant, the extent of the right gained under the patent is to be determined by state and not by federal law.&mdash;The California rule is that in a controversy between the state or its grantees and the upland owner, artificial accretions belong to the state or its grantees as the owner of the tidelands.&mdash;that is, by the works of man, such as wharves, groins, piers, etc., and by the dumping of material into the ocean&mdash;belong to the state or its grantees, and do not belong to the upland owner.}}</ref><ref name="Cal.Civ.Code § 1007">{{cite web |title=Cal. Civ. Code § 1007—Title by prescription; adverse possession; exemption of public property |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&sectionNum=1007. |quote=no possession by any person, firm or corporation no matter how long continued of any land, water, water right, easement, or other property whatsoever dedicated to a public use by a public utility, or dedicated to or owned by the state or any public entity, shall ever ripen into any title, interest or right against the owner thereof.}}</ref> The private Lakeside Park Association has made such an artificial accretion of land that is freely open for public use.<ref name="Cal.Civ.Code § 1007"/><ref>{{cite web |title=Lake Tahoe Beach Weddings |url=http://www.laketahoebeachweddings.com |quote=see satellite images}}</ref> Access to and from the shorezone across private land on publicly enjoyed paths is by right-of-way<ref name="Cal.Civ.Code § 801">{{cite web |title=Cal.Civ.Code § 801(a) |url=http://www.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CIV&sectionNum=801. |publisher=State of California |quote=The following land burdens, or servitudes upon land, may be attached to other land as incidents or appurtenances, and are then called easements: The right-of-way}}</ref> or prescriptive easement.<ref name="Cal.Code.Civ.Proc. § 321">{{cite web |title=Cal.Code.Civ.Proc. § 321 |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CCP&sectionNum=321. |publisher=State of California |quote=the person establishing a legal title to the property is presumed to have been possessed thereof within the time required by law, and the occupation of the property by any other person is deemed to have been under and in subordination to the legal title, unless it appear that the property has been held and possessed adversely to such legal title, for five years before the commencement of the action.}}</ref><ref name="Cal.Code.Civ.Proc. § 318">{{cite web |title=Cal.Code.Civ.Proc. § 318 |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CCP&sectionNum=318. |publisher=State of California |quote=No action for the recovery of real property, or for the recovery of the possession thereof, can be maintained, unless it appear that the plaintiff, his ancestor, predecessor, or grantor, was seized or possessed of the property in question, within five years before the commencement of the action.}}</ref><ref name="Cal.Civ.Code § 806">{{cite web |title=Cal.Civ.Code § 806 |url=https://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/faces/codes_displaySection.xhtml?lawCode=CCP&sectionNum=321. |publisher=State of California |quote=The extent of a servitude is determined by the terms of the grant, or the nature of the enjoyment by which it was acquired.}}</ref><ref name="194 Cal.App.4th 1044">{{cite court |litigants=Main Street Plaza v. Cartwright & Main |vol=194 |reporter=Cal.App.4th |court=[[Court of Appeals of California]] |opinion=1044 |pinpoint=1054 |url=https://www.casemine.com/judgement/us/5914af32add7b0493474b78b |date=2011 |quote=To establish a prescriptive easement, a claimant must prove use of the property, for the statutory period of five years, which has been: (1) open and notorious; (2) continuous and uninterrupted; (3) hostile to the true owner; and (4) under a claim of right.}}</ref> Recent attempts by Lakefront Homeowners to use [[pier]]s as "easement fences" to obstruct beach travel are encroaching centuries of established [[easement]] and [[admiralty law]].<ref name="87 Cal.App.3d 225"/>

=====Nevada side=====
