Commanding Officer's Quarters

JEFFERSON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY
JCHS Mission: To actively discover, collect, preserve, and promote the heritage of Jefferson County in the State of Washington.

Commanding Officer's Quarters

A new Olympic National Park exhibit on the creation of the Olympic National Park features historic photographs by George Welch, antique fishing and camping gear and information on current proposals to expand the park. The exhibit also features artifacts and photographs from the JCHS collection.

The Commanding Officer's Quarters is located at Fort Worden State Park & Conference Center, 200 Battery Way, Port Townsend. The house is one of Fort Worden's finest buildings. It was completed in April 1904, and many different families resided there. Located at the head of Officers’ Row, the Commanding Officer’s Quarters overlooks Admiralty Inlet, with Mt. Baker and the Cascades in the background. Late Victorian and Edwardian furnishings provide a unique glimpse into the life of a senior U. S. Army officer and his family in the first decade of the 20th century.

Click HERE for a tour.

Open 12 noon to 5 p.m. daily, May through September.
Saturdays & Sundays (12 noon to 5 p.m.) October, November, March & April.
Also open on the Friday after Thanksgiving Day and the full week between Christmas and New Year's Day.
Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.

Admission is $4 for adults; free for historical society members. Special group tours can be arranged by calling 360-385-1003.

Directions to Fort Worden

Map of Fort Worden

Admission is $4.00 for adults and $1.00 for children 3-12. A passport is available for visitors to see the COQ museum, Rothschild House museum (seasonally) and the Jefferson County Historical Museum for a reduced rate. Visiting all three provides visitors with a wealth of information about Port Townsend, both historically and geographically.

Fort Worden State Park

Fort Worden is an early 20th century U. S. Army (Coast Artillery Corps) fort. The Fort, as headquarters for the Puget Sound Harbor Defenses, held a strategically important position in the triangle of defensive forts constructed to protect the entrance to Puget Sound and to safeguard the naval shipyard at Bremerton. Twelve-gun batteries stand as mute testimony to the Fort's original purpose.

When Fort Worden was commissioned in 1902, there were no permanent buildings to house the troops. The men were billeted in tents atop Artillery Hill until the first 23 buildings were constructed around the parade ground in 1904. Ultimately, 228 main buildings and subsidiary structures were constructed—including barracks, officers' quarters, administration buildings, kitchen and mess halls, a bakery, guard house, hospital, power house, signal station and wharf.

Most military buildings of this era are long gone, but Fort Worden's have been preserved. These surviving quarters are excellent examples of the attractive order, style and grace of the new century. The designs were created by the U. S. Army Quartermaster Department in order to make life more bearable for its soldiers in the often-isolated posts.

Autumn view of Officers' Row.

Fort Worden State Park is on the state and national Register of Historic Places and has been declared a National Historic Landmark.