Point Wilson is at the end of the Quimper Peninsula

Quimper Peninsula

The Quimper Peninsula is a narrow peninsula forming the most northeastern extent of the Olympic Peninsula of Washington state in the northwestern United States of America....

, a northeast extension of the Olympic Peninsula

Olympic Peninsula

The Olympic Peninsula is the large arm of land in western Washington state of the USA, that lies across Puget Sound from Seattle. It is bounded on the west by the Pacific Ocean, the north by the Strait of Juan de Fuca, and the east by Puget Sound. Cape Alava, the westernmost point in the contiguous...

 and the northeastern most point of 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....

, Washington, United States

United States

The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...

, approximately two miles north of the Port Townsend

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...

 business district.

This low, broad sand-spit, extends over a half-mile into the water and marks the entrance to Admiralty Inlet

Admiralty Inlet

Admiralty Inlet is a strait in the U.S. state of Washington connecting the eastern end of the Strait of Juan de Fuca to Puget Sound. It lies between Whidbey Island and the northeastern part of the Olympic Peninsula....

 from the Strait of Juan de Fuca

Strait of Juan de Fuca

The Strait of Juan de Fuca is a large body of water about long that is the Salish Sea outlet to the Pacific Ocean...

. Here, the main shipping channel narrows and makes a sharp turn to the south into Puget Sound

Puget Sound

Puget Sound is a sound in the U.S. state of Washington. It is a complex estuarine system of interconnected marine waterways and basins, with one major and one minor connection to the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Pacific Ocean — Admiralty Inlet being the major connection and...

.

Nearby shoals, heavy rip-tides, and persistent fog

Fog

Fog is a collection of water droplets or ice crystals suspended in the air at or near the Earth's surface. While fog is a type of stratus cloud, the term "fog" is typically distinguished from the more generic term "cloud" in that fog is low-lying, and the moisture in the fog is often generated...

s influenced the placing of a lighthouse on Point Wilson in 1879. In 1913, the present Point Wilson Lighthouse

Point Wilson Lighthouse

The Point Wilson Light was built in 1913 by the United States Lighthouse Service. At a height of , the beacon is the tallest on Puget Sound, marking the entrance to Admiralty Inlet...

 was built by the United States Lighthouse Service

United States Lighthouse Service

The United States Lighthouse Service, also known as the Bureau of Lighthouses, was the agency of the US Federal Government that was responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of all lighthouses in the United States from the time of its creation in 1910 until 1939...

. The point is also the site of a meteorological station.

The Chimakum

Chimakum

The Chimakum, also spelled Chemakum and Chimacum , were a Native American people who lived in the northeastern portion of the Olympic Peninsula, between Hood Canal and Discovery Bay through the mid-19th century...

 Indians named this point Kam-kam-ho and the S'Klallam Indians

Klallam

Klallam refers to four related indigenous Native American/First Nations communities from the Pacific Northwest of North America. The Klallam culture is classified ethnographically and linguistically in the Coast Salish subgroup...

 called it Kam-Kum. Point Wilson was discovered by Europeans on July 5, 1790 by Juan Carrasco

Juan Carrasco (explorer)

Juan Carrasco was a Spanish naval officer, explorer, and navigator. He is remembered mainly for his work in the Pacific Northwest during the late 18th century. He was second in command of the 1791 voyage of José María Narváez, the first European exploration of the Strait of Georgia.Many details...

 and Manuel Quimper

Manuel Quimper

Manuel Quimper Benítez del Pino was a Spanish Peruvian explorer, cartographer, naval officer, and colonial official. He participated in charting the Strait of Juan de Fuca and the Sandwich Islands in the late 18th century. He was later appointed a colonial governor in his native Peru at the...

. Captain George Vancouver

George Vancouver

Captain George Vancouver RN was an English officer of the British Royal Navy, best known for his 1791-95 expedition, which explored and charted North America's northwestern Pacific Coast regions, including the coasts of contemporary Alaska, British Columbia, Washington and Oregon...

 of the Royal Navy

Royal Navy

The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...

named Point Wilson on June 5, 1792, in honor of a colleague, Captain George Wilson.