One aspect of the
golden age of tourism overlooked by the sign is
why it became a local tourist mecca 120 years ago. The why is that the lake, with no outlet, had become highly mineralized. The mineral water led people of the 19th century to believe that it had curative powers. The lake was commercially dredged for its minerals, eventually depleting them and when it eventually became evident that the lake's curative powers were gone, if they ever existed, Medical Lake's tourist industry experienced somewhat of a crash.
MEDICAL LAKE ACCESS TRAIL
MEDICAL LAKE HAS BEEN A POPULAR RECREATION ATTRACTION SINCE THE LATE 1800S. AN ELECTRIC RAIL ROAD BROUGHT MANY VISITORS FROM SPOKANE TO CRUISE THE LAKE ON STEAM POWERED PADDLE WHEEL BOATS AND ENJOY THE RESORTS AND SPAS. CONEY ISLAND BOATHOUSE AND DANCE PAVILLION WAS LOCATED AT THE END OF LAKE STREET WHERE CONEY ISLAND PARK IS TODAY STANLEY PARK WAS LOCATED AT THE SOUTH END OF THE LAKE AND CAMP COMFORT AT THE NORTH END OF THE LAKE.
FUNDING FOR THE TRAIL WAS PROVIDED BY THE DEPT OF NATURAL RESOURCES AQUATIC LANDS ENHANCEMENT ACCOUNT