Pirate Days Ilwaco Washington

White text on black background surrounding a white skull and crossbones in the middle of the button.  White text reading "1984" situated to the right of the skull and crossbones.

Ilwaco is a historic fishing town in the Pacific County of Washington state. It is five minutes from the Long Beach area, and is located between the Pacific Ocean and Columbia River. The town had 920 residents in 2018.

In May of 1984, Ilwaco had its second annual Ilwaco Pirate Days event. Fun activities that were available for visitors included “a children’s parade, raft race, chowder feed, pirate’s dance, fire engine rides and a grand land parade.” A chowder is a type of thick soup made with seafood, vegetables, potatoes, onions, and seasonings. A chowder feed is an event which features eating a certain type of chowder. This type of food event is most common in the pacific northwest in the United States.

Four other events took place at the same time this weekend of 1984. There was the opening of the Lewis and Clark Interpretive Center located at Fort Canby State Park. At the Ilwaco port docks, the blessing of the fleet took place, and also the New Heritage Museum of Local History opened in the Ilwaco Convention Center. And the last fun event to take place this weekend was the Long Beach Loyalty Day Celebration. The Long Beach and Ilwaco Merchants Association sponsored all of these events.