This is what Mud Lake looked like back in 1932. Back then the area covered by water was so small it would have better been called Mud Pond! Present day Mud Lake (below, from Google Earth) is twice the size it once was and I was told that beavers were what led to the lake becoming its present day size. This explains the numerous stumps that can be seen poking up out of the water along the south end of present day Mud Lake. Another significant difference between Mud Lake in 1932 and today is the length of the ridge. Notice how the ridge extends all the way to where the boat launch is behind the present day water purification plant.
 
Absent from the present day scene around Mud Lake is the Canadian Pacific Railway line, which was removed in 1967 (the first prominent straight line below Mud Lake in the photo above) and the Ottawa Electric Railway streetcar line (below the CPR line), which was removed in 1959. Some present day visitors to Mud Lake have told me stories of taking the streetcar to Mud Lake back in the day. Today the CPR line is a paved recreational pathway, which I use very often to access Mud Lake and other points along the Ottawa River.