Kingston, Washington

How Kingston is governed

Kingston appears to be an unincorporated community or a census-designated place, so it may have no city government of its own — services usually come from Kitsap County and its elected officials. The chart below is a generic template; readers can correct it if Kingston does have local officials.

Form of government not yet listed.

0 of 14 positions listed. Gray dashed boxes are placeholders waiting for a name.

• Mayor

  Executive

  Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

  The city's chief elected official. Presides over the executive branch, proposes the budget and represents the city.

  • City Manager / Administrator

    Executive

    Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

    The professional administrator who runs day-to-day operations (in some cities appointed by the council instead of the mayor).

    • Police Chief

      Administration & departments

      Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

      Leads the police department.

    • Fire Chief

      Administration & departments

      Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

      Leads the fire and emergency services department.

    • Public Works Director

      Administration & departments

      Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

      Streets, water, sewer, and city buildings.

    • Finance Director

      Administration & departments

      Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

      The budget, taxes, and city accounts.

    • Planning & Zoning Director

      Administration & departments

      Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

      Land use, zoning, building permits.

    • Parks & Recreation Director

      Administration & departments

      Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

      Parks, programs, and public facilities.

• City Council

  Legislative

  Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

  The elected body that passes ordinances, sets the tax rate and approves the budget.

  • City Clerk

    Administration & departments

    Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

    Keeps the official records, runs meeting agendas and, often, local elections.

  • City Attorney

    Administration & departments

    Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

    The city's lawyer; advises officials and prosecutes ordinance violations.

  • Boards & Commissions

    Legislative

    Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

    Citizen advisory bodies, such as planning, zoning appeals and library boards.

• Municipal Court

  Judicial

  Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

  Hears traffic, ordinance and other minor cases.

  • Municipal Judge

    Judicial

    Not yet listed. Log in to add who holds this

    Presides over the municipal court.

Looking for your county, state and federal representatives too? See who represents 98346 or everyone in Washington.

Population over time

From 1,611 in 2000 to 2,515 in 2020 (+56.1%).

History

Founded in 1853 by Benjamin Bannister, the community was originally known as "Appletree Cove". By 1880 it was a lumber town until the mill closed down in the early 20th century. Known as the "little city by the sea", Kingston is a northern gateway to the Olympic Peninsula and is the social and economic center of the north end of the Kitsap Peninsula.

King's Town

In 1869, W.S. Ladd and his wife Caroline built a cabin on Appletree Cove. Michael King then bought the cabin nine years later. He moved in along with ten oxen and ten men. They slowly logged the hills around Appletree Cove. King built many small buildings and shacks along the shore for his men and animals. In 1882, he was done and moved on. The shacks and bunkhouses were left behind and lived in by drifters, squatters and old loggers. People living in the area often referred to this as "King's Town", probably as a joke. The name slowly evolved into Kingston and stuck.

Resort town

The Kingston townsite was platted on April 24, 1890, by C.C. Calkins and Samuel B. Brierly. Calkins dreamed of Kingston as a resort town for vacationers from Seattle. Calkins called it "the Monterey of Washington". Calkins had drawings and designs for a giant hotel on the waterfront, with a boat launch, a church on the hill, and a college. After Calkins and Brierly platted the town, a lower than expected number of people showed up to settle there. Calkins then gave up and left. The town slowly grew, but not at the pace that Calkins had dreamed.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.

Other cities in Washington

• Seattle 737,015
• Spokane 228,989
• Tacoma 219,346
• Vancouver 190,915
• Bellevue 151,854
• Kent 136,588
• Everett 110,629
• Renton 106,785

All Washington cities →