Nestled between Redmond and Carnation, the Ames Lake area has always existed on the edge of the rich agricultural lands of the Snoqualmie Valley. While Ames Lake itself became better known in the twentieth century as a rural residential and recreation community, its history is deeply tied to the farming traditions that shaped the entire valley for more than 150 years.

Long before modern roads and neighborhoods appeared, the Snoqualmie Valley was a landscape of forests, rivers, prairies, and fertile floodplains. Native Snoqualmie people used the valley seasonally for fishing, gathering berries, and harvesting roots. Later, Euro-American settlers recognized the valley’s extraordinary agricultural potential and began establishing farms in the mid-1800s.

Early Settlement and Farming

Permanent settlement in the Snoqualmie Valley began in the 1850s and 1860s. Early pioneers such as Jeremiah Borst and other homesteaders claimed land along the river and open prairie areas. These first farms were small and largely self-sufficient, producing vegetables, grain, livestock, and dairy products for local use.

Much of the lower valley, however, was still heavily forested. Logging often came first. Settlers worked in logging camps while gradually clearing land for agriculture. Trees were felled, burned, and removed over years of hard labor before the land could support crops or pasture. Farmers frequently supplemented their income by producing cedar shakes, shingles, and timber products.

The Ames Lake area followed this same pattern. The surrounding hills were heavily logged in the early twentieth century, especially during the 1920s. Old railroad grades and logging routes can still be traced through the woods around Ames Lake today.