Herb Parsons Lake Is Now Bill Dance Lake, and It's Being Restocked From the Bottom Up

The lake off Fisherville Lake Road had carried Herb Parsons' name since 1964. On September 30, 2026, the Tennessee Wildlife Resources Agency held a ribbon cutting that made the change official. The 177-acre reservoir is now Bill Dance Lake, and the 474 acres around it are the Herb Parsons Wildlife Refuge. Since the lake reopened in January, TWRA's stocking trucks have mostly carried small fish: bluegill and golden shiners by the tens of thousands, plus a few thousand catfish. The lake's fishery is being rebuilt from its base, and the new name arrived partway through that work.

Sixty-Two Years on One Sign

Joel Herbert "Herb" Parsons was known as the "Showman Shooter from Somerville." The Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame says he performed more than 130 exhibition shows a year in the 1950s and did the trick shooting for Jimmy Stewart in Winchester '73. He could throw seven clay pigeons in the air and break the last one while pieces of the first were still falling. He died in 1959, and the lake near Fisherville was named for him in 1964.

His name hasn't left. It moved outward to the refuge, the 474 acres surrounding the lake. Bill Dance's name went on the water itself. TWRA calls Dance a "world-renowned angler, television host, and lifelong ambassador for fishing." In practice, the name you'd use for the whole property is Parsons, and the name you'd use for where you put in a boat is Dance.

The Tennessee Fish and Wildlife Commission actually approved the new names before the lake reopened. TWRA's January 26, 2026 release already called the site the Herb Parsons Refuge and Bill Dance Lake State Fishing Area. This year's Tennessee fishing guide lists the switch in its "What's Changed" table, from "Herb Parsons Lake" in 2025 to the new names in 2026. The September ceremony made it public.

Why the Name Arrived With Money Attached

Dance's name comes with a program. In December 2021, the state launched the Bill Dance Signature Lakes initiative, a $15 million effort across 18 lakes to improve habitat, fisheries management, stocking, and access for anglers and boaters. Its lakes include large, well-known waters like Reelfoot, Pickwick, Dale Hollow and Kentucky Lake. TWRA's September release says Bill Dance Lake has received "significant investments in infrastructure improvements, habitat enhancement, and fisheries management" through the program.

The visible part of that investment came during the closure. The site was closed from July 7, 2025, to January 28, 2026, while TWRA rebuilt the parking area and lowered the water level to improve fishing habitat. The 2026 stocking record shows what went back into the lake after it reopened.

What Went Into the Water in 2026

TWRA's 2026 Warmwater Stocking Report lists five releases at Bill Dance Lake so far this year.

The October numbers are what stand out. Over eight days, TWRA put 83,492 bluegill and 28,750 golden shiners into one 177-acre lake. That's nearly 37 times the 3,053 catfish stocked over the whole summer. No largemouth bass appear in the lake's 2026 records so far. In other words, the agency has been stocking the small fish that bigger fish eat, and it has stocked them in huge numbers.

Anyone fishing here this winter is fishing a lake that just took in more than 83,000 bluegill. The catfish stocked in July and September can be kept only once they reach the lake's 16-inch minimum.

The Rules That Protect the Rebuild

The lake's posted regulations line up with the stocking. TWRA's lake page sets these limits, and statewide regulations cover any species not listed:

• Largemouth bass: 10 per day, with a protected length range of 16 to 20 inches. Only one fish longer than 20 inches may be kept.
• Blue and channel catfish: 5 per day combined, with a 16-inch minimum length.
• Bluegill and redear: 10 per day, no length limit.
• Crappie, all species: no creel or length limit.
• Hybrid striped bass: 2 per day, with a 16-inch minimum length.

The bass slot does the most work here. Bass between 16 and 20 inches have to go back in the water, and only one fish over 20 inches may be kept per day. The fish that survive the slot are the ones that can grow into the lake's biggest bass, and the October stocking added tens of thousands of bluegill and shiners to the same water.

A Late-Fall Visit, Practically Speaking

Bill Dance Lake is in Fayette County, 15 miles north of Collierville on Fisherville Lake Road. TWRA gives two routes:

1. From Collierville, take Hwy. 205, Collierville-Arlington Road, to Monterey Lake Road. Turn right, follow it to Fisherville Lake Road, then turn left to the entrance.
2. From I-40, take Exit 25, Hwy. 205, south to Hwy. 193. Turn left on Hwy. 193, then right on Fisherville Lake Road.

The lake has family picnic areas, restrooms, a boat ramp and a fishing pier. TWRA lakes are open year-round, every day, from 30 minutes before official sunrise to 30 minutes after official sunset. Only Gibson County, Glenn Springs and Lake Graham close on Thanksgiving and Christmas, so Bill Dance Lake should keep its normal hours on Thursday, November 26, and on Christmas Day. In late fall, the closing time comes early in the afternoon, so check the sunset time before you plan an evening on the pier.

Most anglers need two things: a Tennessee fishing license and a TWRA Lake Fishing permit. According to the 2026 TWRA fishing lakes information, the permit costs $6 a day or $48 a year and is required for Tennessee residents ages 16 to 64 and nonresidents 16 and older. Sportsman and lifetime license holders don't need the permit. Tennessee residents 65 and older don't need the permit but do need a fishing license. You can buy permits through Go Outdoors Tennessee. These details are general information, not legal advice, so check TWRA's current rules before you head out.

The same TWRA page bans alcohol, swimming, speed boating, personal watercraft and water skiing at its lakes. Houseboats, sailboats and inboard cruisers aren't allowed, and boats used for anything other than fishing are prohibited, apart from hunting on specific lakes listed in the state's hunting guide. TWRA's page for this lake doesn't list a lake-specific motor rule, so questions about motors are best taken to the TWRA Region 1 office at 1-731-423-5725.

What's Still Coming

The September announcement also listed three projects that are planned but not built yet:

• A new concessions building with restrooms
• A 34-by-24-foot pavilion sponsored by Ford Motor Company
• Upgrades to the archery range on the property

The archery upgrades fit the man the refuge is named for. They're also the one project aimed at visitors who don't fish. TWRA hasn't announced dates for any of the three.

"This naming celebrates two icons who helped shape the way Tennesseans and visitors connect with the outdoors," TWRA Executive Director Jason Maxedon said in the agency's announcement.

TWRA's next Bobby Wilson Free Fishing Day is Saturday, June 12, 2027, when anyone can fish Tennessee's public waters without a fishing license. TWRA's announcement of that day doesn't mention the Lake Fishing permit, so ask TWRA whether the permit is still required at Bill Dance Lake before counting on a free visit. By then, the bluegill stocked this October will have had a full spring to grow.

If being close to a lake like this is on your list for your next home in or around Eads, Mia Atkinson can tell you which roads and properties put Fisherville Lake Road a short drive away. Book a Call and let's map it out together.