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Home / Washington Business - March/April 2005 / Port Townsend: City of Art |
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Port Townsend: City of Art |
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Written On: March/April 2005 |
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Written By: by Shawn Sullivan & Penney Hubbard |
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The National Society for Historic Preservation lists more than half the buildings in Port Townsend on its National Register of Historic Places. Appropriately, Port Townsend is the second-oldest community in the Puget Sound Region and thus one of the oldest communities in Washington.
Established in 1851, the city came into being with the promise of a railroad from Portland to Port Townsend. Civic boosters hoped such a railroad would transform their small town into the premier city on Puget Sound. Three decades later, railroad officials reneged on their promise and instead built tracks through Tacoma to Seattle. Nearly two decades of economic depression followed.
The town was on the verge of collapse until 1902, when Port Townsend was selected as the location for a coastal defense fort. Fort Worden, along with a paper mill, became the largest employers in Port Townsend and rescued the town from financial ruin.
Port Townsend continued as a two-industry town for several decades, until Fort Worden closed its doors in 1955. Once again, the city faced economic hardship and survived closure only by the paper mill that employed nearly all of the city’s population. However, in 1979 Mother Nature took a hand in providing the city with another source of jobs.
On February 12, 1979, a severe windstorm clobbered the Northwest and caused the west end of the Hood Canal Bridge to sink. As a result, the Washington State Ferry System began operating a temporary auto-ferry from Edmonds directly into Port Townsend. The ferry helped the growth of town’s tourism and marine trades industries. It operated until shortly after a new bridge was built and helped make Port Townsend a visitor destination.
A few years before the ferry route began service to Port Townsend, the state reopened Fort Worden as a state park and assisted the city in transforming it into a unique park. State employees and volunteers from the community worked together to restore every building on the fort and created a fully functional “fort museum.”
The newly re-established Fort Worden offers visitors camping areas, residential homes to use on vacation, and full conference facilities. The Commons, completed in 2003 for use as a conference center, and the other restored buildings in the park are ideal places for meetings, retreats, reunions and other group activities. Collectively, these attractions bring several visitors to Port Townsend every year. Within the park, one finds the Marine Science Center, the Coast Artillery Museum and the Commanding Officer’s Quarters, a restored residential museum.
The Marine Science Center serves as an educational center for marine habitat and history. Volunteer organizations interact with local and visiting schools to show students how the wildlife in the Puget Sound depends on several environmental factors. Students from the local schools also participate in conducting research and learning the names of wildlife through hands-on experiences.
“The park is also home to Centrum, a center for arts and creativity that sponsors several music festivals throughout the year,” said Port Townsend Chamber of Commerce’s General Manager Tim Caldwell. “Centrum also provides workshops for residents to learn to play music and dance.” Currently, Centrum holds a special event that relates to art in some form every weekend throughout the year.
Thousands of people travel to Port Townsend to witness events like the Wooden Boat Festival in September, and the town is home to the most unusual race in all of Washington. The Wooden Boat Festival allows visitors to witness the construction and operation of new and old wooden boats. During the festival wooden sailing vessels fill Port Townsend Bay, and some lucky visitor may be offered a ride around the peninsula.
The Kinetic Skulpture race in October is open to locals and visitors alike and combines artistic ability with fun and excitement. People from all around the county create human-powered floats that are able to race on land and in water. The ensuing competition is a spectacular sight because of the creative abilities of the town folk and the fact that not all of the artwork actually floats.
Festivals and races are not the only thing that the town offers art lovers. Several art studios and galleries exhibit regional and native art, and everyone can participate in the many art workshops provided by Centrum throughout the year.
What makes all of these attractions possible? “Community involvement and dedication to art are the keys to Port Townsend’s success,” Caldwell said. “The entire community volunteers to teach art classes to students and devotes countless hours in preserving history and art by volunteering at the city’s museums and facilities.”
Considered to be Washington’s premier Victorian seaport, Port Townsend serves as a transportation hub for boating enthusiasts. It is one of the largest sites to refuel or repair boats sailing around the Puget Sound. The port has a 300-ton lift, which allows it to service or store anything from a small fishing boat to a large yacht. Businesses that specialize in sail, diesel engine and hull repair are only a small portion of the marine services available at the marina.
The public beach surrounding Port Townsend also contributes to its uniqueness. The beach is home to hundreds of different species of animals, most of them seen along the shoreline. Five minutes of walking the beach can offer glimpses of wildlife ranging from birds to sea otters. The citizens of Port Townsend take a lot of time to ensure that all of the animals located in and around the city are properly cared for and are committed to keeping the environment safe for all of the wildlife.
Port Townsend has many amenities for travelers, and it offers tourists a taste of something different. Whether you are traveling by boat, car or passenger ferry, a trip to Port Townsend is worth every second. It has the ability to accommodate everyone’s taste in music and art and offers a feeling of relaxation seldom experienced anywhere else in Washington.
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