Celebrate by the beach: Historic milestones and more in 2016

May 3, 2016 | Archive

It’s a birthday year on the Long Beach Peninsula – both the Shelburne Inn and the Pacific County Fair turn 120 years old, Washington State Parks celebrated 103 years and the Astoria-Megler Bridge is turning 50 – so join the celebration!

  • The Shelburne Inn, Seaview: The oldest continually operating inn in Washington

    state has planned nine months of festivities to celebrate its 120th year in business. The fun began at the Shelburne Inn in March and continues through New Year’s Eve with themed dinners, cocktail and spirits tastings and traditional English teas. See the full lineup of events here.

  • The Pacific County Fair, Menlo (Aug. 24-27): Also turning 120 years old this year, the Pacific County Fair boasts an authentic rural Pacific Northwest experience. This fair doesn’t change much over the decades, and that’s how we like it! Check out the hard work of local 4-H and FAA members, enjoy classic fair food and local artwork, and visit one of Pacific County’s hidden gems – the town of Menlo!
  • Jake the Alligator Man’s Birthday, Long Beach (Aug. 5-6): Jake the Alligator Man’s 75thbirthday is celebrated annually on the Long Beach Peninsula, and 2016 marks the celebration’s 10th The annual shindig features a car show, Bride of Jake competition, lots of live music and a burlesque show.
  • Astoria-Megler Bridge, -Wash. (Aug. 13): The final link in U.S. Highway 101 between
    Los Angeles and Olympia, the Astoria-Megler Bridge was completed in 1966 and provided the Long Beach Peninsula with a much-needed connection to northern Oregon. The 50th anniversary celebration includes a reenactment of the bridge opening, an appearance by the Astoria clowns and historical programming at the Columbia Pacific Heritage Museum in Ilwaco.
  • Free State Parks Days, statewide (various dates): Washington State Parks turned 103 years old on March 19 and celebrated by throwing open its doors for free admission. Thankfully, that isn’t the only day in 2016 when no Discover Pass is needed to enter state parks. Additional free parks days are: May 8, June 4, June 11, Aug. 25, Sept. 24 and Nov. 11.
  • Cape Disappointment Lighthouse, Ilwaco (1856): Although not technically a celebrated anniversary, the Cape Disappointment Lighthouse in Cape Disappointment State Parks marks 160 years of service in 2016.
  • National Parks Service, nationwide (Aug. 25): Celebrate the century-old founding of the National Park Service with free entry to national parks on Aug. 25, including the Lewis & Clark National Historic Park in Pacific County.

We love the Long Beach Peninsula’s living history – think: Oysterville, lighthouses and early architecture – and we especially love to celebrate the historic cultural connections that help define the region. The Shelburne Inn has served superb local cuisine for more than 100 years, helping shape the Peninsula’s culinary history. The Pacific County Fair perpetuates the area’s agricultural roots, and Free State Parks Days showcases the county’s more-wild reaches. The completion of the Astoria-Megler Bridge in 1966 offered the bigger world a more-convenient entrance to Pacific County. And Jake’s Birthday is all about good times!

These events are all worth a serious celebration! Wanna join the party?

Explore more of what Pacific County has to offer.

LBP to see 97-percent coverage during Aug. 21 eclipse

It’s not often we get a front-row seat to a once-in-a-lifetime event. That’ll be the case Aug. 21 when the Long Beach Peninsula will see 97-percent coverage during that morning’s solar eclipse. The peninsula hugs the eclipse’s path of totality, meaning the area is...
Read More

Tourism works: It’s all about the visitor experience

We’d usually do this kind of thing around November – you know, with Thanksgiving and all – but May seems like an appropriate time to thank all the wonderful visitors who spend their hard-earned time and dollars in Washington’s Pacific County. So, to our visitors:...
Read More

EV Drivers: Get a charge out of the Long Beach Peninsula

Electric vehicle owners driving the West Coast Green Highway will get a charge out of visiting Washington’s Long Beach Peninsula, one of the eco thoroughfare’s newest stops. Pacific County’s first public charging station is in downtown Long Beach near Veteran’s Field...
Read More

Greater Pacific County: Go further than Lewis & Clark

No trip to the Long Beach Peninsula is complete without venturing into greater Pacific County. In other words: Go further than Lewis & Clark. Northern Pacific County is dotted with charming hamlets like Bay Center, South Bend, Raymond and Tokeland, all bayside...
Read More

Break from the ordinary this spring break

Here’s an almost irrefutable fact: Spring break is best at the beach. Yep. Hard to argue that one. But all spring break beaches are not created equal – that’s where Washington’s Long Beach Peninsula comes in. U.S. News & World Reports recently released its top-10...
Read More

The Peninsula’s autumn bounty is yours to enjoy

From kites to cranberries and music to mushrooms, late autumn on the Long Beach Peninsula is a time to celebrate the region’s culture and history. Autumn in Pacific County is marked by its harvests, many of which helped form the bedrock of Peninsula communities. Think...
Read More

Visiting the LBP? Stop by the Visitors Bureau & say hello

Stop in, say hello. Maybe stay awhile. The Long Beach Peninsula Visitors Bureau is more than a destination marketing organization. It’s an information center, a community hub and a rest stop; a dog-friendly biscuit bar, PokeStop, geocache location and Wi-Fi hotspot....
Read More

#LongBeachWA: Bigger than the Peninsula

William Shakespeare once asked, “What’s in a name?” Fair question, old bard. #LongBeachWA is a favorite hashtag here on the Peninsula, but with Shakespeare in mind, we have to ask: “What’s in that name?” Well, a lot more than sometimes meets the eye! Let’s talk about...
Read More

That Pacific County feeling

By Drew Foster, Visitor Bureau communications coordinator The feeling. It begins somewhere west of Interstate 5. Six speeding lanes condense to two, and the horizon-stretching straightaways slowly bend into wending country lanes. Nature encroaches. Night grows darker....
Read More

Spring Break is Better at the Beach

Here’s a scenario: The kiddos are home from school, the days are getting warmer, and the frozen dinner drill is growing old. In need of a break? Yeah, we thought so. Thankfully, the Long Beach Peninsula has just what you need! The good news is that spring break is...
Read More

Pin It on Pinterest

Share This