The accessibility of the Nevada beach-land below the high watermark has been the source of practical rather than legal controversy. The land is a public trust or easement under the [[Rivers and Harbors Act]], the [[Submerged Lands Act]], the several Coast Guard Authorization Acts,<ref name="33 CFR 329.4"/> but affluent beachfront landowners and their elected civic leaders maintain the land is effectively private under state law because state law enforcement is not charged with enforcing federal law.<ref name="US CONST ART X">{{cite web |title=US CONST ART X |url=https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/GPO-CONAN-1992/pdf/GPO-CONAN-1992-10-11.pdf |quote=[[Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution#Commandeering|Commandeering]] Tenth Amendment prohibits the federal government from forcing states to pass or not pass certain legislation, or to enforce federal law. }}</ref> They dispute the high water mark itself by arguing that the state of Nevada has not agreed<ref name="RGJ">{{cite news |last1=Robinson |first1=Mark |title=Fact Checker: Are all Tahoe beaches public? |url=https://www.rgj.com/story/news/2014/03/09/fact-checker-are-all-tahoe-beaches-public/6209113/ |access-date=July 5, 2018 |publisher=Reno Gazette Journal |date=March 8, 2014 |quote=The land above the high-water mark is private property with no public access in California and Nevada}}</ref><ref name="watermaster">{{cite news |last1=Cudahy |first1=Claire |title=High water level damages Lake Tahoe beachfront properties |url=https://www.recordcourier.com/news/local/high-water-level-damages-lake-tahoe-beachfront-properties/ |access-date=July 13, 2018 |agency=The Record Courier |publisher=Swift Communications, Inc. |date=April 13, 2018 |quote=In the Zephyr Cove neighborhood Marla Bay, beachfront properties have suffered from two years of water levels well above the lake's natural rim, which sits at an elevation of 6,223 feet. ...the U.S. District Court Water Master...is required by law to keep the water below the surface elevation of 6,229.1 feet, the federal legal limit ..."I've pleaded with the water master to drop the lake, and he said he can't—he's bound by law," said Smith. |archive-date=December 19, 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201219151500/https://www.recordcourier.com/news/local/high-water-level-damages-lake-tahoe-beachfront-properties/ |url-status=dead }}</ref> to either a highwater level or [[Geodetic datum|datum]] with California and the [[Federal government of the United States|US]].<ref>{{cite web |title=USGS 10337000 LAKE TAHOE A TAHOE CITY CA |url=https://waterdata.usgs.gov/usa/nwis/uv?site_no=10337000 |website=USGS Water Resources |publisher=U.S. Geological Survey |quote=Maximum legal limit...6,229.1; Natural rim of lake...6,223; Gage Datum...6,220}}</ref><ref name="Tahoe Daily Tribune">{{cite news |last1=Hoffman |first1=Ryan |title=Pier review: Tahoe Regional Planning Agency board overturns decision on Zephyr Cove pier |url=https://www.tahoedailytribune.com/news/pier-review-tahoe-regional-planning-agency-board-overturns-decision-on-zephyr-cove-pier/ |publisher=Tahoe Daily Tribune |date=February 28, 2019 |quote=Pohl also argued the structure failed to extend beyond the high-water mark, as required under TRPA's definition of a pier. He pointed to "photographic evidence" showing that even at full capacity, Tahoe's waters did not extend underneath the structure....Topographical surveys that are part of the property's record show the structure stretches beyond the high-water mark.}}</ref> Some Civic leaders for the Nevada shore have been pushing a frivolous<ref name="33 CFR 329.4"/><ref name="U.S. Const. Art. VI">{{cite web |title=U.S. Constitution, Article VI |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/constitution/articlevi |publisher=United States of America |quote=This Constitution, and the laws of the United States which shall be made in pursuance thereof; and all treaties made, or which shall be made, under the authority of the United States, shall be the supreme law of the land; and the judges in every state shall be bound thereby, anything in the Constitution or laws of any State to the contrary notwithstanding.}}</ref> [[states rights]] theory of property law—which intermittently nullifies federal easements whenever the lake level recedes—which has never been tested in [[United States district court|federal court]].<ref name="RGJ"/><ref name="28 USC 1331">{{cite web |title=28 U.S. Code § 1331. Federal question |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/28/1331 |publisher=United States |quote=The district courts shall have original jurisdiction of all civil actions arising under the Constitution, laws, or treaties of the United States.}}</ref><ref name="U.S. Const. Art. VI"/> Instilling public fear of criminal trespassing is the core goal under the theory, which if actually prosecuted would be a risky power play. The [[sheriffs]] in Nevada are elected officials; [[false arrest]] can lead to an official's imprisonment and cost their electorate hundreds of thousands of dollars.