Forney Lake is a lake near Mesquite & Dallas, Texas. William Blazkowicz grew up near there when he was a child. When he was eleven he once swam across the lake after a bet on Tin Soldiers.
B.J. wanted to return to Texas with Anya so she could see Mesquite at dawn.
Behind the scenes[]
Forney Lake is an actual reservoir in Texas, currently known as Lake Ray Hubbard.[1] In the original timeline and RTCW/Wolfenstein, its strongly implied by backstory and B.J.'s accent that he was born and raised in the Western or Midwestern United States, possible Milwaukee, Wisconsin. In The New Order he is given a southern accent and bits and pieces of his past suggest that he grew up in Texas.
What little can be gleaned from B.J.'s past in the New Order has him growing up on a farm, apparently near access to the lake, or he visited with one of his friends. He also apparently swam in the Gulf (of Mexico) during a Red Tide event, even though his father told him not to. He also refers to seeing the Mesquite at sunset.
B.J.'s father, Rip Blazkowicz owned a ranch by Forney Lake after contributing to the Nazis.
This is likely a reference to ID software having been founded in Mesquite, Texas near the lake formly known as Lake Forney.