The daily Astorian., May 23, 2018, Page 20, Image 20

OYSTERVILLE
THE PENINSULA’S LOVELY HISTORIC DISTRICT
he fictional Shangri-La
is an idyllic mountain
valley where life is
frozen in time and
protected from the
rough
changes
occurring elsewhere in
the world. Real-life
Oysterville may not be
so lucky as to completely escape the ravages of
time and politics, but strolling around it will
restore your faith that a kind of immortal grace is
possible.
The 80-acre Oysterville National Historic
District and the areas immediately adjacent to it
are the heart of Oysterville. With Willapa Bay as
its backdrop, the historic district feels like a movie
back lot version of a 19th century coastal
community. In fact, some structures actually are
from the 19th century. Eight houses, a church, the
Oysterville cannery and a one-room schoolhouse
are on the National Register of Historic Places.
Though Oysterville is a ghost town, it has life.
Oysterville’s post office is the oldest continuously
operating post office in Washington state. The
Oysterville Store sells groceries, souvenirs and
gifts. Oysterville Sea Farms sells seafood from
its farms.
The Oysterville Church is open every day of
the year. The Oysterville cannery and all eight of
the houses listed on the National Register of
Historic Places create almost constant activity as
they are maintained and repaired by their private
owners. Similar efforts are made by nonprofit
organizations to maintain and repair the church
and one-room schoolhouse.
The Oysterville Church Summer Vespers are
presented at 3 p.m. every Sunday from Father’s
Day through Labor Day. The services are open
to everyone. The Water Music Festival’s most
T
popular concerts are the Oysterville church
concerts, held in late October.
Old for a West Coast town, Oysterville is
brand new in geographic terms. Oysterville could
be the only place in the United States that has
always had human occupants. Native American
people probably settled Oysterville as soon as it
was created. Chinook peoples came to the area
that is Oysterville at seasonal intervals for untold
centuries to harvest its bountiful oyster beds.
Oysterville was first settled in 1841 by John
Douglas, who married a local Chinook woman.
It was the California Gold Rush of 1849 that
drew significant numbers of settlers of European
descent to Oysterville. Gold miners loved to
spend their gold on Willapa Bay oysters. Settlers
and Chinook Peoples gladly filled schooners
with oysters to be shipped to San Francisco. By
1854, a community of several hundred, called
Oyster Beach, existed here. On April 12, 1854,
I.A. Clark filed a 161-acre land claim that
encompassed all of what is now the Oysterville
National Historic District. It was on Aug. 5,
1854, that community leaders decided that
Oysterville was a better name than Oyster Beach
or Shell Beach to represent their town, which
grew to a population was about 800.
Like all extraction businesses, the native
oyster business came to an end. Hotels, saloons
and a college all disappeared as people left.
Eventually, even the county seat was removed
to South Bend on the east side of the bay.
Oysterville exists primarily as a state of
mind. A walk through Oysterville can reveal the
supremacy of nature; evoking connections to
generations goneby, while subtly forecasting the
folly of generations present and future. Visitors
often find themselves seeking sanctuary in the
peace and insight they discovered here, long
after they have left Oysterville.
Oysterville's historic church hosts Christmas carolers and a popular series of summer concerts and vespers
services. It also is one of the Peninsula’s many famous wedding venues. — SYDNEY STEVENS PHOTO
WITH WILLAPA BAY AS ITS BACKDROP,
THE OYSTERVILLE HISTORIC DISTRICT
FEELS LIKE A MOVIE BACK LOT VERSION
OF A 19TH CENTURY COASTAL COMMUNITY
SEASONAL SEAFOODS
THE PICTURE ATTIC
711 PACIFIC NORTH - LONG BEACH, WA - 360-642-4770
NOW SHOWING THE FINE ART OF THE NORTHWEST ARTIST GUILD
CUSTOM PICTURE FRAMING SINCE 1981
ARTIST SUPPLIES
HOURS : 10 - 5 Tues - Fri and 10 - 4 Sat
Follow us on Facebook for current classes and events
OPEN MON-FRI 8:30 - 4
Located at 306 Dike Road on the Palix River in Bay Center
• Fresh Willapa Bay Oysters
• Farm-raised Steamer Clams
• Local Crab & Fish in Season
• Free Samples
• Custom Orders Welcomed
• Pickled Salmon
360-875-5519
Toll-free 888-905-9079
seafood@willapabay.org
20 • DISCOVERY COAST 2018-19 • ChinookObserver.com
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