Within the historic downtown buildings and below the steep-shingled roofs of Uptown’s Victorian homes lies a deep history and culture surrounding Port Townsend.

Beyond just a tourist draw, the architecture surrounding Port Townsend reminds people of the deep and enthralling stories of the city’s first settlers in the 1850s, subsequent late 19th-century heyday, and eventual decay in the early 1900s.

Looking to revive the Victorian seaport’s murky history in the form of an education-focused festival, the Port Townsend Heritage Association is organizing and bringing back the Port Townsend Victorian Heritage Festival for many excited participants.

MEET THE PLANNERS

President Tracy Wirta, vice president Kathy Knoblock, and secretary Scott Rovanpera of the Port Townsend Heritage Association have been crucial cogs in the machine that is putting on a festival.

The three of them, along with multiple volunteers, have been hard at work planning for the event, along with spreading the word through their well-known public strolls around Port Townsend where they saunter around town decked out in Victorian and Edwardian attire.

Although the first Victorian Heritage Festival was started back in 1996, this year’s event will be the first-ever festival put on by the heritage association and the first one since pre-pandemic times. 

“We’re new to the festival; we’re a new organization that’s taken it over in the interim of COVID,” Knoblock said.

“Not only are we excited to have it back as members of the community, but we’re also excited because it’s been on us to make it happen.”

The organization had plans to put the festival on back in 2021, but the pandemic hampered any possibilities of that becoming a reality.

“The pandemic shut down the festival, but it didn’t shut down our overarching plans to celebrate the heritage of Port Townsend,” Rovanpera said. “It’s more than just a festival; it’s a year-round effort.”

Putting the three-day event together for 2022 has been hard work for the heritage association with many matters, from permitting to dealing with COVID-related challenges, but the crew remains confident in the festival’s eventual success and longstanding value.

“What really makes my heart melt is all of the support that we’re getting,” Wirta said. “Everyone we talk to is very supportive and excited. We have a whole new audience that is really excited to learn more about what we’re doing and Port Townsend’s history and heritage.”

EVENTS APLENTY

From Friday, April 29 through Sunday, May 1, attendees, volunteers, and organizers alike will don the Victorian- and Edwardian-era garments synonymous with the time period and partake in a boatload of events and other festivities focalized on Port Townsend’s historic past.

So far, around 200 people have purchased tickets and plan to go to the event, according to the heritage association.

Attendees will be able to enjoy the festival at their own pace, with 30-plus activities to partake in. From poker at the Palace Hotel to a community Contra dance at the American Legion Hall, numerous walking tours around the city’s historic venues, to a Victorian wine tasting at Fairwinds Winery, there is plenty for people of all ages to appreciate.

Some highlight events include a fashion show, multiple presentations on topics from re-masting the schooner Martha to exploring the Victorian Era’s magic lantern, house tours of Victorian homes around town, like the James W. Griffiths House and the Starrett House, and so much more.

Another enticing event for attendees is “Where’s Israel Katz?” a scavenger hunt-style program for folks to learn more about the enigmatic disappearance of Israel Katz, a local businessman in the early 1900s. 

Many events will be held at the festival’s headquarters in the Cotton Building on Water Street.

EDUCATION IS KEY

The key aspect of the Victorian heritage Festival for Rovanpera, Wirta, Knoblock, and other coordinators is educating visitors on Port Townsend’s extensive history and helping to preserve the many landmarks that make this town so interesting.

Considering Port Townsend is one of only three Victorian seaports in the entirety of the United States — including Galveston, Texas and Cape May, New Jersey — there’s plenty to learn about.

“We need to do a better job of promoting our town and this unique architectural history that we have here that is nowhere else,” Wirta said.

Many of the presentations during the festival will focus on the city’s Victorian past and the plethora of homes, facilities, items, and landmarks built in the late 1800s. Notable figures, maritime culture, and key events that led to today’s Port Townsend are just a few other topics that will be discussed during the festival.

To learn more about the festival and its multitude of activities, visit porttownsendvictorianfestival.org.

“After the festival, if anybody can come from out of town, or even in-town, and they walk away with that sentiment of ‘There’s no place like Port Townsend’ — we will have been successful,” Knoblock said.