Landscape Information
Located in the Mount Baker neighborhood overlooking Lake Washington, this 21.7-acre park occupies a densely canopied ravine between McClellan Street and the lake’s eastern shore, which features a cove and beach. At the southern edge, a curvilinear 3.6-acre, half-a-mile-long boulevard rises to meet Rainer Avenue. Included in Olmsted Brothers report, "Comprehensive System of Parks and Parkways,” the park and boulevard, designed in 1903 by landscape architect E. O. Schwagerl and engineer George Cotterill, were integral to the city’s efforts to develop a network of parks and boulevards. In 1906 the Hunter Tract Improvement Company engaged Olmsted Brothers as consultants, who would plat the park and boulevard the following year.
Terminating at McClellan Street opposite the park, the boulevard is edged by verges, sidewalks, and residential lots and is characterized by dual roadways separated by a generous lawn median planted with canopy trees, including maple and sycamore. In the park, a central path heading north connects with a comfort station (1928) and tennis courts (1941). The path is edged to the west by a densely vegetated rise and to the east by gently sloped lawns planted with deciduous canopy and coniferous tree specimens. The lawns rise to meet Lake Park Drive (1907) and are animated by a stream that cascades into four separate concrete pools. The northernmost lawn, embellished by a granite Kobe Pagoda Lantern (1911) narrows to meet Lake Washington Boulevard. As originally recommended by Olmsted Brothers, a recreational pier was established in 1946, offering expansive views of the Cascade Mountains.
The park and boulevard are contributing features of the Mount Baker Park Historic District, which was listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2018; they were also individually listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 2020.