<ref name="42 USC 1983">{{cite web |title=42 U.S. Code § 1983 - Civil action for deprivation of rights |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/42/1983 |publisher=United States |quote=Every person who, under color of any statute, ordinance, regulation, custom, or usage, of any State or Territory or the District of Columbia, subjects, or causes to be subjected, any citizen of the United States or other person within the jurisdiction thereof to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured by the Constitution and laws, shall be liable to the party injured in an action at law, suit in equity, or other proper proceeding for redress, except that in any action brought against a judicial officer for an act or omission taken in such officer’s judicial capacity, injunctive relief shall not be granted unless a declaratory decree was violated or declaratory relief was unavailable.}}</ref><ref name="18 USC 242">{{cite web |title=18 U.S. Code § 242 - Deprivation of rights under color of law |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/242 |publisher=United States |quote=Whoever, under color of any law, statute, ordinance, regulation, or custom, willfully subjects any person in any State, Territory, Commonwealth, Possession, or District to the deprivation of any rights, privileges, or immunities secured or protected by the Constitution or laws of the United States, or to different punishments, pains, or penalties, on account of such person being an alien, or by reason of his color, or race, than are prescribed for the punishment of citizens, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than one year, or both;...}}</ref><ref name="18 USC 1001">{{cite web |title=18 U.S. Code § 1001 - Statements or entries generally |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1001 |publisher=United States |quote=whoever, in any matter within the jurisdiction of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of the Government of the United States, knowingly and willfully—(1) falsifies, conceals, or covers up by any trick, scheme, or device a material fact; (2) makes any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation; or (3) makes or uses any false writing or document knowing the same to contain any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry; shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years...}}</ref><ref name="18 USC 1519">{{cite web |title=18 U.S. Code § 1519 - Obstruction of Justice |url=https://www.law.cornell.edu/uscode/text/18/1519 |publisher=United States |quote=Whoever knowingly alters, destroys, mutilates, conceals, covers up, falsifies, or makes a false entry in any record, document, or tangible object with the intent to impede, obstruct, or influence the investigation or proper administration of any matter within the jurisdiction of any department or agency of the United States or any case filed under title 11, or in relation to or contemplation of any such matter or case, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both.}}</ref> To be convicted of [[trespassing]], one must be [[Burden of proof (law)#Beyond reasonable doubt|beyond reasonable doubt]] above the highwater mark, which under their states rights theory is an arbitrary fact to be found.<ref name="269 US 385">{{cite court |litigants=[[Connally v. General Construction Co.]] |vol=269 |reporter=[[United States Reports]] |opinion=385 |pinpoint=391 |court=[[Supreme Court of the United States]] |date=January 4, 1926 |url=https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/269/385/case.html |access-date=February 1, 2016 |quote=That the terms of a penal statute creating a new offense must be sufficiently explicit to inform those who are subject to it what conduct on their part will render them liable to its penalties is a well recognized requirement, consonant alike with ordinary notions of fair play and the settled rules of law, and a statute which either forbids or requires the doing of an act in terms so vague that men of common intelligence must necessarily guess at its meaning and differ as to its application violates the first essential of due process of law.}}</ref><ref name="Tahoe Daily Tribune"/> The land is concurrently claimed by the [[Nevada Department of Conservation and Natural Resources]] (Nevada Division of State Lands).<ref name="NDCNR1">{{cite web |title=State Lands Portfolio Executive Summary |url=https://lands.nv.gov/uploads/documents/PORTFOLIO_Executive_Summary_LATEST_with_tables.pdf |publisher=State of Nevada |quote="Upon statehood, Nevada received title to all sovereign lands which are submerged beneath navigable bodies of water which at present include Lake Tahoe..."