Medical Lake
| Medical Lake, Washington | |
|---|---|
| City | |
 Location of Medical Lake, Washington |
|
| Coordinates: 47°34′17″N 117°41′00″W / 47.57139°N 117.68333°W | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Washington |
| County | Spokane |
| Area | |
| • Total | 3.64 sq mi (9.43 km2) |
| • Land | 3.40 sq mi (8.81 km2) |
| • Water | 0.24 sq mi (0.62 km2) |
| Elevation | 2,425 ft (739 m) |
| Population (2010) | |
| • Total | 5,060 |
| • Estimate (2015) | 4,942 |
| • Density | 1,488.2/sq mi (574.6/km2) |
| Time zone | Pacific (PST) (UTC-8) |
| • Summer (DST) | PDT (UTC-7) |
| ZIP code | 99022 |
| Area code | 509 |
| FIPS code | 53-44690 |
| GNIS feature ID | 1512452 |
| Website | www.medical-lake.org |
Medical Lake is a city in Spokane County, Washington, United States. The population was 5,060 at the 2010 census. It is home to a psychiatric hospital, Eastern State Hospital.
The city of Medical Lake was incorporated in 1890. The city took its name from the nearby eponymous lake.
The Spokane people, a Native American tribe which had long inhabited the area, believed the water and mud of the lake to possess curative properties. White settlers such as Andrew Lefevre and Stanley Hallett, moving to the area in the 1870s, continued the belief, marketing the lake salts for medicinal uses. The attention this garnered sparked the development of a salt and soap industry, followed by the arrival of commercial bath houses in the 1880s. With the construction of several resort hotels along the lake shore and the development of Eastern State Hospital in 1891, Medical Lake saw a period of economic growth, which continued until the 1920s with the decline of the lake's popularity. A period of stagnation was interrupted in the 1940s with the construction of nearby Fairchild Air Force Base, which brought a surge of population to the city. Medical Lake's economy continues to rely heavily upon the presence of Eastern State Hospital and Fairchild AFB, while the city also serves as a bedroom community for nearby Spokane.
Medical Lake is located at 47°34′17″N 117°41′00″W / 47.571384°N 117.683333°WCoordinates: 47°34′17″N 117°41′00″W / 47.571384°N 117.683333°W (47.571384, -117.683333).
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