Until then, the primary method of
transportation between Gig Harbor and the economic center of nearby Tacoma was
by steamship. Starting in 1836 steamships started plying the waters of Puget
Sound and quickly developed into what was eventually dubbed "The Mosquito
Fleet." Gig Harbor, isolated from Tacoma and Seattle by Puget Sound and
the Tacoma Narrows, could not be reached by automobile or horseback except via
a very long and arduous trip south around Puget Sound and Hammersly Inlet.
Unfortunately, the boom was to be short lived as the first bridge collapsed
just months after it was completed. The resource demands of World War II
prevented another bridge from being built until 1950. Between the time when the
first bridge collapsed and when the second bridge was completed, a state run
ferry service delivered drivers directly into downtown Gig Harbor. Remains of
the ferry dock can still be seen just outside the mouth of the harbor at the
Southeast end of Harborview Drive. The area has been turned into a small park
where the public can see a panoramic view of the Cascade Mountains, Pt.
Defiance, and Mt. Rainier.
After the completion of the replacement bridge in 1950, Gig Harbor and the
surrounding area quickly began to develop as a suburb of neighboring Tacoma.
First the area saw substantial residential development as families retreated
from Tacoma in favor of the tree-lined neighborhoods and waterfront lots
available on the Gig Harbor Peninsula. What had once been summer cabins became
primary residences for people who commuted daily over the bridge to Tacoma.
Medium sized housing development sprang up across the peninsula. The 1980s and
1990s saw substantial retail development near State Route 16 to service the
growing residential population, shifting the economic center of Gig Harbor out
of downtown. For some time, city leaders were unsure how to handle the growth
while maintaining the character of the city. Ultimately, the city
