Lake Washington Ship Canal

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Lake Washington Ship Canal

The Lake Washington Ship Canal, which runs through Seattle, WashingtonSeattle, Washington

Seattle is the largest city in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States....
connecting Lake WashingtonLake Washington

Lake Washington is the second largest natural lake in Washington State, USA, after Lake Chelan, and the largest lake in King...
to Puget SoundPuget Sound

Puget Sound is a sound connected to the Pacific Ocean via the Strait of Juan de Fuca in the Pacific Northwest of the United...
, is a system consisting of, from east to west, Union Bay, the Montlake CutMontlake Cut

The Montlake Cut is the easternmost section of the Lake Washington Ship Canal, which passes through the city of Seattle, lin...
, Portage BayPortage Bay

Portage Bay is an arm of Seattle, Washington's Lake Union and is part of the Lake Washington Ship Canal....
, Lake UnionLake Union

Lake Union is a freshwater lake completely within the Seattle, Washington city limits....
, the Fremont CutFremont Cut

The Fremont Cut is that part of the Lake Washington Ship Canalwhich passes through the city of U.S....
, Salmon BaySalmon Bay

Salmon Bay is that part of the Lake Washington Ship Canal--which passes through the city of Seattle, linking Lake Washington...
, the Hiram M. Chittenden LocksHiram M. Chittenden Locks

The Hiram M. Chittenden Locks are a complex of locks that sit in the middle of Salmon Bay, part of Seattle's Lake Washington...
, and Shilshole BayShilshole Bay

Shilshole Bay is that part of Puget Sound east of a line drawn northeasterly from Seattle's West Point in the southwest to i...
. Started in 1911, the canal was officially completed in 1934, though the Locks had opened 17 years earlier.

As early as 1854 there had been talk of building a navigable connection between the two bodies of water. Thirteen years later the U.S. NavyUnited States Navy

The United States Navy is the branch of the United States armed forces responsible for conducting naval operations....
gave its endorsement to this idea, with a view to possibly building the Puget Sound Naval ShipyardPuget Sound Naval Shipyard Summary

Puget Sound Naval Shipyard is a United States Navy shipyard covering 179 acres of property bordered on the south by Sincla...
on Lake WashingtonFacts About Lake Washington

Lake Washington is the second largest natural lake in Washington State, USA, after Lake Chelan, and the largest lake in King...
, but nothing was built in time to prevent their placing it at BremertonBremerton, Washington

Bremerton is a city in Kitsap County, Washington, USA....
, on the other side of the Sound, instead.

In 1891 the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers gave its backing to the project. Some preliminary work began in 1906, and work began in earnest five years later. In 1916 the water level of Lake WashingtonLake Washington

Lake Washington is the second largest natural lake in Washington State, USA, after Lake Chelan, and the largest lake in King...
dropped by nearly when the Montlake CutMontlake Cut

The Montlake Cut is the easternmost section of the Lake Washington Ship Canal, which passes through the city of Seattle, lin...
was completed, replacing the Black RiverBlack River (Duwamish River)

The Black River was a river in King County in the U.S....
as the lake's outlet in favor of Portage BayPortage Bay

Portage Bay is an arm of Seattle, Washington's Lake Union and is part of the Lake Washington Ship Canal....
and Lake UnionLake Union

Lake Union is a freshwater lake completely within the Seattle, Washington city limits....
. With the opening of the Locks on May 8, 1917, there was finally a navigable passage from the lake to the sound.

The Canal's crossings, from east to west, are:

the Montlake BridgeMontlake Bridge

The Montlake Bridge is a double-leaf bascule bridge that carries Montlake Boulevard over Seattle's Montlake Cut--part of the...
carrying Montlake Boulevard over the Montlake CutMontlake Cut

The Montlake Cut is the easternmost section of the Lake Washington Ship Canal, which passes through the city of Seattle, lin...
,
the University Bridge carrying Eastlake Avenue over Portage BayPortage Bay

Portage Bay is an arm of Seattle, Washington's Lake Union and is part of the Lake Washington Ship Canal....
,
the Ship Canal BridgeShip Canal Bridge Overview

The Ship Canal Bridge carries Interstate 5 over Seattle's Portage Bay between Capitol Hill and the University District....
carrying Interstate 5 over Portage BayPortage Bay

Portage Bay is an arm of Seattle, Washington's Lake Union and is part of the Lake Washington Ship Canal....
,
the George Washington Memorial BridgeGeorge Washington Memorial Bridge Overview

The George Washington Memorial Bridge is a cantilever bridge that carries Aurora Avenue over the west end of Seattle's Lake ...
(commonly called the Aurora Bridge) carrying Aurora Avenue N. over the west end of Lake UnionLake Union

Lake Union is a freshwater lake completely within the Seattle, Washington city limits....
,
the Fremont BridgeFremont Bridge (Seattle)

The Fremont Bridge is a double-leaf bascule bridge that connects Fremont and 4th Avenues N....
connecting 4th Avenue N. to Fremont Avenue N. over the Fremont CutFremont Cut

The Fremont Cut is that part of the Lake Washington Ship Canalwhich passes through the city of U.S....
,
the Ballard BridgeBallard Bridge

The Ballard Bridge, also known as the 15th Avenue Bridge, is a double-leaf bascule bridge that carries 15th Avenue ove...
carrying 15th Avenue over Salmon BaySalmon Bay

Salmon Bay is that part of the Lake Washington Ship Canal--which passes through the city of Seattle, linking Lake Washington...
,
the BNSF RailwayBNSF Railway

The BNSF Railway , headquartered in Fort Worth, Texas, is one of the largest railroad networks in North America....
's Salmon Bay BridgeSalmon Bay Bridge Summary

The Salmon Bay Bridge is a single-leaf bascule bridge across Seattle's Salmon Bay from Interbay to Ballard....
over Salmon BayFacts About Salmon Bay

Salmon Bay is that part of the Lake Washington Ship Canal--which passes through the city of Seattle, linking Lake Washington...
.

The Lake Washington Ship Canal and the Hiram M. Chittenden LocksHiram M. Chittenden Locks

The Hiram M. Chittenden Locks are a complex of locks that sit in the middle of Salmon Bay, part of Seattle's Lake Washington...
are listed on the National Register of Historic PlacesNational Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States' official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and...
. The Montlake CutMontlake Cut

The Montlake Cut is the easternmost section of the Lake Washington Ship Canal, which passes through the city of Seattle, lin...
, along with the Montlake BridgeMontlake Bridge

The Montlake Bridge is a double-leaf bascule bridge that carries Montlake Boulevard over Seattle's Montlake Cut--part of the...
is a City of Seattle Designated Landmark (ID #107995).


Seattle's waterways in 1902, before the canal was built.	Seattle's waterways in the 1990s, showing the effect of the canal (and of other projects, such as the undergrounding of many streams and the re-routing, dredging, and industrialization of the Duwamish RiverDuwamish River The Duwamish River is the name of the lower 12 miles of Washington state's Green River.... ). (The map remains essentially accurate as of 2007.)