The story
Port Townsend Wooden Boat Festival in Port Townsend
Each September, Port Townsend, Washington's Point Hudson marina fills with hundreds of wooden vessels, from tiny rowboats to tall ships, for the Wooden Boat Festival, launched in 1977 as the first American gathering of its kind. Hosted by the Northwest Maritime Center, the three-day event pairs boat displays with hands-on skill demonstrations, sailing excursions, and a working shipyard atmosphere celebrating traditional wooden boatbuilding craft.
Port Townsend built its Victorian-era prosperity on shipping and shipbuilding, then spent much of the twentieth century as a quiet mill town largely bypassed by modern boatyards.