The LBA Woods is part of the traditional territory of The Squaxin Island Tribe and was tended by the Squaxin until the Medicine Creek Treaty of 1854. We honor and acknowledge all the indigenous people who have stewarded this land since time immemorial and who still inhabit the area today.
Little is known about the early history of the forest. In 1891, Joshua Thayer received a federal patent to a 75-acre property later known as the “Bentridge” parcel. In 1896, he received a patent for a second parcel of similar size, later known as the “Trillium” parcel. The forest was clear-cut, most likely between 1910 and 1935. Both parcels were then left unmanaged. As understory plants and trees regrew, the former unimproved logging access roads became popular walking trails for the community.
In 1974, the Little Baseball Association (LBA) arranged with the City of Olympia to create a park of ballfields for younger (“little”) players. The association donated the 22 acres of land adjacent to the two wooded parcels. The city park was named LBA Park and the woods behind the park became “the LBA Woods."
Over the years, the LBA Woods became a multi-use self-policing common of sorts—a de facto public park. Members of the community enjoyed it for walking, jogging, cross-country running, biking, dog walking (on and off leash), building log forts, cross-country skiing, snowshoeing, and bird watching. The woods were also used briefly for logging, maple-sugar tapping, off-road-vehicle (ORV) recreation, fiddle-head fern harvesting, marijuana growing, illicit beer drinking, illegal campfires, paintball-and pellet-gun playing, and as a dump site and place for temporary encampments.
For years, community members took care of the park—picking up trash, removing debris (e.g., dumped kitchen appliances), clearing fallen trees from the trails, cutting back overgrown trails, installing trail signs, and distributing hand-written trail maps.
In the early 2000s, plans for two housing developments of approximately 1,000 homes began to take shape. The developments required grading and grubbing (destroying) all but 16 acres of the woods. Community opposition to the development began. Permitting issues and the 2008 Recession resulted in fortuitous planning delays of both developments.
In 2012, a community-based coalition launched the Save the LBA Woods campaign, which was supported by many local organizations. Support was strong and widespread. More than 6,000 residents of the greater Olympia area signed a petition to the Olympia City Council urging them to purchase the woods from the developers for parkland.
The leadership of the Save the LBA Woods team and other local park-advocacy groups launched the “Yes! Olympia Parks” campaign to secure funding for the acquisition, development and maintenance of the LBA Woods and other much-needed parkland in Olympia. In 2015, the City of Olympia residents voted to approve the establishment of the Olympia Metropolitan Parks District (OMPD) through a dedicated property tax.
In 2016-2017 the City of Olympia voted unanimously to acquire 133 of the 150 acres of the LBA Woods for public parkland. The OMPD and grants from the Recreation and Conservation Office (RCO) made the acquisition possible. The community had Saved the LBA Woods.
Today, LBA Woods is an increasingly popular open-space destination for community members across all of Thurston County. Park goers enjoy the park’s gentle terrain, the biodiversity of native plants, the abundance of wildlife, and four miles of walking trails. In 2019, trails were improved and mapped to enhance visitor enjoyment. The trails are primarily for walking and trail running, with select trails designated as “shared-use” for non-motorized bikes and off-leash dog walking. Smaller, unmaintained footpaths can still be enjoyed throughout the woods. View the trails map here.
Since 2016, the Friends of LBA Woods stewardship group has hosted more than 50 habitat-restoration work parties, guided nature walks, and other special events in the LBA Woods. The Friends also serve as unofficial liaisons between park goers and the Olympia Parks Stewardship staff and as advocates for park protections.
