Lake Washington Ship Canal in Seattle is a waterway that links Lake Washington and Puget Sound. The construction of Lake Washington Ship canal began in 1911 and was officially completed in 1934.
This waterway in Seattle, is 13 kilometers long passing through Lake Union, Portage Bay and Union Bay. Minimum depth of the canal is 8.7 meters. Building this canal, enabled big ships to carry bulks of coal from the east of Lake Washington to the different ports in Puget Sound for export.
History of Lake Washington Ship Canal
Thomas Mercer, the Seattle pioneer was first to point out clearly the benefits of a navigable passage between the fresh waters of Lake Washington and Puget Sound. He was confident that his dream canal would be constructed sooner or later. After long 80 years his vision was finally realized. In 1867, the US Navy also proposed the idea of building a canal so that the Navy ships could enjoy fresh water anchorage. After series of debates and controversy, construction of Lake Washington Ship Canal began on November 10, 1911. Unprecedented delays led the US Navy to establish their naval shipyard near Bremerton. However, they still pursued the idea of construction of a canal linking Lake Washington and Puget Sound.
Hiram M. Chittenden, who was then in command of the
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U.S. Army Corps of Engineers in Seattle strongly urged to complete the construction of the canal. To build the magnificent waterway, cuts were dug between Salmon Bay and Lake Union at Fermont and another between Lake Union and Lake Washington at Montlake. Four bascule bridges were built at Fermont, Ballard, university district and Montlake. Fermont and Ballard bridge was completed in 1917, University completed in 1919 and again improved in 1932 and Montlake, was completed in 1925. The government locks of the Lake Washington Canal was completed in 1917, though the entire project was completed in 1934. With the opening of the government locks a navigable passage was finally found from Lake Washington to Puget Sound.
Several bridges were constructed across the canal from east to west. They were:
- Montlake Bridge
- Ship Canal Bridge
- George Washington Memorial Bridge
- Fermont Bridge
- Ballard Bridge
- University Bridge
- BNSF Railway's Salmon Bay Bridge
Lake Washington Canal in Seattle, Washington is one of the top tourist attractions. The canal and the Chittenden Locks are also listed in the National Register of Historic Places.
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