ca. 1946. Employees at Carstens Packing company are finishing hundreds of sausages and are preparing them for curing. The woman on the farthest right is Emma Pease. The man wearing a white hat, seated third from right, is possibly Albert Knelleken. TPL-6601

Meat industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Sausages--Tacoma; Pease, Emma; Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma)--People;

Man standing with palomino horse at Carsten's Packing Co.

Palomino horse; Horses--Tacoma; Carsten's Packing Co. (Tacoma);

The Tacoma Post-war Jubilee Celebration had many parades, gatherings, contests and many other festivities during the ten day period. View of Carstens Packing Co. parade wagon, horses, and staff returning after the parade was wrapped up.

Carriages & coaches--Tacoma; Carts & wagons--Tacoma; Horses--Tacoma; Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma);

Young boys pose in front of Carstens Meat Packing Co. with a banner, "Future Farmers of American Pure Bred Livestock Project" and several young pigs. The pigs are shown in wooden crates and burlap bags. On May 23, 1942, the boys, members of the Future Farmers of America from Pierce and Kitsap counties, were presented with the young pure-bred female pigs. The pigs were donated by Sears, Roebuck and Co. in a national pig breeding project. Three male pigs were also donated in a "chain-litter" proposition. The females would be bred, and from each litter the boys would give 1-2 females to fellow FFA members. (T. Times 5/25/1942, pg. 12)

Future Farmers of America (Pierce County); Youth organizations--Pierce County; Swine; Sears, Roebuck & Co. (Tacoma); Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma); Meat industry--Tacoma--1940-1950;

On May 23, 1942, eighteen boys from Pierce and Kitsap Counties, members of the Future Farmers of America, were presented by Sears, Roebuck and Co. with young wiggling, squealing pure bred female pigs. The pigs came from the Carstens Packing Co. and the boys are photographed in front of the Carsten's general office. Three male pigs were also donated to the F.F.A. to be used in a "chain-litter" program. The pigs were to be bred and from each new litter, the boys were to donate 1 or 2 of the female piglets to fellow F.F.A. members. (T.Times 5/25/1942 p.12)

Future Farmers of America (Pierce County); Youth organizations--Pierce County; Swine; Sears, Roebuck & Co. (Tacoma); Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma); Meat industry--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Carstens Packing Co. building as viewed on October 13, 1932; two KMO antennae in sight. Completed in 1931, this $150,000 building housed the executive offices of the company. Despite the nation's economic woes, Carstens continued to do annual business of about 15 million dollars. TPL-5919; G34.1-166 (TDL 2-9-32, C-7-article & alternate photograph)

Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma); Meat industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Radio antennas--Tacoma;

Carstens Packing Co. crane with unidentified worker photographed in late August of 1926. The large meat packing firm was located in the Tideflats at 1623 East "J" St. TPL-5821; TPL-7935; G49.1-188; G34.1-165

Hoisting machinery; Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma);

Exterior view of large Carstens Packing Co. plant taken in mid-August of 1926. The meat packing firm was located at 1623 East "J" St. in the Tideflats, now the site of the Northwest Detention Center. Carstens relocated to Tacoma in 1903 and would later be known as the largest meat packing company on the West Coast with plants in Tacoma, Spokane and Seattle. In 1926 Carstens put forth plans to build a new four-story unit to hold the sausage factory, sausage coolers, lard refinery and smoke houses, beef coolers and beef sales coolers. The company sought to replace annually older, outdated buildings with permanent reinforced concrete construction. The gradual replacement meant that no sections of the plant would be out of commission before their replacements were erected. Fires in 1914, 1916 and shortly after caused the company to incur $750,000 in losses. The replacement of wooden buildings by concrete structures would make the plant more modernized as well as fireproof. (TDL 3-27-26, p. 10-article; TNT 3-31-27, p.6-article)

Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma); Meat industry--Tacoma--1920-1930;

These cattle were confined within the Carstens Packing Co.'s stockyards in July of 1926. Feeding troughs were built within the pens and many of the cattle pictured have their heads buried deep inside the bins. Carstens was a major meat packing firm located in the Tideflats since 1903. The stockyards had space for 1,200 cattle. The cattle would have been fattened up, slaughtered, and their meat processed by Carstens' large workforce. (TNT 3-31-27, p. 6-article on Carstens plant)

Cattle--Washington; Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma); Meat industry--Tacoma--1920-1930; Stockyards--Tacoma--1920-1930;

Unidentified Carstens Packing Co. employee stands in front of a heavy duty truck with trailer on July 10, 1926, at the company plant, 1623 East J St. in the Tideflats. The truck and accompanying trailer are labeled "Carstens Products" and state that the U.S. government has inspected meats processed by the firm. Customers could be assured that the meat was safe to eat, no small worry after the horrors of the meat packing industry uncovered decades before by novelist Upton Sinclair.

Trucks--Tacoma--1920-1930; Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma); Meat industry--Tacoma--1920-1930;

Dressed sides of beef hanging from hooks in a cold storage locker at Carstens Packing Co. Photograph taken in conjunction with Carsten's Open House, celebrating their 50th anniversary in the meat packing business. In 1903, Seattle butcher and German immigrant Thomas Carstens bought 12 deserted acres on the Tideflats, the former home of the old Pacific Meat Company's plant, and began setting up what would become the largest meat packing plant on the Pacific Coast. The company eventually branched out into three processing plants: Tacoma, Seattle & Spokane. It was a huge operation that raised its own livestock, slaughtered and processed it and sold it in their own retail outlets. The company founder died in 1931 and his sons, Thomas and Philip, took over the business until they sold it in 1954 to Hy-Grade Food Products Corp. of Detroit. Hy-Grade closed the plant in 1990, citing it as out dated and not complying with EPA standards. TPL-8123

Merchandise displays--Tacoma--1950-1960; Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma); Meat industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Dressed beef hangs from hooks at the Carstens meat packing plant. The meat is ready for final distribution in this chilled display of choice prime US Government graded Kimberley Fed Beef at Carstens, now part of the Hygrade Food Products Corporation. The meat comes direct from Hygrade's own feed lots. Carstens-Hygrade had served Tacoma for over half a century. In 1956, they employed 350 people in their Tacoma plant. (TNT 9/3/1956, pg. C-5) TPL-8127

Merchandise displays--Tacoma--1950-1960; Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma); Meat industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Carstens-Hygrade (Tacoma);

Carsten- Hygrade employees pose in the yard at the meat packing facility at 1623 East "J" St. According to Richards Studio notes, the picture is of 300-400 people. The locally owned Carstens Meat Packing got its start in Tacoma in 1903. In 1954, it was sold to the Hygrade Food Products Corporation. In 1990, the company made the decision to close its Tacoma plant.

Carstens Packing Co. (Tacoma); Meat industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Carstens-Hygrade (Tacoma)--Employees;

Circa 1910.

Carsten's Packing Company opened in Tacoma in 1903 at 1623 East "J" Street. It became part of Hygrade Food Products in 1954, and closed in 1990. circa 1909.