ship building | The Filson Journal

exterior view of large shipyard building with sign reading

Pacific Fishermen Shipyard: The Origins of Ballard’s Oldest Working Shipyard

Pacific Fishermen Inc., or “PacFish,” as it is known to the many boat builders, ship crews, employees, family members and stakeholders in the Ballard community, can be traced directly back to the year 1871. It was in this year that a 47-year-old Norwegian immigrant, ship carpenter, and operator named Thomas William Lake settled on the north side of the Salmon Bay waterfront in unincorporated Seattle and opened his own shipyard.

3 Min

Field Notes

Soul of a Boat

Over the past four decades, Port Townsend, WA has become an important hub for the building and maintenance of wooden boats on the West Coast. It is there that the history and skills of wooden boatbuilding are still taught, shaping the souls of those that go to sea. Video by Brother for Filson.

3 Min