Port Gamble Blockhouse

 (1853-1858) - A settler blockhouse first established in 1853 at the Puget Mill Company in present day Port Gamble, Kitsap County, Washington. Abandoned as a fortification about 1858.

History of Port Gamble Blockhouse
A two-story octagonal log blockhouse built by mill employees under the direction of Captain Joshua Keller near the sawmill at present day Port Gamble (then the community of Teekalet). Used by mill workers as a refuge during the Battle of Port Gamble (20-21 Nov 1856).

The conflict started when a force of 300 hostile Indians from the northern Haida tribe approached the community in several large war canoes. The mill workers and their families fled to the blockhouse with their guns and ammunition. The next day the US Steamship Massachusetts arrived and after trying to negotiate with the hostile Indians sent a landing party ashore. Fighting began and in the end some 26 or 27 Indians and one sailor were killed. Among the dead Indians was their chief.

The same group of Indians returned the next August and landed at Whidbey Island where they scalped and beheaded Issac Whidbey in retaliation for the loss of their chief. The Indians withdrew back north and were never caught.

Probably abandoned as a fortification about 1858 and reportedly used after that as a blacksmith shop.

Current Status
Small general marker only in Port Gamble, Kitsap County, Washington. Map point is the marker location.

See Also:
 * Washington Blockhouses

Sources:

Links:
 * Waymarking - Port Gamble Historical
 * National Register of Historic Places - Port Gamble
 * Legends of America - Battle of Port Gamble