A Little History
Until 1841, Gig Harbor was known only to some of the Nisqually and other Indian tribes who lived in or fished the area. The quiet harbor was not discovered and named by the outside world until the Wilkes expedition - and then only by accident. The exploration party of three ships was busy charting in small boats used for short survey forays. One such boat, a captain's gig, took shelter in the protected waters during a sudden storm. The small quiet harbor was thus named Gig Harbor.
First "development" was in the form of a sawmill. Genuine settlement came with Yugoslavian immigrants who founded a fishing fleet. This fleet still exists though in a much-advanced form from the original rowboats.
A significant number of Scandinavians were among later settlers and the present generation keeps alive their cultural heritage.
The Key Peninsula area was discovered in the mid 1800s by W.D. Vaughn who in 1851 crossed the plains in a Prairie Schooner to file a homestead claim and founded the town of Vaughn. Other pioneers, including settler Joe Shettlerow who saw the promise of this beautiful area followed him. Mr. Shettlerow settled in the Longbranch area in 1851 and the Shettlerow Bay was named for him. Some years later the name was changed to Filucy Bay.
	As the trek to the East continued, additional communities were established on the Peninsula. The William Creviston family named "Lakebay" in 1871 and it was here that the first Post Office on the Peninsula was established in 1882. "Home" was originally called the "Mutual Home Colony" and was founded in 1896 by B. F. Odell and Oliver Verity.
Logging, sawmills and farming were the main industries of the Key Peninsula in those early years. Transportation was provided by the "Mosquito Fleet," a group of small walk-on ferries and supply boats which plied the waters between the little settlements and Tacoma. These were used until the Narrows Bridge was built to provide easier and faster access to the Gig Harbor, Peninsula area. (This history is provided by Gig Harbor Chamber of Commerce and Peninsula Historical Society.)