Museums & Historic Sites

Quilcene Historical Museum Re-opens for the Season
Saturday, April 21, 2012, 1PM
Check out the set up for this year, and learn a lot about Quilcene!  Located at the Corner of Center Valley Road and Columbia Street in Quilcene.

The Museum will be open Friday-Monday from 1-5PM, until September.

" Now you can turn your visit to the local museum or public historical site into a mini paranormal investigation while learning about its history. Remember, ghost never sleep! Research indicates that spirits are usually attached to a place where they lived or died, like their home. They also seem to attach themselves to something they were very close to like their tools, a musical instrument or a child’s toy such as a doll or rocking horse. So don’t waste your time stumbling around a cemetery in the middle of the night ghost hunting.

The Research Center serves as both the primary research facility and the repository for the Society's archival collections. Staff and volunteers are on hand to assist researchers.

PHOTOGRAPH COLLECTION HOLDINGS

The Jefferson County Historical Society photo collection includes more than 20,000 original images which may be viewed at the JCHS Research Center. Many have been indexed in our searchable online data base.

We Came With Dreams
 

This 1904 Home Museum, overlooking the Parade Grounds at Fort Worden, and Port Townsend Bay, reflects the dignity and responsibilities of the Coast Artillery Commanders here.  Charged with the protection of the United States waters from Imperial Naval powers at the turn if the 1900's Fort Worden was Headquarters for three Coast Artillery forts that formed what was called the "Triangle of Fire" in the day.  The Museum features furnishings and historic photographs of this bygone era.  We are open 11:00 A. M. to 5:00 P. M.

Anyone traveling in Jefferson County, that has family ties in this area, or, an historical interest, should take advantage of the Jefferson County Historical Society Research Center just south of  the junction of Highway 19 and Highway 20.  This Research Center, operated in partnership with the Jefferson County Genealogical Society, is the spot to research your family's personal history in this area.  We have over 500,000 documents, photographs and archival materials that relate to the colorful past in Jeffeson County.  For more information call 1-360-379-6673, or, go to

 As you and your family stroll the streets of Port Townsend the Jefferson County Historical Society has a number of ways to enjoy the historic tapestry of Port Townsend.  Our central Museum is in the landmark 1892 City Hall building, downtown at 540 Water Street.  From this building the movers, doers, and speculators of early Port Townsend talked and planed their dreams.  Criminals were tossed in the jail downstairs, sometimes in leg-irons, and upstairs the Court and the rest of the powerful watched over the city's affairs.  Today the building still does the work of

Clallam Bay Spit and Community Beach County Park is a 33 acre park jointley managed with Washington State Parks.  The Park is located where the nutrient-rich water of the Clallam River empties into the Strait of Juan de Fuca, providing a constant food source for shore and marine birds.  Eagles and osprey can be seen feeding on the beach; viewing marine mammals is an added bonus.  The dynamic hydrology interaction taking place between the Clallam River and the tides provide an opportunity to witness drastic changes to the landscape each time you visit.

The Moments in Time Nature Trail is an easy 0.5-mile trail that meanders through the woods and along the shoreline of Lake Crescent offering a variety of environments from breathtaking views of Lake Crescent and Pyramid Mountain to tiny fern and wildflower meadows to lush woods with towering evergreens and spectacular mosses and fungi. Appropriate for the entire family, it begins just off the parking area of the Storm King Ranger Station on Lake Crescent in the Olympic National Park.