Port Townsend, Washington Port Townsend Port Townsend, Washington The heart of downtown Port Townsend, seen from the water The heart of downtown Port Townsend, seen from the water Location of Port Townsend, Washington Location of Port Townsend, Washington Port Townsend / ta nz nd/ is a town/city in Jefferson County, Washington, United States.
It is the governmental center of county and only incorporated town/city of Jefferson County. In addition to its natural scenery at the northeast tip of the Olympic Peninsula, the town/city is also known for the many Victorian buildings remaining from its late 19th century heyday, various annual cultural affairs, and as a maritime center for autonomous boatbuilders and related industries and crafts.
The Port Townsend Historic District is a U.S.
The bay was originally titled "Port Townshend" by Captain George Vancouver (for his friend the Marquis of Townshend) in 1792.
American Indian tribes positioned in what is now Jefferson County in the mid-19th century encompassed the Chimakum (or Chemakum), Hoh (a group of the Quileute), Klallam (or Clallam), Quinault, and Twana (the Kilcid band Anglicized: Quilcene).
Port Townsend is also called the "City of Dreams" because of the early speculation that the town/city would be the biggest harbor on the west coast of the United States.
By the late 19th century, Port Townsend was a well-known seaport, very active and banking on the future.
During this period, in 1888, the Port Townsend Police Department was established.
Klallam citizens at Port Townsend, 1859, by James G.
Railroads were assembled to reach more areas in the 1870-1890s and Port Townsend was to be the northwest extension of the rail lines.
Its port was large and incessanted by overseas vessels, so shipping of goods and timber from the region was a primary part of the economy.
Many of the buildings were assembled on the speculation that Port Townsend would turn into a booming shipping port and primary city.
With the other Puget Sound ports burgeoning in size, Port Townsend saw a rapid diminish in populace when the Northern Pacific Railroad floundered to connect the town/city to the easterly Puget Sound town/city of Tacoma.
Over the decades that followed, Port Townsend maintained its economic stability in a range of ways, including the evolution of artillery fortifications at Fort Worden. Many citizens left the region and many buildings were abandoned.
Port Townsend's economy was very weak until the 1920s when a paper foundry was assembled on the edge of the town.
Other cultural programming, some at Fort Worden, now a state park, contains a Wooden Boat Festival, writers' conference, and blues and jazz festivals, in addition to music, dance, and live theatre performances.
Main article: Port Townsend Historic District The Port Townsend Historic District, an region including many Victorian-era buildings, was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1976.
Port Townsend is noted for its Victorian homes and momentous historical buildings.
The town/city has more than a dozen large, well-preserved buildings, including the Port Townsend Public Library (a 1913 Carnegie Library), the Federal Building (now generally known as the city's postal service), the Rose Theatre, and the Elks Lodge, which now homes Silverwater Cafe.
Fort Worden, now a state park, has retained some of its pre-World War I architecture assembled when it was a military facility.
Later, Fort Worden (now part of Fort Worden State Park) and the City of Port Townsend were designated National Historic Landmarks. The town/city is one of three Victorian seaports on the National Register of Historic Places. It was restored in 2003 by the Jefferson County Historical Society. The second bell fortress is positioned in Helena, Montana, and was also used for fire alarms amid the late 19th century.
Jefferson County Courthouse in Port Townsend, WA The sign entering town calls Port Townsend a "Victorian Seaport and Arts Community." Port Townsend is host to a several annual affairs such as the Port Townsend Wooden Boat festival, Kinetic Skulpture Race (since 1983), the Rhododendron Festival, and the annual blues and jazz festival.
Boating and maritime life are central elements in this port town, with regattas, weekly competitions, and a multitude of recreational opportunities.
The port is home to many classic wooden boats, and gets visits from owners of the rest seeking repairs.
The Port Townsend Marine Science Center has facilities on a pier on the Fort Worden State Park beach.
Since 1999, Port Townsend has held an annual global film festival in September.
Copper Canyon Press, the poetry press, is positioned here, as are facilities for Goddard College, Madrona Mindbody Institute, Peninsula College, and the Port Townsend School of Woodworking.
The Port Townsend Aero Museum is positioned at the small-town airport.
Port Townsend has two dance schools for kids and grownups.
Port Townsend, Admiralty Inlet and Port Townsend Bay Port Townsend is positioned at 48 6 59 N 122 46 31 W (48.116514, -122.775254). It is situated at the extreme northeastern end of the Olympic Peninsula, on the north end of a large, semi-protected bay.
Port Townsend is contiguous to the Admiralty Inlet and a trio of state parks assembled on retired artillery installations (Fort Worden, Fort Casey, and Fort Flagler).
