Point No Point is a sand spit on the northern end of the Kitsap Peninsula, between Norwegian Point to the northwest and Pilot Point to the southeast, about 8 miles (13 km) north of Kingston and 1.3 miles (2.1 km) southeast of Hansville, Washington. The point is near the southern end of Admiralty Inlet that connects the Salish Sea with Puget Sound. In 1841, Lieutenant Charles Wilkes of the US Exploring Expedition approached from the north, expecting a substantial point. Upon discovering it was much smaller, he named it Point No Point. The Coast Salish people had a more descriptive name, ‘Hahd-skus’, meaning “long nose.” Point No Point is formed by the convergence of two sediment drift cells. Sand is constantly moving along the Puget Sound coastline. Waves breaking at an angle create a littoral current parallel to the coast, suspending sand and moving it along the shore. As waves approach at an angle, the swash moves sand onto the shoreface, while the backwash pulls it down perpendicularly, creating a zigzag movement. This zigzag motion results in a net current direction parallel to the shoreline. Littoral drift refers to the movement of sand grains in the direction of the longshore current, transporting sand from one coastal location to the next until it is eventually lost from the littoral system. A drift cell contains a complete cycle of sedimentation, including sources, transport paths, and sinks. Cell boundaries often correspond to headlands or artificial structures such as jetties and can be geographically delineated to provide a framework for analyzing coastal erosion and accretion. Point No Point is a cuspate spit formed at the convergence of drift cells. One cell begins at Foulweather Bluff, about 4 miles (6 km) to the northeast, and ends at Point No Point. Sediment transport in this cell is driven by northerly prevailing winds and fetch over Admiralty Inlet. The other drift cell originates at 100-foot (30 m) high bluffs of glacial drift about 7 miles (11 km) to the south and also ends at Point No Point. In this cell, net sand transport is dominated by southerly prevailing winds and fetch over Puget Sound.

The Suquamish people are a Lushootseed-speaking tribe of the southern Coast Salish. They traditionally lived on the western shores of Puget Sound, from the northern end of the present-day Kitsap Peninsula to Gig Harbor in the south. The Suquamish established permanent villages along the shore near rivers and streams, with rectangular houses facing the water. These villages consisted of large wooden longhouses, often shared by multiple families. The houses were constructed from cedar planks and logs, featuring shed or gabled roofs. Sizes varied, with some structures ranging from 200 to 600 feet (60 to 180 m) long, divided into smaller family rooms that opened directly outside. Periodically, the Suquamish left their winter residences in family canoes to travel to seasonal camps for fishing, hunting, and foraging. Their first contact with Europeans occurred in 1792, when Captain George Vancouver explored Puget Sound and met tribe members. More regular contact ensued with the establishment of British Hudson’s Bay Company trading posts at Fort Nisqually and Fort Victoria in the early 19th century. The Washington Territory was established in 1853. The U.S. government began signing treaties with area tribal leaders to extinguish aboriginal claims and make land available for Euro-American settlement. In 1855, Isaac Stevens, governor of the newly organized Washington Territory, and the Suquamish signed the Point Elliott Treaty. Three days later, Stevens summoned a treaty council to Point No Point, attended by 1,200 Natives from the Chimakum, Klallam, and Skokomish tribes. Point No Point was a midpoint between the tribal centers. The Point No Point Treaty was signed the next day between the United States and tribal delegates. Under these treaties, the tribes ceded their land in exchange for small reservations and a $60,000 payment from the federal government, ending the Indian wars. The treaty site is now the location of the Point No Point Light Station.

Point No Point has long been considered the entrance to Puget Sound, with a lighted beacon serving as a navigational aid since 1879. Several maritime accidents have occurred near the light. In 1868, the bark Iconium ran aground in fog. In 1875, the bark Windward was wrecked on Whidbey Island while trying to avoid the shoal. In 1878, the bark Osmyn struck the Aureola in thick fog, resulting in the loss of three crew members. In 1914, two coastal passenger liners collided in dense fog, leading to the loss of 16 passengers and crew. In 1872, the US Lighthouse Board, anticipating increased vessel traffic when the Northern Pacific Railroad reached Tacoma, recommended a light beacon and fog signal at Foulweather Bluff to enhance maritime safety. However, Point No Point was eventually chosen as the preferred location. The landowners were initially reluctant to sell. Construction of the lighthouse began in April 1879; before it was completed, a temporary kerosene lantern, protected by canvas, served as the first light. The light station was completed in February 1880, housing a 5th-order Fresnel lens made by Sautter, Lemonnier & Cie. The original masonry structure was 27 feet (8.2 m) high. The current 30-foot (9.1 m) brick and stucco tower is square and located between the office and fog signal building. A fog signal, previously used at New Dungeness Lighthouse, was installed in 1880. In 1898, the original lens was replaced with a fourth-order Fresnel lens. In 1900, the fog bell was replaced by a Daboll trumpet. For its first 40 years, with no roads to the lighthouse, supplies and keepers had to arrive by boat. In 1975, a 90-foot (27 m) radar tower was built on the west side of the lighthouse for the Vessel Traffic Service. In 1997, the last US Coast Guard personnel left Point No Point, and it remained empty until it was leased to Kitsap County Parks Department. In 2006, the Coast Guard replaced the light with a low-maintenance, post-mounted, rotating beacon. Since 2008, the keeper’s residence at Point No Point has served as the national headquarters of the US Lighthouse Society. Read more here and here. Explore more of Point No Point and Admiralty Inlet here: