Interpretation and history at Blake Island

History

Blake Island was an ancestral camping ground of the Suquamish Indian tribe, and legend has it Chief Seattle was born there. It is believed the island was named by naval explorer Captain Charles Wilkes in honor of George Smith Blake, who commanded U.S. Coast Survey vessels from 1837 to 1848.

William Pitt Trimble acquired the island at the turn of the century and re-named it Trimble Island, transforming it into a magnificent private estate. After his wife was killed in Seattle in 1929, Trimble never returned to the property. The foundation of his mansion still stands, although the home itself has been destroyed by fire .

The property became Blake Island State Park in October, 1974.

Interpretive opportunities

The history of the Trimble estate appears on a sign at the site of the former Trimble mansion. (Blake Island was once the private preserve of the William Pitt Trimble family.) Native plants are interpreted in signage on the nature trail.