Lake Sylvia State Park is a 233-acre state-operated, public recreation area in the northern part of Montesano in Grays Harbor County, Washington. The park is located in dense temperate rain forest. The area was originally homesteaded in the late 1860s by Michael F. Luark, who built Grays Harbor County's first water-powered sawmill there in 1871. The prese…
Lake Sylvia State Park is a 233-acre state-operated, public recreation area in the northern part of Montesano in Grays Harbor County, Washington. The park is located in dense temperate rain forest. The area was originally homesteaded in the late 1860s by Michael F. Luark, who built Grays Harbor County's first water-powered sawmill there in 1871. The present dam was built around 1909; its penstock provided the power for a generator house alongside the creek, down below. The generator and lake provided power and water for Montesano into the early 1930s, when the powerhouse was dismantled; Silas and Elsie Wilder lived over the generator room, where they raised 14 children and operated the generator. Elsie Wilder was almost certainly the only woman in the United States to operate a power plant in the 1920s; it is not clear whether there have been any since. The property passed to Washington State Parks in 1936.
Location: Grays Harbor, Washington, United States
Elevation: 167 ft (51 m)
Established: 1936
Area: 233 acres (94 ha)
Operator: Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission
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