Green Lake Park (Seattle)
| Green Lake | |
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Looking southwest toward Woodland Park
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Map of Green Lake
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| Location | Seattle, Washington |
| Coordinates | 47°40′40″N 122°20′13″W / 47.6779°N 122.3369°WCoordinates: 47°40′40″N 122°20′13″W / 47.6779°N 122.3369°W |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Surface area | 259 acres (1.05 km2) |
| Average depth | 13 ft (4.0 m) |
| Max. depth | 30 ft (9 m) |
| Shore length1 | 2.8 mi (4.5 km) |
| Surface elevation | 160 ft (49 m) |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
Green Lake is a freshwater lake in north central Seattle, Washington, within Green Lake Park. The park is surrounded by the Green Lake neighborhood to the north and east, the Wallingford neighborhood to the south, the Phinney Ridge neighborhood to the west, and Woodland Park to the southwest. It is a glacial lake, its basin having been dug 50,000 years ago by the Vashon glacier, which also created Lake Washington, Union, Bitter and Haller Lakes.
Green Lake was named by David Phillips, who surveyed the area in September 1855 for the United States Surveyor General. His first notes referred to it as "Lake Green" because even in its natural state the lake is prone to algae blooms. The Duwamish called it dxWTLusH, a Lushootseed word of unknown meaning.
The lake has a surface area of 259 acres (1.05 km2), a mean depth of 13 feet (3.8 m), and a maximum depth of 30 feet (9.1 m). The lake has been dredged in order to maintain its depth. Green Lake lacks both surface water inflows and outflows. It once drained into Lake Washington via Ravenna Creek, but in 1911 the water level was lowered by 7 feet (2.1 m) to create parkland, causing the creek to dry up between Green Lake and Cowen Park. Ravenna Boulevard and its wide, grassy median were constructed over the creek bed. The lake is now fed by rainfall, storm runoff, and Seattle's municipal water supply.
The area was originally homesteaded by various pioneers, the first being Erhart Sarfried, "Green Lake John." Sarfried subdivided his homestead in 1888 and sold the land to various entrepreneurs. W.D. Wood built an "amusement park" on the west side of the lake (which never amounted to more than a glorified lawn for picnics). On the east side of the lake, A.L. Parker logged the woods and built a sawmill. Edward C. Kilbourne built the first trolley line connecting the area to the city, the route of which is now Green Lake Way North. The trolley lines kept growing, until by 1910 they extended completely around the lake and a round trip could be made on a separate line going back to the city.
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Wikipedia