Site Photos and History

Former U.S. Navy and U.S. Coast Guard Installations (Sites 2, 21, and 22)

Former Navy and USCG installations include the following sites:

In 1857, the U.S. Lighthouse Service, an agency under the Bureau of Lighthouses within the Department of Commerce, constructed and began operating a lighthouse on Tatoosh Island (Site 22). In 1939, responsibility for the lighthouse changed hands when the Bureau of Lighthouses was transferred to the authority of the USCG. The lighthouse, which was automated in 1977 (light and fog signal) and renovated in 1999, is still active (Gibbs, 1974; Nelson and Nelson, 1998; Leffingwell and Welty, 2000).

As a result of the 1855 treaty between the U.S. government and the Makah Tribe, Waadah Island (Site 21) was set aside for military use on June 9, 1868 (USCG, 2002; Keres, 2002b). The USCG, then known as the U.S. Life Saving Service, leased land and maintained various facilities on Waadah Island, starting with the construction of a lifeboat station on the northern portion of the island in 1877 (the lifeboat station was moved to Baada Point on the mainland in 1910) (USCG, 2002; Keres, 2002b). The USCG currently operates two unmanned facilities consisting of combination foghorns and marker lights as aids to maritime navigation; these facilities are at the north and south ends of the island (Keres, 2002b).

The area of the Navy Life Boat Station (Site 2) was set aside and taken out of the Reservation by administrative order in 1923 "for coast guard purposes". A portion of this area was then transferred to the U.S. Navy by Executive Order in 1925. The 3.1-acre site improvements, including 24 buildings, were built by the Navy. The improvements were transferred to the USCG in 1946.

Cape Flattery Battery System (Sites 12, 17, 18, and 24)

Cape Flattery, a bold, rocky head with sea cliffs 120 feet in height, rises to nearly 1,500 feet about 2 miles inland from the beach. Numerous rocks and reefs border the cliffs east and south of the cape. Tiderips are particularly heavy off Cape Flattery (NOAA, 2004c).

In 1942, the U.S. Army leased 4,024 acres of Tribal land for installation of a coastal battery. The Army planned to build two 6-inch and two 16-inch batteries in the area. A road was constructed and the sites were cleared and graded in preparation for construction in the same year, but work was terminated in 1943 before the guns were installed (Gregory, 1976). Several support buildings and approximately 25 fire control stations were planned, but construction was not completed (Tecumseh, 2000a). The lease was terminated in 1945. All land except the 10-acre site at Bahokus Peak was transferred back to the Tribe. The facility is listed as a Formerly Used Defense Site (FUDS), property #F10WA0584 (USACE, 2002).

The Battery System includes the following sites:

Bahokus Peak (Sites 5, 6, 7, and 20) is discussed in a separate section below.

In addition, there are reports from Tribal members of a former hospital site associated with the Cape Flattery Battery System. According to these reports, the hospital was demolished and bulk waste and equipment were buried at this site at the end of World War II. The location of the hospital site was determined through interviews with former Makah AFS troops who still live in Neah Bay. The hospital site has been located on the ground, and visited in December 2006. Two concrete footings and traces of a road were found, but no sign of buried equipment was observed during the site visit.

Makah Air Force Station (Sites 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, and 16)

In the 1950s, the USAF leased 106.6 acres of Tribal land for the Makah AFS, which includes the Cantonment Area, Family Housing Area, and associated water-supply facilities. In addition to the 106.6 acres, the Air Force leased the 10-acre Bahokus Peak site as part of the AFS. An early warning radar station was built at the top of the peak. Later, the Air Force leased more Tribal land; at the time of its closure in 1988, the Makah AFS occupied approximately 255 acres of Tribal land (Radian, 1987).

The Makah Air Force Station was previously listed in the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) Comprehensive Environmental Response, Compensation, and Liability Information System (CERCLIS) database under identification number WA2570024222. It has since been removed (USEPA, 2004, 2006).

The Makah AFS includes the following sites:

Bahokus Peak Top Camp (Sites 5, 6, 7 and 20)

Site map, Bahokus Peak installations (Radian, 1987)

Originally part of the Cape Flattery Battery lease, this 10-acre site was leased by the Tribe to the DoD in 1941. In 1945, the 10-acre parcel was transferred to the U.S. Army Air Forces (not to be confused with the USAF). An aircraft radio relay warning station was operated there until 1947, when the site was excessed and operations ceased. In 1949, the lease expired and the 10-acre parcel was returned to the Tribe. In the 1950s, the same parcel was leased again, this time by the USAF for use as part of the Makah AFS. An Air Defense Command early warning radar station was operated until 1988, when radar operations were transferred for civilian use to the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA). This area includes the following sites:

Dump Sites (Sites 1, 3, 4, and 8)

Four dump sites were used by the military to dispose of household and hazardous waste. With the exception of the Warmhouse Beach Open Dump, the dump sites are now inactive and partially covered. The dump sites include:

Shipwreck and Plane Wreck Sites and Offshore Unexploded Ordnance (Sites 19 and 23)

Military shipwrecks, plane wrecks, and offshore unexploded ordnance are present in the Pacific Ocean near Cape Flattery. These sites include:

On January 9, 1972, the unmanned USS General M.C. Meigs troopship broke loose while being towed and went aground just south of Portage Head. Eight unexploded ordnance locations identified on National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) nautical charts, one submarine wreck, and two known aircraft wrecks are situated within the Tribe's recognized "usual and accustomed" fishing areas.