NS Bremerton, WA Installation Guide

Population assigned-served:  51,600 (est),
Active Duty Military:         7,125,
Family Members:              10,800 (est),
Area Military Retirees:      14,500 (est),
Civilian Employees:          10,371 (Combined total for the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, Naval Base Kitsap-Bremerton, Fleet Industrial Supply Center Puget Sound and smaller tenant commands onboard the Bremerton Naval Complex)

Base telephone operator access: (360) 476-3711, DSN 439-3711

BASE HISTORY

On September 16, 1891, Lt. Ambrose Wyckoff invested less than $10,000 when he purchased 190 acres of the Pacific Northwest wilderness and established the first Naval Station Puget Sound in Bremerton.  As the maintenance needs of the Navy grew in the Pacific Ocean in the early 1900's, the Naval Station became the Naval Shipyard.  During World War I, the Shipyard constructed 25 sub-chasers, 2 minesweepers, 2 ammunition ships, 6 submarines, 7 ocean-going tugs and 1700 small boats.  Between the war years of 1920-1940, the Shipyard improved its capabilities enabling it to serve a key role in the important years to come.  Until 1941, the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard remained the only West Coast Battle- ship Repair Facility in the Navy.  Following the United States entry into World War II, the Shipyard was able to repair and modernize all five surviving battleships from the attack on Pearl Harbor.  Throughout the war, the Naval Shipyard repaired, overhauled and refitted hundreds of U.S. and Allied forces ships, including: 26 battleships, 18 aircraft carriers, 3 cruisers, and 79 destroyers.  Nearly one third of the 1,006 ships in the U.S. fleet were serviced by the Shipyard.  In addition, the Shipyard constructed a number of new cruisers and destroyers.  By 1945, the wartime workforce had reached more than 32,000 personnel. During the 1950's, the Shipyard's major effort was the extensive program of converting the older aircraft carriers conventional flight decks to angle decks as the Navy entered the era of jet powered aircraft.  With the start of the Korean Conflict, PSNS was also busy in the reactivation of ships and in 1957 entered into an era of new shipbuilding with the construction of the KING and COONTZ classes of guided missile frigates.  Between 1917 and 1969, a total of 85 ships were constructed at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard including the largest vessels on the West Coast, the Sacramento-Class Combat Support (AOE) ships.  In 1961, the Shipyard was certified as a nuclear repair facility, enabling it to perform the overhauling of the new Polaris Fleet Ballistic Missile (FBM) nuclear-powered submarines. The Shipyard is the Pacific Northwest's largest Naval Shore Activity, and one of Washington State's largest industrial installations, both in terms of plant investment and in the number of civilian personnel employed.  Its current mission includes performing overhauls and repair of all sizes and types of ships in the Navy, submarine and surface ship recycling, and serving as a major Planning Yard function.  Over the last decade, the Navy has invested over $85 million in "Quality of Life" improvements at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard and Naval Base Kitsap - Bremerton complex.

The Naval Sea Systems Command Detachment, Naval Inactive Ship Maintenance Office (NISMO) provides for inactivation, maintenance, cannibalization, disposal and preparation for reactivation of assigned vessels.

Puget Sound Naval Shipyard is proud of its history as a naval presence on the West Coast since 1891.  The Shipyard has the distinction of having a listed National Historic Landmark District located in the Controlled Industrial Area along the waterfront.  The District contains 11 industrial buildings, five dry docks, five piers, the Hammerhead Crane and numerous pieces of historical machinery. Currently,  Naval Base Kitsap - Bremerton and Puget Sound Naval Shipyard together hold over 100 properties that are now considered historical.

The Naval Shipyard also has one listed National Historic Landmark District located inside the Controlled Industrial Area (CIA) adjacent to the waterfront area.  This district contains eleven industrial buildings, five dry docks (including the worlds second largest dry dock), five piers, the Hammerhead Crane and numerous pieces of historical machinery. Currently, Naval Base Kitsap- Bremerton and Naval Shipyard together hold over 100 properties that are now considered historical.

On October 1, 1998, Naval Base Kitsap - Bremerton was commissioned as the Navy's newest homeport.  It encompasses the former Military Support Area of PSNS which includes all piers for the five homeported ships and the Inactive Ships Maintenance Office, Bachelor Quarters (five BEQ and one BOQ), Chapel, Fleet & Family Information Center, MWR facilities, NEX and Commissary, and the Personnel Support Activity Detachment (PSD).  Naval Base Kitsap - Bremerton is also home to four National Historic Register Districts: Radio Station, Officers Row, Marine Reservation, and the Naval Hospital Reservation.  Naval Base Kitsap - Bremerton is homeport to the USS Carl Vinson (CVN70), USS Camden (AOE 2), & will soon be the home of the USS John Stennis(05).  Naval Base Kitsap - Bremerton also over sees Jackson Park Housing area with over 800 family homes, a state of the art recreational area and a DON Child Development Center right  in the neighborhood.
In March of 1999, the new Fleet Support Building opened.  It hosts the following activities: Personnel Support Activity Detachment (PSD), FISC Personnel Property Department the Battle force Integration Training Facility which features video tele-training of all types to keep the Sailors proficient in their skills.  In addition, the building also features 4-in-1 classrooms plus a 200+ seat auditorium (with 8 handicapped spaces) that regularly shows free 8 mm films, some of the newest releases.The combined Naval Base Kitsap - Bremerton/Puget Sound Naval Shipyard complex is located 10 miles directly west of Seattle and 30 miles northwest of Tacoma. The Washington State Ferry System runs average about every hour and 20 minutes between Pier 56 in downtown Seattle and the new downtown Bremerton terminal.
     The main gate to the complex is on Naval Avenue, located one mile west of the ferry terminal off Burwell Street and is open 24 hours daily. The downtown gate for the Shipyard is one block from the ferry terminal but is only accessible for official business with prior authorization.
     From the Seattle-Tacoma (Sea-Tac) International Airport, proceed out to Interstate 5 (South) to Tacoma for 26 miles, then west on State Highway 16 for a scenic 30 minute drive to Highway 3 (North). The west end of the base and most of the Inactive Fleet will be visible along the waterfront. The base complex is small (1100 acres) and is congested. Parking is limited and tightly controlled. Security access inside the Naval Shipyard Controlled Industrial Area (CIA) portion of the complex is tightly controlled with the wearing of Security Area Control Badges (SACB's) worn, and always visible, at all times. The Kitsap Airporter bus service runs  20 hours daily (0520-1230) to various dropoff points in the Bremerton area.

On June 1, 2004 Naval Station Bremerton's and Submarine Base Bangor were joined to become one regional base known as Naval Base Kitsap.  Puget Sound Naval Shipyard operates as a seperate unit.