A lot can change in five years even in so comparatively stable and contained a space as downtown Port Townsend.

Hence, the signs directing locals and visitors alike to various shops, restaurants and galleries, if you haven’t noticed, aren’t exactly current.

The merchant information sign program had languished inactive for about five years, in fact, when city officials, Olympic Peninsula Steam, and the Jefferson County Historical Society got together to discuss how it might be put to better use.

Their plan, however, is also not concerned with keeping current — but that’s half the point.

“With the crossover between the historical district and [Lodging Tax Advisory Council], repurposing those signs for history seemed a best choice,” Nathan Barnett, Director of Olympic Peninsula Steam, wrote in a recent presentation about the matter.

The revised program will celebrate moments and events of “Hidden Histories” across a series of signs, telling stories of bygone Port Townsend.

Each sign addresses an element of the community’s past and includes a website link via QR code for those looking to learn more.

“We joined forces with the historical society to see if they’d be interested in collaborating,” Barnett wrote. “Their archives contain many amazing resources we want to share. Not just images, but also recordings of oral history, old newspaper clippings, and so many other resources to share.”

The project team includes the Jefferson County Historical Society, Olympic Peninsula Steam, and Main Street members, Barnett wrote, working to create signs to call out diverse aspects of the city’s history. 

With the advent of COVID-19, he wrote, “planning kind of hit the skids.”

“But we’ve also realized that self-guided, historical walking tours are a perfect pastime for visitors or schoolchildren doing some distanced tourism or learning,” he added.

Jefferson County Historical Society executive director Shelly Leavens said the events selected for inclusion will include 19th century history and stories of PT’s colorful past, but will also include more recent events and efforts that have allowed the preservation of so much of the flavor of the city’s historical districts.

“Part of [the arrangement] is associated with where the sign is located ... it’s a little bit about geography and it’s a little bit about what what the group is now calling ‘Hidden Histories,’ stories of people and places in downtown Port Townsend that we no longer see but that the stories still exist,” she said.

Several of the newsworthy events and places of yesteryear that will grace signs include the Union Wharf, “Crimping,” “Maritime History,” how early Port Townsend was affected by structure fires, the “Chinese district,” and the railroad industry, among others.

The exact number of signs to be updated has not yet been determined, according to Port Townsend City Manager John Mauro.

“There are currently
12 merchant information signs that have plaques on them and two without plaques,” he said.

Mauro said he’d heard no objections to the proposal as yet and believes it to be an improvement over the current usage of the signs.

“The merchant information program was put in place so that businesses that could not place a sign on the sidewalk could have a plaque on the sign,” he explained. “This program did not stay active and the thought of a history walking tour to share Port Townsend’s rich history with the community and visitors emerged as a theme for replacing the older outdated signs. 

“This was started in motion before I joined the city, but I know that there’s a strong connection here to our history and this program aims to leverage that connection with some degree of benefit to visitors, community and the businesses here now and into the future,” he noted.

The locations of the signs are also nothing new.

“They’re in their locations according to the original project; we’re doing our best to just repurpose the locations to tell stories about whatever is in that surrounding area,” Leavens said.

“What’s there now is something called ‘Exploring Downtown’ and half of it is a map and half of it are these plaques that would feature different businesses within that section of town,” she said.

“The feeling was by both Main Street and I think the city, that these signs just weren’t working. They weren’t being used. They just were not functioning the way they envisioned, and so they could be repurposed to actually interpret some of the history of Port Townsend.”

The project’s total budget, supplied by the city as part of the regular budget, is $3,200, according to a recent city council agenda bill.

The change in the program was slated to be approved at the Sept. 21 meeting, which was ultimately canceled.

Mauro said the council is now expected to review the proposal at either the
Sept. 28 or Oct. 4 meeting, as the agenda allows.

Leavens said she hopes the signs serve as an introduction to some lesser-known facets of local history and encourage people to seek out more.

“These signs are just a taste of all of the amazing stories that are in our amazing city,” she said. “We’re sharing just a little bit of what we can and hope that people will get curious about going deeper.”