According to the United States Enumeration Bureau, the town/city has a total region of 9.46 square miles (24.50 km2), of which 6.98 square miles (18.08 km2) is territory and 2.48 square miles (6.42 km2) is water. In addition to road links to the south and west, Port Townsend is accessible via ferry from the Washington State Ferry system.
Ferries go from the Port Townsend ferry terminal to Coupeville, Washington, on Whidbey Island. Port Townsend has a moderate Mediterranean climate with damp, chilly (though not severe) winters and warm, dry summers.
Climate data for Port Townsend, Washington The biggest private employer is the Port Townsend Paper Mill. The biggest employer overall (private and public) is Jefferson Healthcare, which operates Jefferson Healthcare Hospital. Major industries include maritime trades, manufacturing, tourism, and timber. Public education in the town/city is administered by Port Townsend School District, which contains Grant Street Elementary School, Blue Heron Middle School and Port Townsend High School.
Private schools in the town/city include Jefferson Community School, Olympic Range Carden Academy, and Swan School. The ethnic makeup of the town/city was 92.4% White, 0.5% African American, 1.1% Native American, 1.7% Asian, 0.3% Pacific Islander, 0.8% from other competitions, and 3.1% from two or more competitions.
There were 4,544 homeholds of which 19.2% had kids under the age of 18 residing with them, 38.9% were married couples residing together, 9.4% had a female homeholder with no husband present, 2.8% had a male homeholder with no wife present, and 48.9% were non-families.
The median age in the town/city was 53 years.
16.1% of inhabitants were under the age of 18; 5.3% were between the ages of 18 and 24; 17.4% were from 25 to 44; 36.7% were from 45 to 64; and 24.5% were 65 years of age or older.
According to the 2000 census, there were 8,334 citizens , 3,917 homeholds and 2,201 families living in the city.
The ethnic makeup of the town/city was 93.27% White, 0.58% African American, 1.25% Native American, 1.27% Asian, 0.23% Pacific Islander, 0.89% from other competitions, and 2.52% from two or more competitions.
About 8.9% of families and 14.0% of the populace were below the poverty line, including 19.0% of those under age 18 and 10.2% of those age 65 or over.
Peninsula Daily News Port Townsend/Jefferson County Edition Port Townsend & Jefferson County Leader Radio station KPTZ Radio Port Townsend, 91.9 - FM Jerry Osborne, co-writer of "(Port Townsend Is The) City of Dreams," and since 1986, writer of the nationally syndicated "Mr.
Wood, a federal judge on senior status for the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
Port Townsend is twinned with Ichikawa, Hyogo, Japan.
According to the Washington State Lieutenant Governor's website, Port Townsend also has a sister town/city relationship with Jalapa, Nicaragua, though the city's website does not reflect this.
"Port Townsend".
Notes from Jefferson County Historical Society "Wooden Boat Festival - Port Townsend, WA".
Port Townsend Bay Kinectic Skulpture Race, retrieved 2012-12-29 Port Townsend Art Galleries United States Enumeration Bureau.
"PORT TOWNSEND, WASHINGTON (456678): Period of Record Monthly Climate Summary".
"Port Townsend, Washington Normals Monthly Station Data".
Schools positioned in Port Townsend, WA, Ludlow Bay Realty, retrieved 2013-11-20 "Annual Estimates of the Resident Population for Incorporated Places: April 1, 2010 to July 1, 2015".
United States Enumeration Bureau.
"Local Sports, Shopping, Dining, Lodging, Medical, Jobs, Homes, Cars, Classifieds, Obituaries, Services for Olympic Peninsula, Port Angeles, Port Townsend, Sequim, Forks, Jefferson County, Clallam County, Washington".
"Port Townsend & Jefferson County Leader - Port Townsend, Jefferson County & Olympic Peninsula's news website - Port Townsend, WA".
"Author Lectures on "The Boys in the Boat" in Port Townsend on Friday".
Calls Port Townsend home".
Music' recalls hanging with Elvis", Port Townsend Leader "Port Townsend graduate writes about First Amendment".
Frontier Boosters: Port Townsend and the Culture of Development in the American West.
Wikivoyage has a travel guide for Port Townsend.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to Port Townsend, Washington.
Wikisource has the text of the 1911 Encyclop dia Britannica article Port Townsend.
Geographic data related to Port Townsend, Washington at Open - Street - Map City of Port Townsend Official Website Port Townsend, Washington at DMOZ Jefferson County Historical Society Research Center Municipalities and communities of Jefferson County, Washington, United States National Register of Historic Places in Washington state
Categories:
Port Townsend, Washington - Cities in Washington (state)County seats in Washington (state)Populated places on Puget Sound - Cities in Jefferson County, Washington
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