Walled Lake

History

The town's name is said to have been given by the first American settler, Walter Hewitt, in 1825. Upon his arrival, he noticed what appeared to be a stone wall along the western bank of a nearby lake, possibly constructed by earlier Potawatomi Indian tribes. Walled Lake was a village inhabited by Ojibwa and Potowatamie people until about 1830. It appears that these people had relocated from an earlier village in the area that is today Southfield. Resting spots along the Underground Railroad, where runaway slaves could sleep and eat, were called "depots". One of these was the Foster Farmhouse (built in 1833) in Walled Lake, which served as a refuge for those making their way to freedom in Canada. The Foster Farmhouse was located on Pontiac Trail near West Maple road until 1997, when it was moved to Riley Park in downtown Walled Lake to avoid demolition. the house was originally home to Sarah Gertrude Banks, who was a doctor at the University of Michigan. In the 1920s Herman Chankush ordered the Walled Lake Amusement Park to be built. He died in 1928, but the park finally opened on Memorial Day of 1929. It ran for 39 years until competition with Edgewater Park and Boblo Island led to its closure in 1968. In 1923 the Walled Lake Dance Casino was opened. Many famous acts played at the casino over the years, including a young Stevie Wonder. On Christmas Day of 1965 the casino burned down, apparently due to an errant cigarette thrown into a wooden trashcan. Since the entire casino was made of wood, it burned very quickly, and although neighboring communities' fire departments came to battle the blaze, it was no use. Both the casino and the amusement park were located at the intersection of what is now 13 Mile and Southlake Drive. That property is now known as Pavilion…

Geography

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of , of which is land and is water. Walled Lake is north of the City of Novi and east of the City of Wixom.

Race & ethnicity

Most-observed species

• Northern Cardinal

  Cardinalis cardinalis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  32,489
• Black-capped Chickadee

  Poecile atricapillus (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  32,192
• Blue Jay

  Cyanocitta cristata (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  32,091
• American Robin

  Turdus migratorius Linnaeus, 1766 · Aves
  30,550
• Mourning Dove

  Zenaida macroura (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  28,733
• Red-bellied Woodpecker

  Melanerpes carolinus (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  24,541
• White-breasted Nuthatch

  Sitta carolinensis Latham, 1790 · Aves
  24,465
• Downy Woodpecker

  Dryobates pubescens (Linnaeus, 1766) · Aves
  24,111