Oakland Lake Improvements – Bayside NY

Description

Originally formed as the result of glacial action during the Ice Age 15,000 years ago, Oakland Lake is a kettle lake, part of the Alley Pond Park system in northeast Queens. It is surrounded by glacial boulders and is fed by underground springs and a ravine that flows into the lake from the south. The lake served several purposes until it was transferred to New York City’s Parks Department in 1934.

The Parks Department notes:
“In the 1930s, Works Project Administration (WPA) workers lined the brook feeding Oakland Lake with blocks, and later, the brook and a small pond leading into the lake were filled. In 1941 officials from the Sanitation and Health Departments worked with WPA workers to fill in nearby wetlands in an attempt to control the mosquito population. Three thousand people were put to work at nine Queens sites laying pipes, digging drainage ditches, and filling in and grading low areas.”