The Bassin de la Villette is the biggest artificial lake in Paris.
It was originally used as drinkable water reserve for the Parisian citizen. Its second function, associated with the second basin, was to provide water necessary for navigation on the channels of Saint-Denis and Saint Martin's.
At the beginning of XIX century, the basin was surrounded by gardens, where the Parisian citizens came to spend their leisure time (walks in summer, ice-skating in winter). During the industrial era after 1850, the leisure acitivities around the basin decreased and eventually ceased.
