H A N SV I LL E Located at the northernmost tip of the Kitsap Peninsula is the town of Hansville, Washington. Just ten miles from Kingston, Hansville is home to the Point No Point Lighthouse, a Nature Conservancy Reserve, three county parks and an extensive forest and beach trail system. Originally, the area was referred to as Point No Point. In 1841 Commander Charles Wilkes of the US Exploring Expedition came upon a sandy spit, thinking it a point of land. Upon closer inspection, the spit was much smaller than it looked and there was no “point” to speak of. He named it Point No Point. The S’Klallam Tribe called the spit of land Hahdskus, translating to “Long Nose”. As Seattle and Tacoma grew and marine traffic increased, so did the occurrence of marine calamities, making it necessary to construct light stations along Admiralty Inlet and Puget Sound. In 1879 construction was begun on the Point No Point Lighthouse and on January 1, 1880 it officially went into service. However, the lens for the light hadn’t yet arrived so the first light keeper, Mr. J.S. Maggs, hung a kerosene lantern in the tower and lit the way for ships until the lens arrived. About the same time, the area started to see the arrival of settlers, mostly Norwegian, Swedish, and Finnish immigrants. Upon their arrival they began fishing, farming and logging. Two such settlers were Norwegians Hans Zachariasen and Anton Husby. Hans
and Anton were fishermen and would catch herring and sell it as bait to the commercial fishermen heading out to the fishing grounds in the Strait and beyond. They also ran a ferry service with their boats, from the steamers off shore to the beach, there being no dock built yet. As legend has it, Anton was a temperate man who would refuse to ferry anyone who had been imbibing. Upon learning that, one Scandinavian man remarked to his friend “Vell, how vill dey get ashore if Anton von’t ferry dem? “ “Oh don’t vorry”, said the friend, “If Anton von’t, Hans vill.” And thus the town is called Hansville. In the late 1920s and early1930s people began to buy land on the waterfront and build summer cabins and fi shing resorts. Point No Point was a premier salmon fishing destination with as many as seven resorts at one time lining the beach. Vestiges of long docks and rails to the water still can be seen at low tide. Today, Hansville’s population of more than 2,000 consists of descendants of those early farmers, fishermen, loggers and resort owners, in addition to a diverse population of community-minded residents committed to keeping Hansville a beautiful place to live, work and play. Although the small town only consists of a general store, post office, church, and a few small businesses, there are several guest
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houses in the area, as well as many public parks with water access. Point No Point County Park is home to a historic lighthouse, offering tours April through September, as well as the US Lighthouse Society. The park contains a large wildlife refuge with many opportunities to picnic, hike, fish, or watch birds, sea animals & busy shipping lanes. Point No Point Resort, a block west of the County Park, is owned by the Dept. of Fish & Wildlife, and available for overnight camping. Reservations are necessary through the caretaker. Located in town, next to the general store is Norwegian Point Park, named for those who settled the area. A historic resort from the 30’s, plans are underway to place some of the quaint old buildings on the National Historic Registry. A couple of miles through town on Twin Spits Road, one finds a real gem, the Foulweather Bluff Nature Conservancy. From the trail head on the south side of the road, it’s an easy, short walk through the woods to a beautiful sandy cove bordered by a marsh area. Here, one may spot sea anemones, sand dollars, crabs, porpoise, river otter, osprey, heron and bald eagles. Sorry, no dogs allowed on this walk. A little south of town, Buck Lake Road winds west up to Buck Lake County Park, a popular swimming and picnicking spot. Look for the new Native Plants Garden on the walk from
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