[1] Other neighborhood or district boundaries existed in the past; these are recognized by various Seattle City Departments, commercial or social organizations, and other Federal, State, and local government agencies.

[3] Ballard is part of the Seattle Public Schools and the Washington State Legislature's 36th legislative district.

At the federal level, Ballard is part of the United States House of Representatives's 7th congressional district.

[5] The Shilshole area was home to a settlement that has since been excavated; its artifacts are in the collection of the Burke Museum in the University District.

[6] According to oral traditions from before European contact, the group living around Shilshole may have been in decline due to a "great catastrophe".

[citation needed] The remaining dozen or fewer families were evicted by non-Coast Salish settlers in the mid-19th century.

[7] The last member of the Shilshole native group, named HWelch’teed or "Salmon Bay Charlie", was forcibly removed to allow construction of the Hiram Chittenden Locks in 1915 or 1916.

[5] Utter hoped to see a rapid expansion of population, but when this did not happen, he sold the land to Thomas Burke, a judge.

They anticipated the building of the Great Northern Railway along the Salmon Bay coastline on the way to Interbay and central Seattle.

The partners also built a spur from Fremont's main line of the Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern Railway.

Then, in 1887 the partnership was dissolved and the assets divided, but no one wanted the land in Salmon Bay so the partners flipped a coin.

[citation needed] From the stop at "Ballard Junction," (as the terminus was called) passengers could walk across the wagon bridge and continue the journey to Seattle.

[15] With the rapid population growth, residents realized that there might soon be a need for laws to keep order, a process that would require a formal government.

[26] In July 1906, the Supreme Court of Washington ruled that Seattle was not allowed to provide water service to surrounding communities.

[28][29] On that day, Ballard citizens showed their mixed feelings about the handover by draping their city hall with black crepe and flying the flag at half mast.

[citation needed] This growth in urban density is the result of the neighborhood plan created by former Seattle Mayor Norm Rice.

Mayor Rice's plan aimed to reduce suburban sprawl by targeting certain Seattle areas, including Ballard, for high-density development.

[citation needed] Over the years, Ballard has added venues for live music, including bars, restaurants and coffee shops.

Ballard is the traditional center of Seattle's ethnically Scandinavian seafaring community, who were drawn to the area because of the salmon fishing opportunities.

Scandinavians unite in organizations such as the Sons of Norway Leif Ericson Lodge and the Norwegian Ladies Chorus of Seattle.

The neighborhood is home to a namesake soccer team, Ballard FC, which was founded in 2022 and plays in the fourth-division USL League 2.

The new school building is now one of the largest in the district and houses a biotechnology magnet program that attracts students from all over Seattle.