Trout Hatchery

The Delaware County Trout Hatchery provides all the fingerling trout for Iowa's trout program. Located four miles southeast of Manchester, the hatchery also serves as regional headquarters for fisheries, law enforcement and wildlife in Northeast Iowa. The hatchery, originally built in 1897 as a federal hatchery, is one of the oldest in the nation. Water is supplied to the hatchery by three springs and two wells, with a combined flow of 1800 to 2500 gallons per minute of clear, 50 degree water.

Several hundred 2 to 20 pound brood trout are kept at the hatchery to provide eggs and milt for the development of new fish. Brook and brown trout spawn during October and November, while rainbow trout spawn in January. Approximately one-half million eggs are taken and fertilized each year to provide 300,000 to 400,000 catchable-sized trout for Iowa's 30,000 trout anglers. After hatching, the fry are raised for four to five months in tanks inside the hatchery building. Upon reaching a length of two to four inches, the fingerlings are transferred to the Big Spring and Decorah Hatcheries where they are raised for the next year until they reach a catchable size of 10 to 12 inches. The streams in southwest Clayton, Delaware, Dubuque and Jackson Counties are stocked from the Delaware County facility.