Lakewood was called the Prairie in the beginning—an expanse of land about 20 miles square, dotted with lakes and occasional stands of Oak and Douglas fir trees. Steilacoom and Nisqually Indians held pow-wows on The Prairie—before the advent of the White hunters, trappers, and settlers.
This abundant Nisqually Prairie was chosen by the British as the site of one of its fur-trading operations by the Hudson Bay Company in 1833.
Hunters began to set up farming on The Prairie. One of these farms, at the present site of Western State Hospital, was leased by the US Army in 1849 to serve as a military post following an Indian attack on Fort Nisqually. The new fort, called Fort Steilacoom, was used to quell Indian uprisings.
Immigrants began to arrive in covered wagons over Naches Pass in 1853 after Washington became a Territory. As the new population increased, so did hostilities with the native tribes. The era known as The Indian Wars brought to Fort Steilacoom many army lieutenants and captains who would make names for themselves during the Civil War.
The land wrested by the British from the Indians, then by the U.S. from the British, became part of the 42nd State of the Union in 1889.
Many stately homes were built on estates along the shorelines of area lakes, the most impressive being Thornewood, built on American Lake between 1909 and 1911. Another spectacular home and garden of that era are Lakewold Gardens and Wagoner Home on Gravelly Lake Drive.
During World War I, Camp Lewis was built on land donated to the government by Pierce County citizens. McChord Air Force Base, then known as McChord Field, was developed from the old County Air Field in 1938.
As the Great Depression lifted, business development took off. In 1937, Norton Clapp built the first part of the Lakewood Colonial Center, one of the first suburban shopping centers in the country. Between 1939 and 1949, the population of the Lakes District jumped from 3,000 to 17,000.
A decade later, in 1958, the Villa Plaza Shopping Center was built, and in 1960, the Thunderbird Center was built on the site of another small airstrip. Villa Plaza has since become the Lakewood Towne Center; Thunderbird is now the Oakbrook Shopping Center full of retail and services for residents and visitors to enjoy.
In March 1995, Lakewood citizens voted to incorporate as a city, passing with a 60% vote. In September, seven City Council Members were elected to form the city’s first government. Lakewood officially became a city on February 28th, 1996, making it the second largest city in Pierce County and the eighth largest city in the state.
The Tacoma Country and Golf Club were established in 1894 to further attract the rich and famous. The first golf club west of the Mississippi, it featured trolley transportation from Tacoma to the playground on The Prairie.
Important Landmarks: click here.