Scott Lake (Washington) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Scott Lake |
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 Scott Lake
Location in Washington (state)
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| Location | Thurston County, Washington |
| Coordinates | 46°55′11″N 122°55′53″W / 46.91972°N 122.93139°W |
| Primary inflows | Spruce Creek (5.08 cu ft/s) |
| Primary outflows | Allen Creek (6.77 cu ft/s) |
| Catchment area | 2.52 sq mi (6.5 km2) |
| Basin countries | United States |
| Max. length | 0.44 mi (0.71 km) |
| Max. width | 0.40 mi (0.64 km) |
| Surface area | 69 acres (28 ha) |
| Average depth | 11 ft (3.4 m) |
| Max. depth | 18 ft (5.5 m) |
| Water volume | 760 acre⋅ft (940,000 m3) |
| Shore length1 | 6,700 ft (2,000 m) |
| Surface elevation | 189 ft (58 m) |
| Frozen | Lake freezes only during unusual cold snaps. |
| 1 Shore length is not a well-defined measure. | |
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Scott Lake Community
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| Country | United States |
| State | Washington |
| County | Thurston |
| Area | |
| • Water | 0.1 sq mi (0.3 km2) |
| Elevation | 189-330 ft (58-100.5 m) |
| Population
(2012)
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| • Total | +/- 1,400 |
| Time zone | UTC-8 (Pacific (PST)) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC-7 (PDT) |
| ZIP codes |
98512
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| Area code(s) | 360 |
Scott Lake is a beautiful lake located in Thurston County, Washington, in the United States. It's about 3.2 miles (5.1 km) south of Tumwater and 8.4 miles (13.5 km) south of Olympia.
Water flows into Scott Lake from a creek that starts in Millersylvania State Park. This creek doesn't have an official name, but people often call it Spruce Creek. The water then flows out of Scott Lake through a creek called Allen Creek. Allen Creek joins Beaver Creek, which then flows into the Black River. This means Scott Lake is part of the larger Chehalis River system.
Next to the lake, there's a nine-hole golf course that anyone can visit. There's also a private park just for people who live in the Scott Lake Community.
In 1996, an unwanted plant called Eurasian water-milfoil was found in the lake. This plant can grow very fast and take over, harming the lake's natural environment. The area around Scott Lake can sometimes flood in the winter, and scientists are studying why this happens.
Contents
Weather Around Scott Lake
The weather at Scott Lake is often cloudy and rainy during fall, winter, and spring. Summers are usually sunnier and warmer. On average, it rains or snows about 161 days a year. The sky is completely covered by clouds for about 228 days each year.
In winter, on December 21st, there are about 15 and a half hours of darkness. In summer, on June 21st, there are almost 16 hours of daylight!
The hottest temperature ever recorded was 104°F (40°C) on August 9, 1981, and again on July 29, 2009. The coldest temperature ever recorded was -8°F (-22°C) on January 1, 1979. The most rain in one day was 4.82 inches (12.2 cm) on January 7, 2009.
| Climate data for Olympia Regional Airport, Washington (1981–2010 normals, extremes 1948–present) | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Month | Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | Year |
| Record high °F (°C) | 64 (18) |
73 (23) |
79 (26) |
88 (31) |
96 (36) |
98 (37) |
104 (40) |
104 (40) |
98 (37) |
90 (32) |
74 (23) |
64 (18) |
104 (40) |
| Mean maximum °F (°C) | 56.2 (13.4) |
60.6 (15.9) |
67.5 (19.7) |
77.0 (25.0) |
83.8 (28.8) |
88.0 (31.1) |
93.4 (34.1) |
91.9 (33.3) |
86.8 (30.4) |
74.0 (23.3) |
61.0 (16.1) |
55.0 (12.8) |
96.3 (35.7) |
| Mean daily maximum °F (°C) | 45.9 (7.7) |
49.3 (9.6) |
53.9 (12.2) |
58.9 (14.9) |
65.3 (18.5) |
70.6 (21.4) |
76.8 (24.9) |
77.7 (25.4) |
71.8 (22.1) |
60.2 (15.7) |
50.2 (10.1) |
44.2 (6.8) |
60.4 (15.8) |
| Mean daily minimum °F (°C) | 33.7 (0.9) |
32.8 (0.4) |
35.1 (1.7) |
37.7 (3.2) |
43.1 (6.2) |
47.6 (8.7) |
50.8 (10.4) |
50.5 (10.3) |
46.0 (7.8) |
40.5 (4.7) |
36.4 (2.4) |
32.6 (0.3) |
40.6 (4.8) |
| Mean minimum °F (°C) | 18.8 (−7.3) |
18.6 (−7.4) |
23.8 (−4.6) |
27.3 (−2.6) |
32.1 (0.1) |
38.2 (3.4) |
42.2 (5.7) |
41.1 (5.1) |
35.1 (1.7) |
27.3 (−2.6) |
21.6 (−5.8) |
16.8 (−8.4) |
11.1 (−11.6) |
| Record low °F (°C) | −8 (−22) |
−1 (−18) |
9 (−13) |
23 (−5) |
25 (−4) |
30 (−1) |
35 (2) |
33 (1) |
25 (−4) |
14 (−10) |
−1 (−18) |
−7 (−22) |
−8 (−22) |
| Average precipitation inches (mm) | 7.84 (199) |
5.27 (134) |
5.29 (134) |
3.54 (90) |
2.33 (59) |
1.76 (45) |
0.63 (16) |
