Puget Sound - Harper Beach - Port Orchard, WA

Harper Beach is a very accessible beach in South Kitsap County and also filled with a rich history that makes a day of beach combing very interesting. In order to appreciate the experience of exploring Harper Beach a little history lesson might be helpful. The following information may aid the beach combers understanding of Harper's rich history. https://yukonharbor.wordpress.com/2013/06/29/the-brick-people/

The Brick Era, 1900-1932.​
"The construction of the Harper Brick Factory in 1900 dramatically changed the local sights, sounds, and smells, adding smokestacks and whistles as well as a different type of vehicle traffic. The innovative tug, ATLAS, became a familiar sight, hauling mostly bricks to and from Seattle but also serving the Colby Lumber Company."

The gas-powered tug ATLAS became a familiar sight in Yukon Harbor, beginning in 1909. From an article in PACIFIC FISHERMAN.

​"The story that has been passed down through the generations is that a visitor, E.A. Smith, discovered the requisite brick clay on a nearby hill in 1899. Smith apparently knew a thing about brickmaking, because he immediately declared that “it is a good quality material” and told his host, Louis Garnett about it. Garnett passed word of the abundant natural resource to investors in Seattle, and an enterprise was begun.
Established by Frederick Crane Harper and partners, the brick factory was located to the west of the creek estuary that lies between Harper and Southworth, where a small baseball field and park are today. At the height of production, 50-60 men worked at the plant, producing more than a million bricks annually. The facility was large and complex, and a model of brick making technology for that era.   The facility included kilns, warehouses, a bunkhouse, cookhouse, and a small rail tram. A dock and specialized barges were constructed, too. As motor vehicles began to appear, a drawbridge was constructed across the mouth of the estuary to facilitate the movement of the ATLAS and her barges.

The Harper Brick and Tile Factory

Allen “AK” Kuppler, whose family has visited and lived in the Harper area virtually all of his life, brought provided a wealth of information relating to the Port Orchard Brick and Tile Factory and drawbridge that once existed along the shoreline between South Colby and Southworth.
 
AK provided the enhanced view (below) of the current landscape around his house and the nearby estuary, including Harper Hill Road, Southworth Road, the Boat Ramp, and the surrounding neighborhood at the point. The main current road is along the bottom of the photograph, with dotted lines showing the location of the drawbridge. The Port Orchard Tile and Brick Factory was located in the lower righthand corner, where a baseball field is located today.

​The second rendering (below) shows the region as it would have appeared about 1930, showing both the bridge and the roadway. Note the apparently active road along the beachfront, left, and the more extensive salt and freshwater marshes. Originally, AK reports, the only north-south route was across the drawbridge, as the road south from Colby was dedicated to the Brick Factory, lower right. A “hotel and boarding house” was also located along the present Southworth Road, at the bottom of  this picture. Also, AK has noted the location of portions of a barge that has been found near the northern entrance to the drawbridge structure.

Beach combing on Harper Beach
With much of the above history explored, an excursion on Harper beach becomes a step back into the early days of the Puget Sound.  I was exploring the beach for the first time recently with the focus on beach glass and what quality or grade of glass I might find. I parked over on the Harper boat ramp and walked around the inlet to begin a brief search of the area. 

Harper boat ramp

I dropped down on the narrow beach which was about to be at high tide and began to notice a great abundance of sea glass. The roadway along Southworth Drive is immediately adjacent to the beach and runs parallel for about .4 of a mile up to the new steel Harper dock. (finished in January, 2015) 

South worth Dr. next to Harper Beach- notice the bricks in lower right

As I made my way south toward the end of the beach I began to notice that the embankment underneath the roadway was filled with old bricks! It was as if the whole roadway was built up over a large pile of bricks. I didn't really understand the significance of this location until I had done my homework and learned the history of the area and of the brick factory.  The "brick dump" labeled in the above drawing actually runs for another hundred feet south along the embankment. If you are looking for vintage bricks, you'll find them here!

