Washburn Lake
lake of the United States of America
Washburn Lake is a 1,554 acres (6.29 km2) lake located about three miles northwest of Outing, Minnesota in Cass County, Minnesota, USA. It is found at an elevation of 1,316 feet (401 m). The lake occupies three distinct basins. A public access is co-located at the Clinton Converse DNR Forestry Campground at the south end of the eastern basin. Based on 2009 data, development is considered moderate, with 17.2 homes/cabins per shoreline mile. The maximum depth is 111 feet (34 m) and about 48% of the lake is 15 feet (4.6 m) deep or less. Shallow water substrates consist primarily of sand and gravel, although areas of rubble, boulders and muck are also present. The aquatic plant community is quite diverse and is critical to maintaining healthy fish populations. Emergent plants such as bulrush are common along much of the shoreline, however just as common are numerous gaps in these beds along shorelines with developed lots. The remaining emergent plants should be protected as they are important for shoreline protection, maintaining water quality, and providing essential spawning habitat for bass and panfish species. Submerged plants provide food and cover needed by fish and other aquatic species.
The public source identifies “Washburn Lake” as lake of the United States of America. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Washburn, Lake and lake.
Why this record matters
A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Washburn Lake”, the useful work is to connect “lake of the United States of America” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
The strongest evidence will usually combine a dated visual record with documents produced by the authority responsible for the place. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 30, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q17514969. Authority coordinates are 46.870, -93.995. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2009.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Washburn Lake”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Washburn Lake primary sources, Washburn Lake archive and Washburn research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Washburn Lake”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which earlier names or jurisdictions may reveal additional records?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Washburn Lake” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.