[5] The present name refers to an early French fur trader by the name of De Pue.

[6] The site had long been used as a port and ice harvesting center on the Illinois River.

The event draws spectators from across the country and brings entertainment and food vendors to the lakeside park.

In a January 16, 2011, news story featured in the online edition of the Peoria Journal Star, Associated Press reporter Tammy Webber reported that the oxbow lake, surrounded by a Superfund site, is polluted by high levels of metals such as zinc, lead, arsenic, cadmium, and chromium because of the smelting activity that takes place there for the automotive and appliance industries, chiefly by New Jersey Zinc and Mobil Chemical.

[13] This is important because the town alleges the companies and the IEPA have not done enough to combat the pollution that has made the lake markedly shallower.

This phenomenon could, unless rapidly remedied, soon interfere with the small municipality's efforts to keep its remaining revenue source for most supplemental projects, the competition.

[14] In a display of community and hard work, DePue's citizens built a dam at the mouth of the lake and raised the water by using pumps and the lake's springs to the level required for racing in a matter of weeks.

Extracurricular activities offered for the grade 6-12 students include sports and clubs.

Annual activities that many clubs sponsor include JH Movie Nights, HS Homecoming and dances, as well as class trips throughout the year.