William James Bookseller

William James Bookseller William James Bookseller, established in 1987, is located at 829 Water Street in historic Port Townsend

Saltfire Theatre’s Much Ado About Nothing has wrapped up and our hours are back to normal (open Mo, Th, Fr, Sa, Su).Our ...
04/15/2026

Saltfire Theatre’s Much Ado About Nothing has wrapped up and our hours are back to normal (open Mo, Th, Fr, Sa, Su).

Our hard working crew is back in action.

Always reading on the job.
02/25/2026

Always reading on the job.

Bibliophiles,We are open a day earlier than scheduled! Hurrah! In time for V-Day.“He loved books, those undemanding but ...
02/14/2026

Bibliophiles,

We are open a day earlier than scheduled! Hurrah! In time for V-Day.

“He loved books, those undemanding but faithful friends” - Victor Hugo

*art a Victor Hugo Valentine - Kate Gavink (2020)*

Less interesting (but more important) logistical stuff:Temporarily ClosedFeb 1st - Feb 15th (?)William James Bookseller ...
02/01/2026

Less interesting (but more important) logistical stuff:

Temporarily Closed
Feb 1st - Feb 15th (?)

William James Bookseller will be temporarily closed while we transition to new ownership!

The 15th is malleable, it’s possible we open back up sooner (we await the technical documents and these things, being only a little Byzantine, take time to process).

Bibliophiles and various book-bosomed people,Rose and I (Ryan) have taken ownership of William James Books and would lik...
02/01/2026

Bibliophiles and various book-bosomed people,

Rose and I (Ryan) have taken ownership of William James Books and would like to say a bit of a hello!

We are not, generally speaking, business people and this is our first endeavour of that sort. We have been working with Paul for a few weeks, learning the ropes. It’s a stirring and daunting adventure and we are incredibly excited. In fact our first foray into this book business and first big decision was a general strike - hopefully it is smoother sailing from here - yet this community has already shown that it is solid and united in many ways.

We want to give an enormous thank you to Paul & Michelle - not only for their faith in us, but for their handling of this treasure of Port Townsend and their excellent stewardship of this nearly forty year old bookshop (and a thanks to Jim for establishing this place to begin with). They helped make WJB a comforting and welcoming local gem and their book knowledge, curating, and skill cannot easily be surpassed.

We will do our best to keep this place as wonderful as it was under their care. To maintain a welcoming place, with the idea that the written word - books - can and should unite us, provide us information and give us sources for common cause and common ground. We can find our collective humanity in the humble book, we can expand our minds and travel even if we physically cannot. The book can be a sword and shield against ignorance and no algorithm can dictate it.

Rose (Burt) is a Port Townsend-er from childhood, was editor of Strait Up Magazine & she is a local artist and actress to boot. I, Ryan, am an Appalachian expat, a Pennsylvania Dutchman who, by chance and many adventures, has ended up in Port Townsend. We are joined by Micki & David as well as Sylvan (who, being a baby and due to child labor laws, will not be selling books) in this family venture.

Come read with us!

Joining a general strike is far from the first ‘business’ decision Rose and I thought we’d need to make.I am not one for...
01/30/2026

Joining a general strike is far from the first ‘business’ decision Rose and I thought we’d need to make.

I am not one for hyperbole, I think, yet the days and actions by the powers of this country have us extremely concerned. There is no delusion of grandeur that this will break through any blockade - but what little chips can be done, must be done.

With love and hope to all people in this land,
R&R

12/20/2022

We will be closed today due to the snow. Be safe out there!

07/22/2022

We will be closed July 26-28. Stay cool!

05/31/2022

We will be closed Friday and Saturday, June 10th-11th to celebrate graduation at the University of Washington.

10/28/2021

Hello book lovers! We will be closed from Nov. 1st - 15th. There will lots of exciting new inventory to browse when we reopen. Thank you.

RIP Lawrence Ferlinghetti.
02/23/2021

RIP Lawrence Ferlinghetti.

06/08/2020

Great news! We are reopening as of Tuesday, June 9th. For the time being we will generally be open from 12-4 Monday-Saturday. We are adhering to all applicable state and county COVID-19 guidelines, so there will be some new rules in place. Please bear with us as policies may change in this rapidly moving environment.

*All customers must wear a face covering inside the store.

*We will be limiting the number of people in the store at any one
time and are restricting groups to a maximum of 3 people.

*Please maintain at least 6 feet distance from other customers
whenever possible. If someone is already browsing in a section
you would like to see, please wait for them to leave.

We can't wait to see you!

Address

829 Water Street
Port Townsend, WA
98368

Website

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