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Meydenbauer Yacht Club 9927 Meydenbauer Way SE
The Yacht Club is significant for its historical role as the Wildwood Park Dance Hall. It is also one of the most imposing buildings that date from pre-World War II Bellevue. Meydenbauer Bay, takes it name from William Meydenbauer, the first settler in this area. William Meydenbauer operated the Eureka Bakery in Seattle. In 1869, he filed a claim on property on a beautiful cove across Lake Washington for his vacation home. Meydenbauer and his family cleared the heavily timbered land, built a log cabin at the end of the bay, and planted an orchard of fruit trees. The cabin was located in the general area where the Yacht Club is today. Meydenbauer sold his cabin in 1879. In 1905-1906, Henry Cade and Louis Carlson, the operators of the steamer Wildwood, purchased three acres of the former Meydenbauer claim. By 1906, steamboat excursions operated from Leschi Landing in Seattle to Wildwood Park. The dance hall structure at Wildwood Park was built along the shore of the lake sometime between 1906 and 1912. In the late 1920s or early 1930s, the dance hall was transformed into a roller skating rink. In 1933, William Schupp purchased the Wildwood Park Dance Hall and surrounding acreage. He proceeded to build a two story frame building, which incorporated the dance hall structure, on the knoll overlooking the harbor. In 1946, Marc Lagen and six other Eastsiders purchased the unfinished frame building for $44,000 and founded the Meydenbauer Yacht Club. The Yacht Club building relates to the study unit themes of architecture and entertainment/recreation. |