[1][2] It was given its English name by David Phillips, who surveyed the area in September 1855 for the United States Surveyor General.

The lake is now fed by rainfall, storm runoff, and Seattle's municipal water supply.

The area was originally homesteaded by various pioneers, the first being Erhart Sarfried, "Green Lake John."

Wood built an "amusement park" on the west side of the lake (which never amounted to more than a glorified lawn for picnics).

Edward C. Kilbourne built the first trolley line connecting the area to the city, the route of which is now Green Lake Way North.

In July 2008, several metal spikes up to 3 feet (0.91 m) in length were found along the bottom of the lake, injuring one person who accidentally stepped on them.

[3] The Seattle Parks Department later confirmed that the spikes were from a forgotten pilot program to control the growth of Eurasian water milfoil in Green Lake.

[4] Throughout the course of the investigation, it was revealed that the city had also tried combating the milfoil with weed-eating fish, but hadn't made any serious efforts in the past 15 years aside from occasionally paying divers to pull the weeds by hand.

After 1903 the area became part of Seattle's grand Olmsted Plan to create a series of interconnected greenspaces around the entire city.

The park is a popular spot for qigong classes, roller hockey, soccer, baseball, golf, the Derek Baker Memorial Boccie Ball Club, and lawn bowls, part of the Woodland Park Lawn Bowling Club, and a monthly midnight bicycle race.

The wading pool is staffed in the summer by the Seattle Parks department, and operates daily from June 23–September 3, from 11 a.m.–8 p.m. South of the bathhouse is a lawn and fishing pier.

Outside of the Seafair schedule the theater was the stage for plays and musicals whose directors always took advantage of the unique setting.

After the World's Fair, summer productions languished, which is usually blamed on Seattle's unpredictable weather, until the Aqua Theater was mostly abandoned.

The Milk Carton Derby is held annually on the lake as one of the opening events of Seafair.

The island was built (with dumped gravel) as a wildlife sanctuary and later housed some swan gifted to the city by Vancouver, British Columbia.

The Green Lake Small Craft Center also is home to the Seattle Canoe and Kayak Club.

Many types of wildlife, toads, ducks, cormorants, loons, herons, geese, turtles, raccoons, rats, squirrels, bats, hawks, eagles, and osprey are among the wild creatures commonly viewed there.

Green Lake is a popular dumping ground for unwanted house pets and developed a large population of feral rabbits.

The rabbits created problems by burrowing under streets and retaining walls and into the Woodland Park Zoo.

[citation needed] Their droppings raise the level of phosphorus in the lake, leading to excessive growths of algae and milfoil.

During the spring, Green Lake Park is in bloom with pink and white cherry trees.