Fast Fact
- — September 1, 2010
Did you know that the place to be on weekends and in the summer in the ’40s and ’50s in Seattle was Beaver Lake on the Sammamish Plateau?
It’s true! Beaver Lake, before it was suburbanized, was a recreation area with cabins and lodges. In the 1930s, Gus and Lulu Bartels developed the Four Seasons Resort there. Fifteen cabins were built, many decorated with rented Frederick & Nelson furniture. The resort was popular for dancing. In the ’50s it was taken over by Dick Anderson. Andy’s Resort continued the dancing tradition, employing even Quincy Jones and his band for a time. In 1960 the resort was sold to the Catholic Archdiocese of Seattle and in 1985 it was sold again to become Beaver Lake Park. •
Illustration by Regina Volpi Baerwalde for City Arts.
