Kirkland, Washington

Kirkland is a city in King County, Washington, United States. It is a suburb of Seattle. Its population was 92,175 at the 2020 census.^[2] It is on the coast of Lake Washington.

Kirkland, Washington
City
The downtown waterfront area of Kirkland, on the shores of Lake Washington
Location of Kirkland within King County, Washington, and King County within Washington
Coordinates: 47°41′9″N 122°11′30″W
Country	United States
State	Washington
County	King
Founded	1888
Incorporated	1905
Government
• Type	Council–manager
Area [1]
• Total	22.66 sq mi (58.69 km2)
• Land	17.81 sq mi (46.12 km2)
• Water	4.86 sq mi (12.58 km2)
Elevation	14–500 ft (4–152 m)
Population  (2020)[2]
• Total	92,175
• Rank	US: 370th WA: 13th
• Density	5,223.52/sq mi (2,016.80/km2)
Time zone	UTC−8 (Pacific)
• Summer (DST)	UTC−7 (Pacific)
ZIP codes	98033, 98034, 98083
Area code	425
FIPS code	53-35940
GNIS feature ID	1512352[3]
Website	www.kirklandwa.gov

History

The land around Lake Washington was first settled by Native Americans. English settlers arrived in the late 1860s. More families settled the area in the 1870s.^[4] By the end of the 1880s, there were a small number of communities that logged, farmed and built boats.^[5]

In 1886, Peter Kirk, a businessman, wanted to start a steel mill in Washington near the water. Leigh S. J. Hunt, a newspaper owner, said that he would be Kirk's partner. They bought land in July 1888. They started building a steel mill shortly afterwards. Kirk started the city of Kirkland in 1888. The steel mill was completed in late 1892. The mill later closed because of financial problems. It had not made any steel.

Map of Kirkland in 2006, prior to annexations

Kirkland was finally incorporated in 1905. Its population was approximately 532.

In the early 1900s, the Curtis family had a business that made boats.^[6] In later years, wool milling and warship building were the major industries.

Annexations

Kirkland has consolidated with other towns and annexed land many times. The area of Kirkland is now approximately 12 times its area when it was incorporated in 1905.^[7]

Landmarks

The city of Kirkland has said that three buildings are city landmarks.^[8]

Landmark	Built	Listed	Address	Photo
Heritage Hall	1922	2000	NW corner of Market St. & Lake Ave. W.	Heritage Hall (historical First Church of Christ, Scientist - now home to Kirkland Heritage Society) in 2010
Peter Kirk Building	1890-92	2003	620 Market Street	Peter Kirk Building in 2006
Kirkland Woman's Club	1925	2011	407 First Street	Woman's Club building in 2009

Geography and climate

Kirkland is located at 47°41′9″N 122°11′30″W (47.685821, -122.191729).^[9] Lake Washington is west of the city.

According to the United States Census Bureau, the city has a total area of 22.66 square miles (58.69 km²). 17.81 square miles (46.13 km²) of this is land and 4.86 square miles (12.59 km²) is water.^[1]

Demographics

Census	Pop.		%±
1900	264		—
1910	532		101.5%
1920	1,354		154.5%
1930	1,714		26.6%
1940	2,084		21.6%
1950	4,713		126.2%
1960	6,025		27.8%
1970	14,970		148.5%
1980	18,785		25.5%
1990	40,052		113.2%
2000	45,054		12.5%
2010	48,787		8.3%
2020	92,175		88.9%
U.S. Decennial Census[10]

2020 census

In the 2020 census, there were 92,175 people, 38,037 households, and 23,835 families living in Kirkland. The population density was 5,176.6 people per square mile (1,998.7/km²). There were 40,019 housing units. The breakdown by race was 65.5% White, 17.9% Asian, 2.1% Black, 0.5% Native American, 0.2% Pacific Islander, 3.6% from one other race, and 10.3% from two or more races. Hispanics and Latinos made up 7.9% of the people.

The median (middle) age was 37.9 years. The age breakdown was 20.6% under age 18, 65.8% from 18 to 65, and 13.6% over 65. The gender breakdown was 49.4% male and 50.6% female.

Of the households, 29.2% had children under age 18, 51.1% had a married couple, 7.1% had an unmarried couple, 23.9% had a woman with no partner, 17.9% had a man with no partner, and 27.9% had one person living alone. The average household size was 2.39 people.^[11][12]

Government and politics

Kirkland has a council-manager form of government; there are seven council members. The city council selects one of their members to be the mayor from among its members. As of July 2024^[update], the mayor is Kelli Curtis^[13] and the city manager is Kurt Triplett.^[14]

Sports

Kirkland was the original home of the Seattle Seahawks. Now, this team is based in Seattle.

Sister city

Kirkland has one sister city. It is Emmerich, Germany.^[15][16]

Notable people

• Layne Staley, lead singer of Alice in Chains (died 2002)