On January 6, 1943 a Lotan Fuel Company truck was crossing the belt line tracks near 2500 East 11th Street on the tideflats when it was hit broadside by a Municipal Belt Line train engine. The engine was knocked off the tracks, and the truck ended up laying on its side, its load of fuel wood dumped onto the tracks. Surprisingly, no one in either the truck or the engine was injured. (T.Times, 1/7/1943 p.16)

Railroad accidents--Tacoma; Municipal Belt Line (Tacoma); Trucks--Tacoma--1940-1950; Lotan Fuel Co. (Tacoma);

Truck loaded with fuel wood overturned by Municipal Belt Line train engine number 1627 on 11th Street on January 6, 1943. Small crowd of men gathered around accident site near Tacoma Lumber Co. and Birchfield Boiler. The collision between the train and the small Lotan Fuel Co. truck did not result in any injuries. Estimated damages were not listed at the time of the Tacoma Times brief article dated January 7, 1943. (T.Times, 1-7-43, p. 6)

Railroad accidents--Tacoma; Municipal Belt Line (Tacoma); Trucks--Tacoma--1940-1950; Lotan Fuel Co. (Tacoma);

While taking photographs of a railroad accident at 24th and Bay St., the Richards photographer captured this image of railroad cars and tracks on the Tideflats in October of 1942.

Railroads--Tacoma; Railroad tracks--Tacoma;

On October 15, 1942, a southbound Great Northern freight engine derailed and fell over on its side at 24th and Bay St. Six railroad cars piled up behind the derailed engine. Luckily the train was moving slowly and the engineer and the crew had time to leap to safety. Engineer R. Ritter and Fireman August Zueger, both of Seattle, were able to crawl out of the cab of the locomotive. (T. Times 10/16/1942. pg. 1; TNT 10/16/1942, pg. 1)

Railroads--Tacoma; Railroad tracks--Tacoma; Railroad accidents--Tacoma; Disasters--Tacoma; Railroad locomotives; Great Northern Railway Co. (Tacoma);

Steam escaped from a Great Northern freight locomotive after the southbound train derailed at 24th and Bay St. on October 15, 1942, and fell over on its side. Six cars piled up behind the derailed engine. Over 100 feet of track were torn up in the mishap, but luckily no one was hurt. The locomotive, known as the Extra 3210, was scheduled only to pause in Tacoma for the coupling of a helper engine. The train was past the Reservation Junction, on the east city outskirts, and had reached the line leading to the drawbridge when the locomotive and tender turned over on their sides. The cause of the accident was unknown at the time the story ran in the newspaper. (TNT 10/16/1942, pg. 1; T. Times 10/16/1942, pg. 1)

Railroads--Tacoma; Railroad tracks--Tacoma; Railroad accidents--Tacoma; Disasters--Tacoma; Railroad locomotives; Great Northern Railway Co. (Tacoma);

Exterior view of the Great Northern Railroad Ticket Office. Remodeled storefront with neon signage and a display for the Great Northern's "Empire Builder" in the window. The office was located in the Drury building. It was part of Transportation Row, 112-18 So. 9th St., which housed the ticket offices of the Northern Pacific, Great Northern, Union Pacific, and Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul railroads.

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960; Facades--Tacoma--1950-1960; Ticket offices; Window displays; Great Northern Railway Co. (Tacoma);

Interior of the remodeled Great Northern Railroad Ticket Office in November of 1942. Pictured are the long, curved ticket counter with agents seated at the desks lying beyond. Three large landscape paintings decorate the walls. The office was located in the Drury building. It was part of "Transportation Row," 112-18 So. 9th St., which housed the ticket offices of all area railroads.

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960; Ticket offices; Great Northern Railway Co. (Tacoma);

Interior of the remodeled Great Northern Railroad Ticket Office in November of 1942. Pictured are the long, curved ticket counter with the agents' desks lying beyond. Three large landscape paintings decorate the walls. The office was located in the Drury building. It was part of "Transportation Row," 112-18 So. 9th St., which housed the ticket offices of all area railroads.

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960; Ticket offices; Great Northern Railway Co. (Tacoma);

Window Display at Union Pacific Railroad Office. Promotion for Streamliner Passenger Rail Service from Tacoma to Portland in center, small World War II poster at left and timetable at right for service from Tacoma to Chicago and return. The office was housed in the Drury building. The main address for the office was 112-18 So. 9th St. Known as Transportation Row, it housed the offices of the Northern Pacific, Great Northern, Union Pacific and Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul railroads from 1926-1975. The office had been remodeled in May of 1942.

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Union Pacific Railroad Co. (Tacoma); Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Window Display at Union Pacific Railroad ticket office. Promotion for Streamliner Passenger Rail Service from Tacoma to Portland in center, small World War II poster at right. The office was housed in the Drury building. The main address for the office was 112-18 So. 9th St. Known as Transportation Row, it housed the offices of the Northern Pacific, Great Northern, Union Pacific and Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul railroads from 1926-1975. The office had been remodeled in May of 1942.

