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Anderson Island is the southernmost island in
Puget Sound Puget Sound ( ; ) is a complex estuary, estuarine system of interconnected Marine habitat, marine waterways and basins located on the northwest coast of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As a part of the Salish Sea, the sound ...
and a
census-designated place A census-designated place (CDP) is a Place (United States Census Bureau), concentration of population defined by the United States Census Bureau for statistical purposes only. CDPs have been used in each decennial census since 1980 as the counte ...
of
Pierce County, Washington Pierce County is a County (United States), county in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 921,130, up from 795,225 in 2010, making it the second-most populous ...
,
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. It is accessible by boat or a 20-minute ferry ride from Steilacoom. Anderson Island is just south of
McNeil Island McNeil Island is an island in the Northwestern United States, in south Puget Sound southwest of Tacoma, Washington. With a land area of , it lies in an area of many inhabited small islands, including Anderson Island (Washington), Anderson Island ...
. To the northwest,
Key Peninsula The Key Peninsula lies along Puget Sound to the south of Kitsap Peninsula in the U.S. state of Washington. It is part of Pierce County and is bordered to the west by Case Inlet and to the east by Carr Inlet. The peninsula is approximately 16 mi ...
is across Drayton Passage. The south basin of Puget Sound separates the island from the mainland to the southeast, while to the southwest the
Nisqually Reach The Nisqually Reach is a portion of Puget Sound south of the Tacoma Narrows, near the Nisqually River delta. It is classified as a bay by the United States government. It was originally defined as "the portion of the Sound lying between Anderson Is ...
of Puget Sound separates the island from the mainland.


Geography

Anderson Island has a land area of , and reported a population of 1,302 people as of the 2020 census, which is up from 1,037 people at the 2010 census. The island has been a retirement destination since the late 1960s, with a median age of 54 years (for comparison, the median age of Washington state as a whole is 37 years). The population booms every summer to approximately 4,000. The Island is also home to a sizable population of deer.


History

The island was part of the territory of the
Steilacoom people The Steilacoom people () are Lushootseed-speaking Southern Coast Salish people, indigenous to the southern Puget Sound region of Washington state. Name The name Steilacoom is an anglicization of their Lushootseed endonym. In their native Lu ...
, a
Coast Salish The Coast Salish peoples are a group of ethnically and linguistically related Indigenous peoples of the Pacific Northwest Coast, living in the Canadian province of British Columbia and the U.S. states of Washington and Oregon. They speak on ...
tribe. The island was named in 1841 by
Charles Wilkes Charles Wilkes (April 3, 1798 – February 8, 1877) was an American naval officer, ship's captain, and List of explorers, explorer. He led the United States Exploring Expedition (1838–1842). During the American Civil War between 1861 and 1865 ...
of the
United States Exploring Expedition The United States Exploring Expedition of 1838–1842 was an exploring and surveying expedition of the Pacific Ocean and surrounding lands conducted by the United States. The original appointed commanding officer was Commodore Thomas ap Catesby ...
. Given a warm reception at
Fort Nisqually Fort Nisqually was an important fur trade, fur trading and farming post of the Hudson's Bay Company in the Puget Sound area, part of the Hudson's Bay Company's Columbia Department. It was located in what is now DuPont, Washington. Today it is a ...
by Mr. Anderson and Captain McNeill, and assistance to aid his operations, Wilkes repaid their kindness by naming the two nearby islands after these two men. In 1870, Andrew N. Christensen, a Dane, and his brother, Christian F. Christensen, were the first European settlers to stay at the island. Andrew's wife had a strong hand in the development of the island community. Christian was the only Christensen brother to reside permanently on Anderson Island. The primary industry was the sale of wood to the wood-burning steamers that came into Amsterdam Bay. Other early industries included brick making, farming and fishing. The only General Store on the island is run by a local resident of the island. In 2004, National Recreational Properties, Inc. of
Irvine, California Irvine () is a Planned community, planned city in central Orange County, California, United States, in the Los Angeles metropolitan area. It was named in 1888 for the landowner James Irvine. The Irvine Company started developing the area in the ...
purchased more than 400 vacant lots on the island, paying roughly $4,000 to $7,000 per lot. They created an infomercial and sold to out-of-state investors, mostly from California. Residents speculated that the lots would be sold for about $25,000. Eventually more than 300 lots were sold, most selling for over $40,000.


Ferry

Accessible only by ferry or private boat, Anderson Island is served by the Steilacoom / Anderson Island / Ketron Island run, the only ferry run belonging to Pierce County. The ferry ''Steilacoom II'' was put into service in January 2007 to work with the aging ferry ''Christine Anderson''. The ferry runs many times per day, starting at 4:45 in the morning from Steilacoom, Washington, and departing Anderson Island at 10:50 pm. In 2020, Anderson Island Citizen Advisory Board worked with Pierce County to extend the hours to accommodate the ever increasing need for additional ferry service. Prior to then, Sunday through Thursday service ended at 8:40 p.m. During peak times such as summer and holidays, both ferries run. However the wait to get on the ferry can often still exceed three or more hours for special events and weekends.


Government

The Anderson Island Citizens Advisory Board (AICAB) is a governing advisory board reporting to the Pierce County Council, established by the Pierce County Council in 2004. Examples of its past actions include banning of boats with internal combustion engines from Lake Josephine, road repair and speed recommendations, as well as other matters common to governing Anderson Island. Fire District #27 and the Anderson Island Parks District are taxing districts that serve only Anderson Island. Tanner Electric Co-op provides electrical power to Anderson Island via a submarine cable. It extends across Nisqually Reach on the south end of the island and was replaced in 2010. Law enforcement is provided by the Pierce County Sheriff's office.


Education

The
Steilacoom Historical School District Steilacoom Historical School District No. 1 is a public school district in Steilacoom, Washington, United States. It serves the city of Steilacoom, the communities of DuPont and Anderson Island, and portions of Lakewood and unincorporated Pi ...
serves Anderson Island. Children in grades PreK–3 attend school on the island, while children in grades 4–12 commute to the mainland each day. The Anderson Island School is designated a "remote and necessary" school by the State of Washington, and is one of the few remaining such schools in the state.
Steilacoom High School Steilacoom High School (or SHS) is a public high school in Steilacoom, Washington, United States and is part of the Steilacoom Historical School District. It is the oldest, and to date the only, high school in the school district. Prior to its ...
is the comprehensive high school of the district.


Media

In the movie ''
WarGames ''WarGames'' is a 1983 American techno-thriller film directed by John Badham, written by Lawrence Lasker and Walter F. Parkes, and starring Matthew Broderick, Dabney Coleman, John Wood and Ally Sheedy. Broderick plays David Lightman, a ...
'', the scenes where David Lightman and Jennifer Mack meet Dr. Stephen Falken in Goose Island, Oregon were filmed at Anderson Island.''War Games'' movie locations
IMdB


See also

*
List of islands of Washington (state) This is a list of selected islands that are part of Washington state. See also * ' * ' References {{Authority control * Washington State by Population and Area Islands of Washington State by population and area Washington State ...


References


Further reading

*''The Island Sounder'', published by the Anderson Island Association, is the island's monthly newsletter. ''The News Tribune'' from
Tacoma Tacoma ( ) is the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. A port city, it is situated along Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, southwest of Bellevue, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, northwest of Mount ...
is available to subscribers. *Heckman, Hazel, ''Island in the Sound'', University of Washington Press (1967). Drawings by Helen Hiatt. *Heckman, Hazel, ''Island Year'', University of Washington Press (1972). Drawings by Laurie Olin.


External links


Anderson Island LinksSteilacoom School District
{{authority control Islands of Washington (state) Islands of Pierce County, Washington Islands of Puget Sound Populated places on Puget Sound Unincorporated communities in Washington (state) Unincorporated communities in Pierce County, Washington