}}</ref><ref name="NDCNR2">{{cite web |title=State Land Office: Sovereign Lands |url=https://lands.nv.gov/authorizations-and-permitting/state-land-office |publisher=State of Nevada |quote="Upon statehood in 1864, title to the bed and banks of navigable water bodies passed from the federal government to the new state. It’s important to note that there are currently a limited number of sovereign lands that the state claims; not all of Nevada’s lakes and rivers are considered state owned. Here’s a list of state owned sovereign lands:...Lake Tahoe, Truckee River...The state owns the bed and banks of these bodies of water, generally to the ordinary and permanent high water mark."}}</ref> It is a crime to prevent or obstruct use of Nevada state lands.<ref name="NRS_202.450">{{cite web |title=NRS 202.450 |url=https://www.leg.state.nv.us/Division/Legal/LawLibrary/NRS/NRS-202.html#NRS202Sec450 |publisher=State of Nevada |quote="it is a public nuisance for any person:...By force, threat or intimidation, or by fencing or otherwise enclosing, or by any other unlawful means, to prevent or obstruct the free passage or transit over or through any:...State land or other public land; or...Land dedicated to public use; or...To knowingly misrepresent the status of or assert any right to the exclusive use and occupancy of...state land or other public land or land dedicated to public use, if the person has no leasehold interest, claim or color of title, made or asserted in good faith, in or to the...state land or other public land or land dedicated to public use"}}</ref><ref name="NRS_202.470">{{cite web |title=NRS 202.470 |url=https://www.leg.state.nv.us/Division/Legal/LawLibrary/NRS/NRS-202.html#NRS202Sec470 |publisher=State of Nevada |quote="Every person who:...Shall commit or maintain a public nuisance, for which no special punishment is prescribed; or...Shall willfully omit or refuse to perform any legal duty relating to the removal of such nuisance; or...Shall let, or permit to be used, any building or boat, or portion thereof, knowing that it is intended to be, or is being used, for committing or maintaining any such nuisance, shall be guilty of a misdemeanor."}}</ref>

====Protection====
As the population grew and development expanded in the 1960s, the question of protecting the lake became more imperative. In 1969, the U.S. Congress and the California and Nevada State Legislatures created a unique compact to share resources and responsibilities. The Compact established the [[Tahoe Regional Planning Agency]] (TRPA), a bi-state agency charged with environmental protection of the Basin through land-use regulation and planning.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.trpa.gov/|title=Tahoe Regional Planning Agency — TRPA&#124;A Voice for Lake Tahoe|website=Trpa.gov|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref> In 1980, the U.S. Congress amended the Compact with public law 96-551. The law designated a new agency, the Tahoe Transportation District (TTD), to facilitate and implement Basin and regional transportation improvements/additions for the protection, restoration and use of the lake. Schisms between both agencies and local residents have led to the formation of grass-roots organizations that hold to even stricter environmentalism.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://friendsoflaketahoe.org/|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101217141425/http://www.friendsoflaketahoe.org/|url-status=usurped|archive-date=December 17, 2010|title=Friends of Lake Tahoe|website=Friendsoflaketahoe.org|access-date=February 15, 2022}}</ref>

===Historical locations===
Lake Tahoe is also the location of several 19th and 20th century palatial homes of historical significance. The [[Thunderbird Lodge (Lake Tahoe, Nevada)|Thunderbird Lodge]] built by George Whittel Jr once included nearly {{convert|27|mi|km}} of the Nevada shoreline. [[Vikingsholm]] was the original settlement on [[Emerald Bay, El Dorado County, California|Emerald Bay]] and included an island teahouse and a 38-room home. The Ehrman Mansion is a summer home built by a former Wells Fargo president in Sugar Pine Point and is now a state park. The [[Pony Express]] had a route that went from [[Genoa, Nevada|Genoa Station]] over [[Kingsbury, Nevada|Daggett Pass]] to [[Friday's Station]] and [[Meyers, California|Yanks Station]]; it succeeded the route through [[Woodfords, California|Woodford's Station]] and Fountain Place Station both on the way to [[Strawberry, El Dorado County, California|Strawberry Station]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Pony Express Stations Across the American West |url=https://www.legendsofamerica.com/we-ponyexpressstations/ |publisher=Legends of America |access-date=July 5, 2018}}</ref>