History of Lakeview Park

​Lake View Park Neighborhood and Beaver Lake

​Lake View Park neighborhood was created along with Beaver Lake by notedlandscape architect and urban planner John Nolen.

Prior to 1923, Beaver Lake was known as Baird Bottom. It was a meadowwhere cows grazed quite uneventfully. Then on April 18, 1911, according tothe Asheville Citizen-Times, Lincoln Beachey (March 3, 1887 – March 14, 1915) ceremoniously flew into town to show off his famous aerial stunts overBaird Bottom for the citizens of Asheville. This flight was one of his pioneeringflights over the mountains of Western North Carolina. That day, although for abrief moment in aviation history, Baird Bottom was Asheville's first unofficialairport.

A trolley service ran through Baird Bottom carrying vacationers back and forthbetween a transfer station near Grace Church on Merrimon Avenue andWeaverville. Merrimon Avenue didn't extend all the way through Weaverville,but ended near Grace Church. Ashevillians would catch the 45-minute to anhour ride from the transfer station into Weaverville where they could escapethe hustle and bustle of busy Asheville.

Beaver Lake dam was constructed by the Charles E. Waddell & Company in1923. This was the same engineering company that built the Biltmore Bridge,and also provided engineering design services to the City of Asheville andthe Biltmore Estate. About the same time Beaver Lake was completed,the Dixie Highway reached Asheville, and Merrimon Avenue became a part ofthe famous Dixie Highway system which extended Merrimon Avenue throughWeaverville. This was part of the eastern branch of Dixie Highway whichconnected the states of Florida, Georgia

Later on, according to local legend, Thomas Wolfe (October 3, 1900 –September 15, 1938), under the shroud of darkness, would sometimes goskinny dipping in the swimming pool near the Tea House. The Tea House isnow a private residence.

Today, Baird Bottom is a lake, and the trolley tracks, what have been left ofthem, are hidden under three to four feet of water. Created in 1923, historicBeaver Lake and the adjoining property are privately owned and maintainedby the residents of Lake View Park. The park and lake are enjoyed by bothLake View Park residents and guests for activities such as jogging, running,walking, biking, bird watching, watching the sun set, picnicking, boating, andfishing.

John Nolen is still recognized today by landscape architects as the father ofurban designing. According to a local landscape architect, Nolen collaboratedwith Frederick Law Olmsted (April 26, 1822 – August 28, 1903) in the creationof Lake View Park and Beaver Lake. This was quite likely because Nolen wasa student and friend of Olmsted, and Olmsted was familiar with Ashevillehaving designed the grounds at nearby Biltmore Estate.