Welcome to PondBoss. Do lotta reading- tons of info in various threads.

Post some pictures of your pond, we love seeing folks' places. Especially the dam. There was probably a reason why they dropped the water level. If there are trees on the dam, there could have been leaks. There is debate on taking out trees on dams- may want to read the threads.

And the standard question: what do you want with your pond? Fishing only? What species?

I'm sure you'll enjoy your pond. It gets into one's blood. We see pictures of folks with their families enjoying the resource and all the effort becomes worthwhile.