Bottle Beach State Park History

Bottle Beach State Park’s sweeping shoreline provides a window into one of the most important shorebird feeding area on the Pacific Coast. Grays Harbor attracts more than a million birds each spring and up to 20 percent of these migrating birds use the area just off Bottle Beach, peaking in late April and early May. Shorebirds are attracted to this spot because the mudflats just offshore host abundant shrimp-like Corophium amphipods for them to eat. The rich supply of amphipods, up to 55,000 per square meter, is unique along the Pacific Coast. Birds may spend several days feeding and resting near Bottle Beach to regain weight lost in the flight from South America before continuing to breeding grounds far to the north.

Indigenous Lands

The park lies within the traditional territories of Coast Salish Indigenous people whose present-day descendants include members of the Confederated Tribes of the Chehalis Reservation, Shoalwater Bay Indian Tribe, and Quinault Indian Nation. For thousands of years this area has provided habitat for a diverse community of life that forms the basis of their cultures. The birdlife that Bottle Beach has become renowned for features prominently in the lifeways of local tribes. Birds are central characters in oral traditions and are used for food, clothing, bedding, decoys and even whistles.

Local tribes refused to accept the conditions proposed by Washington Territorial Governor Isaac Stevens at the Chehalis River Treaty Council in February 1855. Subsequently, title to the land was relinquished to the US federal government and the Chehalis Reservation was established by executive order of Secretary of the Interior J. P. Usher on July 8, 1864. On September 22, 1866, President Andrew Johnson established the Shoalwater Bay Reservation by executive order.

Government surveys were completed in 1858 and much of the land in today’s park passed into private ownership as Military Scrip Warrants, a grant of land from the public domain in recognition of military service. Abram B. Moses served as a first lieutenant in the Ohio Volunteers in the Mexican American War. His grant was inherited by Reuben Redman, who settled on the property in 1866. Daniel Roudebush served as a teamster with the Ohio Militia in the War of 1812. His grant was awarded to his children Daniel Jr., Lurinda, and Philip in 1867.

Ocosta-By-The-Sea

The Roudebush family sold the land to others and Reuben Redman moved on to real estate pursuits elsewhere in Grays Harbor County, leaving his name on the cattail-lined slough that passes through today’s Bottle Beach State Park. In 1884, Royal Austin and his wife Manda received a Cash Entry Patent for about 20 acres near the former Roudebush and Redman properties. When the Northern Pacific Railroad (NP) announced in 1889 that it was seeking a rail terminus at Grays Harbor for its transcontinental line, Royal Austin recruited local investors to promote a proposed terminus near his property. Developing their marketing strategy, they chose the name “Ocosta-By-The-Sea,” a modification of the Spanish word “La Costa” (The Coast).

Incorporating as the Ocosta Land Company, they purchased much of the surrounding land and began a successful campaign to convince NP decision-makers to select Ocosta as the Pacific Ocean terminus of its railroad in exchange for half of the townsite property they had acquired. The City of Aberdeen was unwilling to offer incentives to the NP, also influencing the selection of Ocosta. The town’s promoters constructed plank walkways and fastened cut trees to the stringers to add appeal when they opened land sales on May 9, 1890. On the first day of sales, over 300 lots were sold. The first train reached Ocosta on June 26, 1892, and by November 1892, Ocosta boasted an ice plant, shingle mill and the Grays Harbor Brewing Company, which sold its product in distinctive ceramic bottles.

Unfortunately, railroad engineers had not realized the instability of local soils, so much of the route approaching Ocosta experienced frequent landslides and sinking rails. The 2,900-foot wharf built out over the mudflats to allow shipping was difficult to maintain. When the national economic downturn of the Panic of 1893 began to be felt, the railroad moved its transcontinental terminus to Tacoma. Ocosta began a long slump into obscurity. The town disincorporated in 1932 when it could no longer pay its debts and nearly all buildings from the town were removed or demolished.

The place acquired the name “Bottle Beach” as beachcombers discovered the detritus of the vanished development. In October 2007, area residents met for a “Fireside Chat” hosted by the Westport-South Beach Historical Society to share stories about the rise and fall of Ocosta-By-The-Sea. Among the many memories, Irene Graham Hollingsbrook recalled digging for ceramic beer bottles on her grandparents property near the former site of the brewery.

Preserving a Birding Paradise

Many years after the efforts of Ocosta’s boosters crumbled, a new group of individuals began to advocate for preservation of the area as a state park. Biologists from regional colleges and universities had begun to study its importance for resting and feeding migratory birds. Local birding organizations encouraged field trips to the site. Ruby Egbert, a librarian at the Washington State Library in Olympia, emerged as an influential spokesperson for the effort to protect the area and highlighted opportunities to view the seasonal gatherings of migrating birds at Bottle Beach. The Washington State Parks and Recreation Commission (WSPRC) obtained grant funding for land purchases from the Washington Wildlife and Recreation Program (WWRP).  Ruby Egbert also made a generous donation to cover the difference between the purchase price and appraised value of a parcel purchased in 1997 to complete the new park. Over 90% of the park area was designated as the Ruby Egbert Natural Area by the WSPRC in 2007, honoring her efforts by classifying the land for preservation, restoration and interpretation of natural processes while providing for low-intensity outdoor recreation activities.

Additional grant funding was obtained from WWRP to complete a trailhead parking lot, nearly one mile of gravel and boardwalk trails, a bridge over Redman Slough and wildlife viewing platforms and blinds. The park was dedicated on July 9, 2009, becoming one of Washington’s newest state parks.