The History of the Boat Lake

The Patterson Park Boat Lake was created during grading operations in 1864 when extensive earth-moving work was performed to remove military emplacements and to fill ravines.

When Baltimoreans began spontaneously to use the Lake as a skating pond in 1865, the Board of Public Park Commission acknowledged the worthiness of expanding the Lake to accommodate skating as well as boating. This work, completed in 1875, enlarged the Lake to its present size, reduced the depth to approximately three feet, and included a brick retaining wall around the Lake edge, an island, and plantings of trees and shrubs.

A system of trench drains, using oyster shells as the porous materials and earthen pipes to convey the water, was constructed to eliminate wet areas. Waste water from the marble fountain at the Lombard Street entrance and numerous springs and seeps were also piped to the Lake. By 1884, a boat landing shelter was added.

Park Commission notes indicate that by 1897 marine grass was removed twice annually. During this period, the growth of vegetation was sufficient to preclude boating. Available records do not indicate how that growth problem was solved other than periodic harvesting, nor do they indicate what actions may have been taken during the period from the turn of the century to 1984.

In 1984, the Department of Public Works and Recreation and Parks drained the Lake and removed between six inches and one foot of sediment that overlaid a clay bottom. At that time, it was recommended that the Lake be deepened and that the ground be treated with herbicides. The original brick wall along the Lake’s perimeter still remains and is presently covered with concrete. The island, presently surrounded by a wall as well, also remains. Today, the Lake is a combination of open water and a wetland habitat for fish, waterfowl, and songbirds and renovation is underway.