History & Culture

Olympic Forest Reserve was established in 1897 and transferred to the Forest Service as Olympic National Forest in 1907.  Mt. Olympus National Monument, established in 1909, was designated as Olympic National Park in 1938 by Franklin D. Roosevelt. Today many of the buildings and guard stations built by the Forest are now managed by the Park. View Olympic National Park History and Culture Information.

Japanese families have been a rich part of Olympic Peninsula cultural history. Yet, World War II caused a big impact to local Japanese.  Executive order #9066 meant the disruption of lives for over 7,000 Puget Sound people of Japanese ancestry.  

Read a synopsis of the experiences of one family in Jefferson County.  

There are very few log structures from the early Forest Service era that survive in the Pacific Northwest. Interrorem Cabin is the oldest administrative facility in the Olympic National Forest, and one of the earliest remaining Forest Service structures in Oregon and Washington. The cabin has been in use for over 100 years!

The historic Lake Quinault Lodge was built in 1926, in just 53 days! Since 1926, the present structure has provided the area with what is undoubtedly its most central and important hostelry related to recreational pursuits. It’s a fun fact to note that President Franklin D. Roosevelt dined at the lodge on October 1, 1937 while he was touring the peninsula.