Our knowledge of the Chambers Creek Regional Park history has been almost entirely assembled by one of the Foundation's founding members and long-time board member Joe Scorcio, who managed the site's transition from a gravel mine into the beautiful public space you see today.

Sadly, Joe passed away earlier this month. It seems fitting to dedicate this upcoming 2024 news series, which will will come out in our newsletters and posted to our website’s news page, to Joe’s memory and acknowledge our debt to his longtime service and sharing of his deep knowledge.

Joe Scorcio was an expert in the field of urban planning and design and he was also a visionary and motivating force that helped make Chambers Creek Regional Park a reality. He began his Pierce County work on the park in 1986 and he was still working on it with the Foundation until he became ill.

It has been an honor for all of us who have served on the Foundation’s Board — both past and present — to work with Joe as either the Pierce County Liaison to the Board or as a board member.

Spectacular views of Mount Rainier. Roughly 930 acres of creek-, canyon- and saltwater shoreline-filled land in an urban setting where dogs walk, people golf, and kites and kids fill up the summer skies and grass. That’s how we know Chambers Creek Regional Park today. But how did we get to this point? Turns out, there’s a long and interesting history behind the area dating back thousands of years.

Prehistory

Numerous cultural resource studies conducted on-site over the years show a diverse archaeological record of hunter-gatherers dating back some 10,000 years. More recently and specifically, the Steilacoom people had their main village located at the mouth of Chambers Bay.

The Steilacoom

The Puget Salish-speaking Steilacoom shared the same language with the nearby Puyallup and Nisqually people and were closely associated with the two. The Steilacoom village, Ste!le'lqub, filtered out from the bay up both sides of Chambers Creek. There, villagers fished the creek and bay for salmon, herring, flounder, cod, and perch. They also harvested shellfish, plants, berries, and acorns, and hunted bear, elk, deer, and waterfowl. The Steilacoom Tribe continues to move forward and is led by tribal citizens and their Steilacoom Tribal Council. Learn more here.

European Settlers Arrive

As was the case with much of the Pacific Northwest and beyond, the Hudson’s Bay Company was responsible for bringing the first-known European settlers to the area. In the 1830s, the British trading company established a post at the mouth of nearby Sequalitchew Creek and began branching out, acquiring land via the newly established Puget Sound Agricultural Company. The company also began to build more permanent structures, many of which became part of British Fort Nisqually.

Honoring Joe Scorcio

Looking Back — The History of Chambers Creek Regional Park