Date | Milestone |
Since time immemorial | The Port Townsend area is part of the traditional homeland of the S’Klallam people. Their village at present-day Port Townsend was known as qatáy. City of Port Townsend |
1855 | The Treaty of Point No Point reshapes Indigenous land ownership across the northern Olympic Peninsula, although the S’Klallam people maintain enduring cultural and spiritual connections to the region. |
1879 | The first navigational light begins operating at Point Wilson, marking the entrance to Admiralty Inlet. |
1883 | Reverend John Barrow Alexander builds the residence now known as Alexander’s Castle, the oldest surviving building within Fort Worden. |
1885–1886 | The federal Endicott Board recommends modernizing America’s coastal defenses, eventually leading to construction of Fort Worden, Fort Casey and Fort Flagler. |
1897–1898 | The federal government acquires land at Point Wilson, and construction begins on Fort Worden’s concrete gun batteries, roads, docks and support facilities. |
1901 | Fort Worden’s first heavy coastal guns are installed and prepared for test firing. |
May 14, 1902 | Fort Worden is officially activated. It is named for Rear Admiral John L. Worden, commander of the USS Monitor during the Civil War. The first permanent Army detachment is assigned to the post. Washington State Parks |
1903 | An armored communications cable connects Fort Worden with Fort Casey and Fort Flagler. Together, the three forts form the harbor-defense system popularly called the “Triangle of Fire.” |
1904 | Fort Worden becomes headquarters of the Harbor Defenses of Puget Sound. Construction expands around the parade ground, including barracks, officers’ quarters and administrative buildings. |
1905 | The harbor-defense system is considered fully operational. Fort Worden’s original batteries include Randol, Quarles, Ash, Brannan, Powell and Vicars. |
1905–1910 | Six additional batteries—Benson, Tolles, Walker, Stoddard, Putnam and Kinzie—are added. At its height, Fort Worden mounts approximately 41 artillery pieces. |
1913 | The present concrete Point Wilson Lighthouse is completed, replacing the earlier wooden light tower. |
1917–1918 | During World War I, Fort Worden becomes a major training center. Most of its large guns are removed for possible use in Europe, although many are never replaced. |
1920s | The Army constructs an observation-balloon hangar and modernizes portions of the fort. Advances in aircraft and naval warfare increasingly make fixed coastal guns obsolete. |
1939–1945 | During World War II, Fort Worden again serves as headquarters for Puget Sound’s harbor defenses. Army and Navy personnel operate radar, vessel-identification and underwater-detection systems. |
1940s | Fort Worden’s remaining large coastal guns are removed or scrapped. The fort shifts increasingly toward training, communications and administrative duties. |
1950–1953 | Amphibious-engineer and Army Reserve units train at Fort Worden during the Korean War era. |
June 30, 1953 | The Harbor Defense Command is deactivated and Fort Worden closes as an active Army post, ending 51 years of military service. The fort never fired its guns against an enemy. |
1957 | Washington State purchases the former fort and opens the Fort Worden Juvenile Diagnostic and Treatment Center, providing education, counseling and vocational training. |
September 30, 1971 | The juvenile center closes, and responsibility for most of the property transfers to the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission. |
August 18, 1973 | Fort Worden State Park opens to the public, preserving the military landscape for recreation, education and cultural activities. |
1974 | The Fort Worden Historic District was added to the National Register of Historic Places. |
1976 | Fort Worden is designated a National Historic Landmark. The Puget Sound Coast Artillery Museum is established to preserve the history of the harbor defenses. |
1982 | Fort Worden gains national recognition as a principal filming location for An Officer and a Gentleman. |
1985 | Puget Sound Coast Artillery Museum moves to Bldg 201. |
2026 | Puget Sound Coast Artillery Museum closes its doors after 50 years. |
Present day | Fort Worden Historical State Park preserves hundreds of historic structures, concrete batteries, Officers’ Row, the parade ground, Point Wilson Lighthouse and more than two miles of shoreline. It remains a center for history, arts, education and outdoor recreation. Washington State Parks. |