brick dump embedded under the roadway

discarded bricks under embankment

The old brick dump actually extends out into the bay and was really exposed on this visit while the tide was out. 

debris field of brick dump at low tide

Frederick Harper home built in 1901

While exploring the beach one day a local Harper resident walked up to me while I was beach combing below his property and below the high tide zone. Sal said that he had purchased the old Harper home that was built in 1901 just after the opening of the new brick factory in 1900. The home seemed somewhat small for a factory owner but it must have been very comfortable. This home is up hill from the road and located only a few hundreds yards north of the old brick factory location.

​Sea Glass: Harper Beach is covered with an abundance of sea glass. It may be because of the close proximity of the road and drive-by littering but it truly is loaded with glass.  The quality is not "Jewelry Grade A" (like many pieces on Glass Beach/ Port Townsend) but I was surprised to find a great deal of frosting on many of the fragments I examined on this beach. There is a great variety of shapes and colors with varying shades of greens, light aquas, ambers and whites.

Sea Glass found in 30 minutes on Harper Beach

After exploring the narrowing water's edge (tide was coming in) I began to see a pattern for finding some of the more frosted pieces. Along the southern portion of the beach there are areas of grass close to the water's edge that seemed to provide protection for the glass fragments. The grass plants were clinging to the pieces and almost camouflaging their placement. So, I began pulling back pieces of grass and uncovering hidden pieces that laid protected. 

On a later visit to Harper Beach at low tide I noticed that farther up the beach there was a large rock bulkhead supporting the roadway above. At the base of this bulkhead the sea had accumulated many rocks, shells and sea glass! This was a very productive place to look for the higher quality sea glass. Follow the beach north to where the large rock bulkhead begins and follow it for it's entire 190 feet. After you have combed this southern section of Harper Beach, you still have another 1,500 feet of beach until you meet the Harper dock to the north. 

Frosting- I also began to notice a pattern in the glass I was finding. The older glass fragments seemed to have a frosted tint quality. This process of frosting is the etching of the glass due to a chemical reaction of the higher Ph content of the seawater and chemical composition in the glass. (see the Sea Glass page for more information about "Frosting.") The tint was a yellowish coloration that seemed to typify the glass pieces that had been in the water longer. The glass pieces that were newer had sharper edges and a clearer opaqueness. As the glass aged in the sea water it seemed to take on this yellowing tint along with increased frosting on all sides of the fragment. This tinting also seemed to be a product of the algae in the inlet embedding into the etching or pitting on each fragment of glass. The picture below illustrates the difference between some older pieces (top) that were frosted white to older glass with a frosted surface and a yellowish/ to light green tint. 

Sea Glass from Harper Beach- yellowed tint on bottom

The hoard I picked up at Harper Beach was after only an hour of searching close to high tide! Imagine what treasures could be found at lower tides. The glass may not be Jewelry grade but it is beautiful and would work great for craft projects.
(See the Sea Glass page for information about how to classify and grade Sea Glass.) 

Day 1- Sea Glass hoard from Harper Beach

During a later exploration of Harper Beach at low tide additional sea glass was found. Some had lettering and interesting shapes coming from vintage bottles or mason jars. 

There were also many fragments of bottle and jar necks.   

A small amount of vintage pottery was also found in various locations. 

This second trip to Harper Beach at a lower tide exposed a great deal of sea glass and I probably brought back more than I should. Many of the pieces will make great craft grade additions to a project displaying them in front of a window. 

The second hoard of sea glass found on Harper Beach

Directions:  Harper Beach is located immediately across the street from Harper Park. The following directions are for Harper Park. 
3500 SE Southworth Drive, Port Orchard. From Highway 16, take Sedgwick Exit; follow signs to the Southworth Ferry; turn left onto Southworth Drive; drive approx. 2 miles; park entrance will be on the left.

Harper Park (location of the Harper Brick and Tile Factory) parking for beachcombers