King was the proprietor of a speakeasy called the Squirrel Inn that specialized in bootleg whiskey made somewhere along the Truckee River.

Today the stretch on Highway 28 along the North Shore of the lake is bustling and the long sandy beach provides an extraordinary view of Lake Tahoe at water level.


Kings Beach is rich in history as it sits squarely on the old route around the north end of the lake from Spooner Summit to Donner Summit. In the late 1800s, travelers from the silver fields in Nevada passed through Kings Beach going to and coming from Sutter’s Fort (Sacramento) and San Francisco in California. The community is also the end of the old road (now Highway 267) from Truckee to the lake. Given its strategic location on the main roads to and from the north end, Kings Beach has flourished over the years with motels, theaters, markets, stores, cafes, and homes.

The modernization of Kings Beach is well along; it is a worthy place to stop, picnic, and play in an integral part of Timeless Tahoe that is easy to get to from Incline Village, Truckee, Palisades Tahoe and Tahoe City.