Identity area
Type of entity
Business
Authorized form of name
Griffin Fuel Company
Parallel form(s) of name
Standardized form(s) of name according to other rules
Other form(s) of name
- Griffin Galbraith Fuel Company
- Griffin Transfer Company
- Griffin Brothers
Identifiers for corporate bodies
Description area
Dates of existence
1889-1966
History
The Griffin Fuel Company originated in 1889 as the Griffin Transfer Company. Founder Fred L. Griffin started the company in the Tacoma tide flats, originally transporting ice within established Tacoma fuel yards. The company eventually became a supplier of heating and fuel products to a large portion of the Tacoma population. Griffin Fuel transported coal, wood, sawdust, “fuel oil,” “hog fuel,” and “Presto logs” within Tacoma and the surrounding area. In 1949, Griffin Fuel Company was considered the “oldest and largest exclusive fuel dealer in the west." (1)
In 1931, Fred L. Griffin passed away and was succeeded as owner by his son, Edwin “Ed” L. Griffin. By 1942, Ed and his brother Fred expanded the business by opening a wholesale location by the name of “Griffin Bros” in Seattle. Griffin Fuel Company also opened oil storage facilities in Tacoma’s Lake district in 1951.(2)
In 1954 President of the corporation James S. Griffin changed the corporate name to James S. Griffin Co., and the company name also changed to Griffin-Galbriath Fuel Company. On Sept. 8th, 1965 the James S. Fuel Company liquidated all corporate assets and sold all property and naming rights to the Standard Oil Company of California, Western Operations, Inc. The Washington State Department ratified the official dissolution of Griffin-Galbriath Fuel Company on Dec. 5th, 1966.(3)
Places
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Functions, occupations and activities
Mandates/sources of authority
Internal structures/genealogy
General context
Relationships area
Access points area
Subject access points
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Occupations
Control area
Authority record identifier
Institution identifier
Rules and/or conventions used
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Level of detail
Dates of creation, revision and deletion
Written by Zoe Ellis, 2022.
Language(s)
Script(s)
Sources
(1) "Griffin Fuel Co., Established 1889, Celebrates 60th Anniversary," TNT, 1/20/1949, p. 10.
(2) "New Storage Plant Opened in the Lake District," TNT 2/17/1951.
(3) Griffin Fuel Company Meeting Minutes, Volume 3, Griffin Fuel Company Records (Collection 2.4.2), Northwest Room at Tacoma Public Library.