PHOTO BY PETER JAMES
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A small town with a big reputation
AMONG OUR WATERSIDE GEMS IS FAIRHAVEN, A HISTORIC PART OF BELLINGHAM. It was founded as its own town in the 1880s by Daniel Jefferson Harris, an entrepreneur and convicted felon nicknamed “Dirty Dan.” Fairhaven immortalizes Dirty Dan with a bronze statue that sits in the middle of the Fairhaven Green, where on summer Saturdays, locals and visitors alike gather to watch movies together after sundown. The town’s name comes from a translation of its indigenous name, “see-see-lich-em,” meaning safe port. Fairhaven was originally a predominantly fishing-based economy before being amalgamated with Bellingham in the early 1900s. While Fairhaven no longer is the thriving commercial fishing hub of yesteryear, it still has a vibrant marine industrial and transportation base. The Bellingham Cruise Terminal is the gateway terminal for the Alaska Marine Highway and also serves as a jumping off point for whale watching companies and water taxis to the San Juan Islands. Fairhaven is either the first or the last U.S. stop on
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