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Union Pacific Railroad Co. (Tacoma); Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Interior of the remodeled Union Pacific Railroad Ticket Office. Pictured are the ticket counter, promotional materials, paintings on walls and desks for the agents. The office was housed in the Drury building. The main address for the office was 112-18 So. 9th St. Known as Transportation Row, it housed the offices of the Northern Pacific, Great Northern, Union Pacific and Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul railroads from 1926-1975. The office had been remodeled in May of 1942.

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Union Pacific Railroad Co. (Tacoma); Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960; Facades--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Window display at the Union Pacific Railroad Office. The office was located in the Drury Building, designed by Heath, Gove and Bell, Architects. The window display was urging Americans to keep fit by hunting in Sun Valley, Idaho. Known as Transportation Row, offices at 112-18 So. 9th St. housed the ticket offices of the Northern Pacific, Great Northern, Union Pacific and Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroads from 1926-1975. The offices were remodeled in May of 1942.

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Union Pacific Railroad Co. (Tacoma); Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960; Facades--Tacoma--1950-1960; Ticket offices; Window displays--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Window display at the Union Pacific Railroad Office promoting skiing in Sun Valley, Idaho. The office was located in the Drury Building, designed by Heath, Gove and Bell, Architects. Known as Transportation Row, offices at 112-18 So. 9th St. housed the offices of the Northern Pacific, Great Northern, Union Pacific and Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroads from 1926-1975. The offices were remodeled in May of 1942.

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Union Pacific Railroad Co. (Tacoma); Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960; Facades--Tacoma--1950-1960; Ticket offices; Window displays;

Great Northern Railroad caboose in freight yard number X621. Other railroad cars are in the background.

Railroad cabooses--Tacoma; Railroad tracks--Tacoma; Railroad companies--Tacoma; Railroads--Tacoma; Great Northern Railway Co. (Tacoma);

Interior of office, Great Northern. Employees help individuals with tickets and travel plans. Other employees talk on the phone or handle other office duties. There is a long, curved counter to handle inquiries. (alternate address 112-18 So. 9th)

Railroads--Tacoma--1940-1950; Great Northern Railway Co. (Tacoma); Ticket offices--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Interior of office, Great Northern. Employees help individuals including two nuns and a soldier with tickets and travel plans. Other employees handle other work at their desks. (alternate address 112-18 So. 9th)

Railroads--Tacoma--1940-1950; Great Northern Railway Co. (Tacoma); Ticket offices--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Televed, Inc., Railway Exchange Building, Chicago, Illinois, for Mr. D.A. Highet. Three men with a gasoline-powered generator, on a movable housing made for riding on railroad tracks, which also has wheels with tires on one end to be pulled by trailer.

Railroad tracks--Tacoma; Railroad construction & maintenance--Tacoma; Electric generators--Tacoma; Laborers--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Televed, Inc., Railway Exchange Building, Chicago, Illinois, for Mr. D.A. Highet. A gasoline-powered generator, on a movable housing made for riding on railroad tracks sits on one set of track while an engine and railroad cars head toward the camera from the opposite direction.

Railroad tracks; Railroads; Electric generators;

Televed, Inc., Railway Exchange Building, Chicago, Illinois, for Mr. D.A. Highet. An unidentified worker operates an electric tool, grinding or cutting a rail, powered by a gasoline-powered generator. Photograph was taken on September 5, 1945.

Railroad tracks; Railroads; Electric generators;

Firemen Wally Johnson, of the Milwaukee Road, poses with the grateful woman that he rescued. Johnson scooped her up off the track, saving her life. The pair pose standing in front of a train. Chicago Milwaukee St. Paul Railways had made Tacoma its chief manufacturing point in the west. They had 300 acres with an extensive work shop and terminals, located near the tideflats. They offered transcontinental service and daily departures to Chicago.

Railroad employees; Aged persons--Tacoma; Railroad locomotives--Tacoma; Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad Co. (Tacoma);

This photograph, which dates from around 1890, was reproduced by Richards Studio in March of 1946 under the direction of Ernest G. Heinrich, the owner of Heinrich Locker & Ice Co. It is a view of a man with two boys, wearing hats, sitting by railroad tracks. Ernest Heinrich is the boy seated on the lap of Bill Plummer. Mr. Plummer was the bridge watchman for the St. Paul & Duluth Railroad Bridge across the St. Croix River in Rushseba Minnesota, Chisago County. The other boy is unidentified. The trio are at the ferry landing. TPL-3566

Railroad tracks; Children & adults; Smokestacks; Heinrich, Ernest G.--Family;

30,000 pounds of butter arrived in a Santa Fe refrigerated car for Franklin Food Stores in July 1946. This photograph was featured in an advertisement for Franklin Food Stores. With every fifty cent or more purchase of groceries or meats, you could buy one pound of "Fresh and Sweet, High 92 Score" butter for sixty nine cents (T. Times, 07/17/1946, p. 2).