0.94 (24) |
1.71 (43) |
4.60 (117) |
8.63 (219) |
7.46 (189) |
50.00 (1,270) |
| Average snowfall inches (cm) | 1.9 (4.8) |
4.7 (12) |
0.7 (1.8) |
trace | 0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0 (0) |
0.9 (2.3) |
2.6 (6.6) |
10.8 (27) |
| Average precipitation days (≥ 0.01 in) | 20.0 | 15.8 | 18.5 | 15.7 | 12.5 | 9.1 | 4.6 | 4.9 | 7.8 | 14.2 | 20.1 | 19.6 | 162.8 |
| Average snowy days (≥ 0.1 in) | 1.1 | 2.2 | 0.3 | 0.2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 | 2.0 | 6.3 |
| Average relative humidity (%) | 87.5 | 84.5 | 80.0 | 75.6 | 72.9 | 72.4 | 70.8 | 72.1 | 77.6 | 85.1 | 88.4 | 89.1 | 79.7 |
| Source: NOAA (relative humidity 1961–1990) | |||||||||||||
The closest place that measures weather to Scott Lake is Webster Nursery, near Tumwater. For a longer history of weather records, the Olympia Regional Airport has a weather station.
You can check the weather forecast for Scott Lake online: Weather Forecast For current conditions at Webster Nursery: Current Weather
The Scott Lake Community
The Scott Lake Community is a neighborhood built right next to Scott Lake. It's not an official city, but a community that started as a housing development. In 2009, there were 581 houses, meaning about 1,505 people lived there. The community has 38 streets and is divided into two voting areas: Scott Lake North and Scott Lake South.
Community Center
The Scott Lake Community Center is a building owned by the Scott Lake Maintenance Company. This company is a non-profit group run by the community. The center is where the Scott Lake Board of Trustees makes decisions for the community. It's also used for fun events like an annual community garage sale and can be rented for private parties.
Local Businesses
- Scott Lake Grocery: This store is located at the entrance of the Scott Lake Community. It's a gas station and a grocery store, and it has been open since 1962.
- Scott Lake Golf Course: This nine-hole golf course is right next to the lake. It opened in 1964 and is open to the public.
Highest and Lowest Points
The highest point in the Scott Lake Community is the top of Champion Hill, which is about 330 feet (100.5 meters) high. The lowest point is the surface of Scott Lake itself, which is about 189 feet (58 meters) above sea level.
You can find more information on the official website for the Scott Lake Community: Scott Lake Community Website
History of Scott Lake
Scott Lake was originally known as Scott's Lake. It was probably named after Joseph M. Scott, who settled on land nearby in 1869. The name officially became Scott Lake by 1947, but sometimes people still call it Scotts Lake without the apostrophe.
Early Development
In 1961, a group of people formed the Scott Lake Development Company. They bought a farm next to the lake to build a new housing community. The first building, a real estate office, was built in 1961. By 1962, all the roads in the community were ready for public use.
The Scott Lake Store, now known as Scott Lake Grocery, was built in 1962. It has been selling gas and groceries for many years. The Scott Lake Park, a private park for residents, opened in 1963.
The Scott Lake Country Club, which is now the Scott Lake Golf Course, officially opened in 1965. It started as a nine-hole course. For a while in the 1970s, it was expanded to 18 holes, but half of the course was too wet to use for most of the year. Because it was too expensive to maintain, it was changed back to a nine-hole course.
Community Organization
The Scott Lake Maintenance Company, a non-profit group run by the community, was formed in 1973. This group took over the water system for the community, creating Scott Lake Water. The Scott Lake Community Center was also built in 1973.
In 1975, Thurston County changed the names of 27 roads in the Scott Lake Community as part of a county-wide update.
Notable Events
- On August 4, 1991, a small airplane crashed into Scott Lake.
- On June 29, 2003, a large fire broke out on the side of Champion Hill. Seven fire departments worked for over three hours to put out the fire, which burned more than 4 acres (1.6 hectares) of land.
Photo gallery
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Spruce Creek (water flowing into Scott Lake)
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Allen Creek (water flowing out of Scott Lake)
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The Scott Lake Community Center
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Scott Lake Grocery
Images for kids
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Scott Lake frozen over
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