Editing Poulsbo, Washington (section)

==History==
[[File:First Lutheran Church of Poulsbo.jpg|thumb|left|upright|First Lutheran Church of Poulsbo]]

The [[Suquamish]] people have inhabited [[Liberty Bay]] for millennia, hunting in local forests and floodplains, fishing in bays and streams, and harvesting shellfish along the shoreline. The site upon which the modern city is built is called {{Langx|lut|č̓uʔč̓uɬac|label=none}}, meaning "maple trees".<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bates |first=Dawn |title=Lushootseed Dictionary |last2=Hess |first2=Thom |last3=Hilbert |first3=Vi |publisher=University of Washington Press |year=1994}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.northkitsapherald.com/business/311052921.html |title=Viking Avenue business owner will replace trees he cut down |work=North Kitsap Herald |date=June 30, 2015 |first=Richard |last=Walker |access-date=August 30, 2016}}</ref> The Suquamish had a winter village nearby, at the head of Liberty Bay, anglicized variously as "Ho-Cheeb"<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.northkitsapherald.com/news/304004031.html |title=1 million Norwegians immigrated to U.S. between 1820 and 1920 |work=North Kitsap Herald |date=May 16, 2015 |access-date=August 30, 2016}}</ref> and "Xoyacid,"<ref name=":0">{{Cite book |last=Waterman |first=T.T. |title=sdaʔdaʔ gʷəɬ dibəɬ ləšucid ʔacʔaciɬtalbixʷ - Puget Sound Geographical Names}}</ref> which consisted of two large houses and four smaller houses. It existed until the late 1800s until settlers began populating the area.<ref name=":0" /><ref>{{Cite web |title=The Suquamish Tribe – Home of the Suquamish People |url=https://suquamish.nsn.us/ |access-date=July 8, 2023 |language=en-US}}</ref>

After the signing of the [[Treaty of Point Elliott]] in 1855, most of the Suquamish people living in the area were relocated to the [[Port Madison Indian Reservation]].

[[File:Oyster dyke at Poulsbo, Washington, June 1920 (COBB 143).jpeg|thumb|upright|[[Oyster farming]] in Poulsbo, 1920]]

Founded by Norwegian immigrant Jørgen Eliason in the 1880s, Poulsbo was settled in its early years by a large number of [[Norwegians|Norwegian]] and other [[Scandinavia]]n immigrants because of its similarities to their native countries.<ref name=majors>{{Cite book| last = Majors | first = Harry M. | title = Exploring Washington | publisher = Van Winkle Publishing Co | year = 1975 | page = 82 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=CoWrPQAACAAJ| isbn = 978-0-918664-00-6}}</ref> In 1886, Iver Brynildsen Moe, one of the early Norwegian settlers, suggested that the community should have a post office. Moe suggested the town be named "Paulsbo", his hometown in [[Halden]], Norway.<ref name="HistoryLink">{{cite web |last=Ott |first=Jennifer |date=November 5, 2007 |title=Poulsbo — Thumbnail History |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/8359 |work=[[HistoryLink]] |accessdate=March 4, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Meany |first=Edmond S. |author-link=Edmond S. Meany |year=1923 |title=Origin of Washington Geographic Names |page=230 |publisher=[[University of Washington Press]] |oclc=1963675 |url=https://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/001444300 |via=[[HathiTrust]] |accessdate=March 4, 2021}}</ref> The community's petition for a post office was granted and Moe became the first postmaster, but authorities in Washington, D.C. misspelled the town's name, likely misreading Moe's handwriting,<ref>{{Cite web |title=Poulsbo -- Thumbnail History |url=https://historylink.org/File/8359 |access-date=2025-02-06 |website=historylink.org}}</ref> and the community became known as "Poulsbo" thereafter. Poulsbo was incorporated on December 18, 1907.

On September 15, 1914, after a dry summer with multiple previous brush fires, a large portion of the downtown business district was destroyed in a fire. Eight business buildings, an estimated third of the business section, were destroyed, with another damaged. The cause of the fire was never determined. Businessowners who lost their buildings continued business in undamaged buildings while downtown was rebuilt. After the fire, new buildings were constructed with cement rather than wood.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Driscoll |first=Judy |date=September 12, 2014 |title=Remembering the Great Fire of 1914 |url=https://www.kitsapdailynews.com/news/remembering-the-great-fire-of-1914/ |work=[[Kitsap Daily News]] |accessdate=May 7, 2024}}</ref>

Until [[World War II]], many Poulsbo residents retained [[Norwegian language|Norwegian]] as a primary language. However, during [[World War II]], the military constructed about 300 residential units to provide housing for workers at the nearby [[Puget Sound Naval Shipyard]] in [[Bremerton, Washington|Bremerton]]. The population of Poulsbo almost tripled over three years, and the diversification of the population led to the dominance of [[English language|English]] as the primary language.

On October 22, 1975, King [[Olav V of Norway]] visited Poulsbo as part of the celebration of 150 years of Norwegian immigration to the United States.<ref name=Jacobi>{{cite web |last=Ott |first=Jennifer |date=November 5, 2007 |title=King Olav V of Norway visits Poulsbo on October 22, 1975. |url=https://www.historylink.org/File/8361 |work=HistoryLink |accessdate=March 4, 2021}}</ref> His son, [[Harald V|Harald]], visited 20 years later.