Episode Details

Browns Point is on the east side of the entrance to Commencement Bay, which leads from Puget Sound to the Port of Tacoma. The first navigational aid at Browns Point was a simple post light established in 1887 – two years before Washington became a state. A new square wooden lighthouse began service in 1903, and a fog bell was mounted on the side of the tower. In 1933, the current 38-foot concrete lighthouse tower was built. It’s unusual Art Deco style makes it unique among Washington’s lighthouses.

A year after its automation in 1963, Browns Point became a public park. In more recent years, the Points Northeast Historical Society has restored the keeper’s house and has opened it for overnight stays. The Society carried out a major restoration of the lighthouse in 2021. Jim Harnish is a board member and past president of the Points Northeast Historical Society. A 2014 newsletter called him “the glue that holds us all together.” U.S. Lighthouse Society Executive Director Jeff Gales takes part in this interview along with host Jeremy D’Entremont.

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