The Olympic Peninsula’s largest gathering of old military vehicles and equipment is set for this Labor Day weekend at Fort Worden State Park in Port Townsend.
The Puget Sound Coast Artillery …
This item is available in full to subscribers.
We have recently launched a new and improved website. To continue reading, you will need to either log into your subscriber account, or purchase a new subscription.
If you had an active account on our previous website, then you have an account here. Simply reset your password to regain access to your account.
If you did not have an account on our previous website, but are a current print subscriber, click here to set up your website account.
Otherwise, click here to view your options for subscribing.
* Having trouble? Call our circulation department at 360-385-2900, or email our support.
Please log in to continue |
|
For the sixth consecutive year, a collection of military vehicles, tents and other equipment is being set up atop Artillery Hill at Fort Worden State Park for Labor Day weekend. The show is sponsored by the Puget Sound Coast Artillery Museum with the support of Washington State Parks. File photo by Patrick J. Sullivan
New this year, the Puget Sound Coast Artillery Museum has acquired a 1942 Chevrolet fire truck of the type that would have been used at Fort Worden (it would have been painted green). The fire truck is part of a special display this Labor Day weekend outside the all-volunteer museum, located in Building 201 next to the park office. Photo by Patrick J. Sullivan
The Puget Sound Coast Artillery Museum has acquired a 1942 Chevrolet fire truck of the type that would have been used at Fort Worden (it would have been painted green). The fire truck is part of a special display this Labor Day weekend outside the all-volunteer museum, located in Building 201 next to the park office. File photo by Patrick J. Sullivan
The Olympic Peninsula’s largest gathering of old military vehicles and equipment is set for this Labor Day weekend at Fort Worden State Park in Port Townsend.
The Puget Sound Coast Artillery Museum hosts an estimated 20 to 30 vehicles from Friday to Monday, Aug. 31-Sept. 2. The vehicles, along with displays of vintage military weapons, are coming from throughout the Puget Sound region and from British Columbia.
The show is free. Also, no Discover Pass is required for vehicle operators who park in the designated area. (Washington State Parks does appreciate the Discover Pass support.)
Park near the Artillery Hill main gate and catch a ride up the hill aboard a truck or Jeep.
The display is assembled on top of Artillery Hill in the original Coast Artillery bivouac area. The camp is set up on Friday and taken down by Monday afternoon. Visitors are welcome from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
Some collectors are fortunate enough to have World War II– or Korean War–era vehicles, but the majority of the are from the 1960s through the 1990s, simply because more of these are available.
Most of the vehicle owners are veterans themselves and like to wear their uniforms in which they served; they gladly talk about how these vehicles had been used on active duty.
New this year, the Puget Sound Coast Artillery Museum has acquired a 1942 Chevrolet fire truck of the type that would have been used at Fort Worden, Fort Flagler or Fort Casey. The fire truck is part of a display outside the museum, located in Building 201 next to the park office.
Established in 1976, the Puget Sound Coast Artillery Museum is open 10 a.m.-5 p.m. this Saturday, and during its regular hours, 11 a.m.-4 p.m., daily through Labor Day. (After Labor Day, hours are noon-4 p.m.) Admission is required, with proceeds benefiting the nonprofit museum’s mission to tell the story of the harbor defenses of Puget Sound and related Fort Worden topics.
Also on Artillery Hill, the Harbor Entrance Command Post and Mortar Battery Plotting Room are open from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., Saturday and Sunday. Volunteers, in cooperation with Washington State Parks, have refurbished those facilities, which were used when Fort Worden (1902-1953) was the U.S. Army’s headquarters for the harbor defense of Puget Sound.
A guided walking tour of Artillery Hill starts at 1 p.m. on Saturday and Sunday, departing from Memory’s Vault.
