[2][3] Lake is located in Garfield Township in southweastern Clare County about 5.0 miles (8.0 km) west of the village of Farwell along U.S. Route 10.

[10] Other nearby communities include Lake George to the north, Weidman to the south, the village of Barryton to the southwest, and Sears to the northwest.

[12] The post office serves a large Tabulation Area covering 126.84 square miles (328.51 km2) of land and a population of 5,125.

In Isabella County to the south, the Lake post office serves portions of Coldwater, Gilmore, and Sherman townships.

[15] The Lake Station train depot predates the community itself, which was settled as a lumber camp as early as 1873 by Scott Garrish.

[16] The Flint and Pere Marquette Railroad began expanding into the area in the early 1870s, and Lake Station can be seen on a historic 1873 map of Clare County, which itself was organized in 1871.

A post office named Crooked Lake opened on February 28, 1877, with railroad agent Charles Howard Bates serving as the first postmaster.

The original train depot was struck by lightning and burned down in 1892 during a severe storm that devastated the surrounding area.