COAST ARTILLERY MUSEUM PREPS FOR FINAL SUMMER AT FORT WORDEN
May 20, 2026

The Puget Sound Coast Artillery Museum’s 50th year at Fort Worden State Park is its last; the independent, non-profit museum is closing Sept. 7, 2026.

The museum in Fort Worden’s Building 201 is open from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday through this Labor Day weekend. Admission is by donation.

Fort Worden was an active U.S. Army post from 1902 to 1953, serving most of that time as headquarters for the Harbor Defense of Puget Sound. Coast Artillery Museum (CAM) roots date to 1976, when veterans of the U.S. Army Coast Artillery Corps’ 248th regiment turned their 18^th annual reunion into a mission to “preserve and interpret” why Fort Worden, in particular, existed and operated. That year, a one-room museum was opened in Building 200. The much more expansive museum in Building 201 opened in 1985.

Earlier this year, CAM’s board of directors made the decision to close. Building 201 is the last of the Fort Worden barracks that has not been significantly updated since the state’s Diagnostic and Treatment Center for juveniles operated from 1958-1970. The building is old but the museum’s larger issue has been the “aging out” of members and volunteers.

Museum visitation has always been strong. The CAM hosted an average of 12,000 visitors a year before the pandemic. The museum was closed for most of 2020, and reopened in 2021 with updated displays. Visitation reached 9,500 in 2025, including instructional tours for school children.

CAM’s legacy at Fort Worden is more than a museum. From 2004-2016, in particular, CAM volunteers undertook projects that enhanced historic interpretation and public use. For example, volunteers cleaned, painted and performed repairs on gun and mortar batteries, including the Harbor Entrance Command Post which had never previously been open to the public.

With permission from Washington State Parks, small trees and brush were removed to create Artillery Hill “viewsheds” to allow historic interpretation of the gun batteries, many of which had their water view obscured by trees and foliage not maintained since 1944. CAM organized numerous Artillery Hill work parties that involved scouts, school groups and athletic teams, active-duty military and community volunteers. Enhancements from stairways to signage to viewsheds are long-term benefits. Now, it’s up to other volunteer organizations to carry that public service forward, as CAM members prepare for the end of an era.