Railroad cars--Tacoma; Advertisements--Tacoma; Advertising--Tacoma; Publicity; Butter; Franklin Food Stores (Tacoma);

Northern Pacific Railway was awarded the President's Safety Plaque for 1945 for practicing the virtues of safety. In 1945 the Tacoma Northern Pacific shops only had one accident. View of plaque awarded with H. J. McLain (fifth from left), G. L. Ernstron (fourth from right), C. T. Dewitt (third from left) and J. J. Schmidt on right side (T. Times, 5/9/46, p. 5).

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Railroad shops & yards--Tacoma; Plaques--Tacoma; Northern Pacific Railway Co. (Tacoma);

Northern Pacific Railway was awarded the President's Safety Plaque for 1945 for practicing the virtues of safety. G. L. Ernstrom, General Mechanical Superintendent for the company came from St. Paul, Minnesota to present the award. View of ceremony with Northern Pacific shop employees gathered to celebrate the honors (T. Times, 5/9/46, p. 5).

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Railroad shops & yards--Tacoma; Rites & ceremonies--Tacoma; Celebrations--Tacoma; Northern Pacific Railway Co. (Tacoma);

Northern Pacific Railroad officials from Seattle and St. Paul, Minnesota came to Tacoma in May of 1946 to present the company's "president's safety plaque" to the workers at the Northern Pacific shops in South Tacoma, 5200 South Proctor St. The Tacoma shops had had an almost spotless safety record for over three years. In 1945 they recorded only one on-the-job injury; during the first four month of 1946 there were no injuries recorded. This safety record included all the departments at the Tacoma facility from locomotive and car repair, to the rolling mill and the wheel shop. The NP shops in Tacoma closed in July of 1974. (T. Times, 5/9/46, p. 5).

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Railroad shops & yards--Tacoma; Rites & ceremonies--Tacoma; Celebrations--Tacoma; Northern Pacific Railway Co. (Tacoma);

Northern Pacific Railway was awarded the President's Safety Plaque for 1945 for practicing the virtues of safety. View of ceremony with Northern Pacific shop employees gathered to celebrate the honors given to them for their outstanding record. Machine Shop No. 1 and Office buildings in background (T. Times, 5/9/46, p. 5). TPL-8021

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Railroad shops & yards--Tacoma; Rites & ceremonies--Tacoma; Celebrations--Tacoma; Northern Pacific Railway Co. (Tacoma);

Northern Pacific Railway was awarded the President's Safety Plaque for 1945 for practicing the virtues of safety. Northern Pacific employees were paid compliments for their safety consciousness. View of ceremony with Northern Pacific shop employees gathered to celebrate the honors (T. Times, 5/9/46, p. 5).

Railroad companies--Tacoma; Railroad shops & yards--Tacoma; Rites & ceremonies--Tacoma; Laborers--Tacoma; Celebrations--Tacoma; Northern Pacific Railway Co. (Tacoma);

A. H. Cox & Co. at St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. logging operation at Puyallup. St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber also has a plant in Olympia, plywood is manufactured in that plant, then sent to the Tacoma retail yard. View of logging camp grounds where laborers sleeping quarters are located, mountain view in background.

Railroad tracks--Puyallup; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; St. Paul & Tacoma Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Rainier, Mount (Wash.);

One hundred fifty members of the Tacoma Eagles Aerie No. 3 will be visiting the Spokane Chapter. They will board a special train at the Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul and Pacific passenger depot and head towards Spokane. This will be the largest visit in the Tacoma Eagles history. View of Eagles making arrangements prior to their departure, names appear in newspaper (T. Times, 2/14/47, p. 4).

Railroad locomotives--Tacoma; Railroad cars--Tacoma; Fraternal organizations--Tacoma; Fraternal Order of Eagles Aerie No. 3 (Tacoma); Chicago, Milwaukee, St. Paul & Pacific Railroad Co. (Tacoma);

These twin locomotive cylinders were constructed at the Northern Pacific Railroad Shops in South Tacoma. Normally the cylinders would be cast in one piece and machined in locomotor plants in the east. Because it would cost too much and take too long to order the cylinders, shop superintendent H.J. McLain drew up plans and had castings made by Atlas Foundry and Machine Company. The castings were machined in the Northern Pacific Railroad shops. This was the first time anyone had manufactured these parts in the northwest. The man sits on top of the cylinder assembly may be Mr. McLain. (T.Times, 5/8/1947, p.6)

Northern Pacific Railway Co. (Tacoma); Atlas Foundry & Machine Co. (Tacoma); Railroad shops & yards--Tacoma--1940-1950; Railroad locomotives--Tacoma--1940-1950;