Centrum, located in Fort Worden State Park near Port Townsend, Washington

Port Townsend, Washington

Port Townsend is a city in Jefferson County, Washington, United States, approximately north-northwest of Seattle . The population was 9,113 at the 2010 census an increase of 9.3% over the 2000 census. It is the county seat and only incorporated city of Jefferson County...

 in Jefferson County

Jefferson County, Washington

Jefferson County is a county located in the U.S. state of Washington, named after Thomas Jefferson. As of 2010, the population was 29,872. The county seat is at Port Townsend, which is also the county's only incorporated city....

 is a multidisciplinary nonprofit arts organization that presents workshops and performances in a wide variety of artistic disciplines.

Origin

Centrum was founded as a partnership between the Washington State Arts Commission, the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, and the Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission. The first executive director was Joseph F. Wheeler. Early program directors included Bill Ransom

Bill Ransom

Bill Ransom is a science fiction writer born in Puyallup, Washington in 1945.-Early life and education:He began full-time employment at the age of eleven as an agricultural worker. He attended Washington State University on track and boxing scholarships, and the University of Puget Sound on a track...

 and Sam Hamill.

Activities

While most programming is intergenerational, Centrum also provides a series of residential learning experiences that serve youth only. About one-third of Centrum workshop participants are 18 years old or younger. Centrum presents such programs as the Festival of American Fiddle Tunes, Jazz Port Townsend, the Port Townsend Acoustic Blues Festival, and the Port Townsend Writers' Conference

Port Townsend Writers' Conference

The Port Townsend Writers' Conference was founded in 1974 by novelist Bill Ransom. It is held every summer at Fort Worden State Park, within the city limits of Port Townsend, on the inner tip of the Olympic Peninsula in Washington state...

.

External links

• Centrum web site
• Fort Worden State Park web site