Seattle, Washington story
A Floating Summer Home
Long before the modern houseboats of Lake Union, there were floating homes designed as simple summer retreats. The Wagner Houseboat, built around 1909 or 1912, began its life as o…
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Long before the modern houseboats of Lake Union, there were floating homes designed as simple summer retreats. The Wagner Houseboat, built around 1909 or 1912, began its life as one of those quiet escapes on Lake Washington near Madison Park. It’s one of the oldest surviving houseboats in the city, a floating piece of history that eventually found its way to Lake Union.
In the 1950s, it was bought by Dick Wagner, who and his wife Colleen later used the boat to found the Center for Wooden Boats in 1968. It’s a testament to the city's enduring love for the water, evolving from a private summer getaway into a public treasure and a National Register of Historic Places landmark.
Updated June 2026