Minter is a community on the northwestern shore of Henderson Bay, located at the head of Carr Inlet in South Puget Sound, approximately 24 miles (39 km) southwest of Seattle and 5.5 miles (9 km) northwest of Gig Harbor, Washington. In 1792, this area was first explored by Lieutenant Peter Puget of the Vancouver Expedition, who was charting the area for the British government. In 1841, Henderson Bay was named by Lieutenant Charles Wilkes, the commander of the United States Exploring Expedition, after James Henderson, who served as quartermaster. Wilkes also named Carr Inlet in honor of Overton Carr, one of the expedition’s officers.

The Minter community was named after the Minter family, who moved from Nebraska and initially settled in Horsehead Bay on the east side of Carr Inlet in 1882. Disappointed by the scarcity of food and dense forests, they relocated to Minter the following year to pursue farming. They maintained good relations with the Native American population, who frequently camped on the spit to dry salmon and collect shellfish and berries, depending on the season. By 1884, several other families had moved to the area, and Lucinda Minter started a school in her home. In 1888, George Minter built a hotel. By the turn of the century, Minter had developed significantly, featuring a steamer dock, logging railway, saloon, blacksmith shop, shingle mill, social hall, brick kiln, and several stores. An oyster farm was established in 1931, followed by a salmon research hatchery in 1937.

During World War I, several shipyards in Puget Sound built relief ships to transport food to Europe. When the war ended in November 1918, many of these ships were still under construction. Subsequently, many were surplussed and towed to the Lake Washington Ship Canal or anchored in Lake Union. In 1926, several surplus ships were towed into Henderson Bay and rafted together on the Minter Sand Spit, as well as at Penrose Sand Spit and Mayo Cove. They were then set ablaze. The ships burned for months, with some floating away and sinking in Carr Inlet. Nearly 100 years later, the remains of at least four vessels are still visible during very low tides at Minter. Read more here and here. Explore more of Minter and Henderson Bay here: