Parked in front of the Nereides Baths at Point Defiance Park in early September of 1918 was a Western Logging Company truck with a long pipe as cargo. The Nereides Baths opened in 1906 on a bluff above the boathouse. It had been designed by prominent Tacoma architect Frederick Heath and was constructed of logs, resembling a Swiss chalet. The pavilion had an indoor heated saltwater pool, the first indoor swimming pool in Tacoma. Swimmers rented gray cotton suits to frolic in the 80 degree water. The gray suits were required because the owners feared that colors would run and dye the water. "Admission to spectators" was listed as 10 cents in 1918. The baths were demolished in 1932. (thenewstribune.com, metroparkstacoma.org) G41.1-040, TPL-2799
Nereides Baths (Tacoma); Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Trucks--Tacoma--1910-1920; Pipes (Conduits)--Tacoma; Western Logging Co.;
With the Puget Sound as a backdrop, opening ceremonies for Camp Standby were held at Dash Point on June 20, 1919. Camp Standby was established for the girls of various War Camp Community Service Clubs to let them experience the great outdoors. The WCCS was formed in 1917 to organize recreational and social activities where servicemen and women could spend off duty time together. Major General W.H. Johnston delivered an address at the opening, praising the women of the WCCS for helping sustain morale during the Great War. Camp Standby could be accessed by dirt road or boat, the Chickawanna, enabling girls to live there during the summer and yet commute to work in the City. The tents, which could accommodate 50 girls, were divided into two company streets. They all faced the water. Activities offered included boating, swimming, dancing, tennis, baseball and volleyball. (TDL 6/19/1919, pg. 3; TNT 6-21-19, p. 7-article) G71.1-189
Camp Standby (Dash Point); Tents; Camping; War Camp Community Service (Tacoma);
1923 view of the Point Defiance Pagoda, then a streetcar depot. Its ornate, Japanese-styled roof, brick exterior, and view windows made the building a pleasant stopping point for park visitors. The convenience of streetcars to Point Defiance Park gave people the option of leaving their cars at home and enjoying the scenic route without the problems of driving. TPL-2360
On February 7, 1927, snow-capped Mount Tacoma (Rainier) is in stark contrast with the blackened fire damaged terrain below. This unidentified section of forest has been ravaged by flames leaving leafless branches and spindly reminders of trees. Photograph ordered by Cascade Lumber Co. G76.1-110
Jeff, a tiny ringtailed monkey, tips the scales at three pounds as he is being weighed in late November of 1927 at the Point Defiance Zoo. His keeper and "chef," Oscar M. Olson, stated that "Jeff" had gained three ounces over Thanksgiving so needed to go on a diet. Mr. Olson's unusual job as "chef" to the zoo's 17 monkeys and assorted inhabitants landed him on the front page of the November 26th News Tribune as #11 in "Tacoma's Strangest Jobs." The carefully monitored diet of his clientele included hothouse lettuce, tomatoes, raisin bread, Gig Harbor and Wenatchee apples, Yakima and Tacoma potatoes. Besides the monkeys, Mr. Olson also was in charge of the diets of the zoo's bears, deer, elk and buffalo. G68.1-169 (TNT 11-26-27, p. 1)
Olson, Oscar M.; Monkeys; Scales; Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma);
Boland Studios took a series of photographs on August 25, 1929, of Mount Rainier (then called Mount Tacoma by locals) from the viewpoint of Tipsoe Lake. This particular view shows trees thickly massed and craggy peaks. G76.1-118
Scene in an unidentified cemetery. Two graves are especially covered in blossoms on this September, 1927, day. These may have been recent interments as no headstones are visible. G21.1-142
This is Mount Tacoma (Rainier) during the springtime in 1929. It was still called Mount "Tacoma" by local residents and Tacoma newspapers during that period of time. G76.1-077
Mount Rainier (then called Mt. Tacoma by locals) has been superimposed in this February, 1930, photograph which featured the Science Hall located on the College of Puget Sound campus. The original picture had been taken on December 27, 1929, minus the mountain. (see Boland B21867) TPL-9311; G67.1-024 (Ad- TDL 4-29-30, Section 3, p. 4)
Rainier, Mount (Wash.); College of Puget Sound (Tacoma)--1930-1940; College of Puget Sound (Tacoma)--Buildings; Universities & colleges--Tacoma--1930-1940;
Undated photograph of Mount Tacoma (Rainier); copy made by Boland Studios on December 16, 1928. Traces of snow still cling to the mountainside. G76.1-070
Regent Park residents of all ages pitched in and helped to spruce up the Spring Lake area of their community on May 17, 1925. New shrubs and flowers were planted and watered and vegetation trimmed. Regents Park and its 306 residents would incorporate as the Town of Fircrest in September of 1925. G72.1-117 (TNT 5-18-25, p. 5-article on beautification project)
Regents Park (Fircrest); Real estate development--Fircrest; Urban beautification--Fircrest--1920-1930;
Indian cemetery. This was the Puyallup Indian cemetery located next to the Cushman Veterans Hospital, 2002 E. 28th St, as pictured in May of 1925. Indians under the direction of H.C. Sicade of Fife had spent the month cleaning and renovating the old cemetery. They graded, sown grass seed, planted new shrubs, installed a 600-foot wire fence, repaired 300-feet of old fence, and erected 500 marble monuments. Henry Sicade had secured a $3000 appropriation from the U.S. government for the complete renovation and restoration of the cemetery. There were about 2000 graves but many had been obliterated. Among those buried there were Chief Salatat, Chief Thomas Stolyer, Chief Sitwell, Chief Tommy Lane and Chief Leschi. The low-lying white fences surround the tribal cemetery have since been replaced by high stone walls. The small church next door was a Presbyterian mission founded in 1881 and since rebuilt. The Cushman Veterans (later Tacoma Indian Hospital) Hospital has been demolished. TPL-8741; G5.1-021 (photograph has black marks) (TNT 5-19-25, p. 11)
Puyallup Indian Cemetery (Puyallup); Cemeteries--Puyallup; Indian reservations--Puyallup;
Rose garden, Point Defiance Park. Point Defiance Park has more than an acre of rose gardens for the public to enjoy. This view of the park in 1924 shows gardens neatly laid out with benches strategically placed for people to sit and gaze at the many varieties of roses. The oldest of the gardens was planted in 1895. TPL-10531
Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Roses--Tacoma; Gardens--Tacoma--1920-1930;
Members of the community gathered on August 5, 1919, at the north end of Wright Park to listen to the first public children's "sing." 200 children had practiced for three months under the direction of Mrs. Zoe Pearl Park. Among the 2000 people in attendance were members of the military and undoubtedly proud parents and grandparents of the chorus. They would happily join in singing with the children some of the day's popular tunes. (TNT 8-6-19, p. 15; TDL 8-6-19, p. 1-article) G41.1-127A; TPL-939
Wright Park (Tacoma); Audiences--Tacoma--1910-1920; Concerts--Tacoma--1910-1920;
Packed bleachers and covered stand at Athletic Park. Spectators are there on August 16, 1924, to watch teams battle it out in the sixth round of baseball's City League. Athletic Park had a capacity of 4,500. G53.1-051 (print has been damaged)
Athletic Park (Tacoma); Athletic fields--Tacoma--1920-1930; Baseball--Tacoma--1920-1930;
Dining al fresco in heavily wooded Manitou Park on June 16, 1921 are two out-of-state tourists. Travelers came equipped with canvas tents, cooking supplies and even comfortable folding chairs all stuffed into their automobiles. Most visitors only stayed one night at the free campgrounds before moving on. 1921 was a busy summer camping season for Manitou Park: it was estimated that about 11,000 tourists visited the park in roughly 2,770 cars. It was a large increase from the previous year's totals of 3,600 visitors and 900 cars as word-of-mouth spread about the beauty of the Northwest and the welcome accommodations . (Tacoma Sunday Ledger, 6-19-21, E-7; TNT 7-18-21, p. 3-article; TNT 9-21-21, p. 8-article )
Camping--Tacoma--1920-1930; Manitou Park (Tacoma);
For over 60 years the Narcissa Whitman Fountain graced Wright Park. Erected in 1899 at a cost of $400, partially donated by the school children of Tacoma, the fountain was made of handsome bronzed iron with two gourd-like drinking cups within easy reach of the children for whom the fountain was intended. Atop the fountain stood the statue of a woman in Greek robes bearing a water vessel. The fountain was dedicated to Narcissa Whitman, a pioneer teacher and Christian missionary who was killed by the Cayuse Indians. The statue disappeared from the top of the fountain in the 1960s, and Metro Parks removed the fountain some years later. The Parks Department still has the fountain in storage. (Chechopoulos: History of Wright Park, p. 7-8) G41.1-125; TPL-486
Wright Park (Tacoma); Sculpture--Tacoma--1920-1930;
Mount Rainier (then called Mount Tacoma by locals) from the viewpoint of Tipsoe Lake. This photograph was taken in late August of 1929 but the mountain still has a cap of snow. G76.1-090
Mt. Rainier (then called Mt. Tacoma by locals) presents a wintery face upon Tacoma's downtown business district in February of 1930. The image of the mountain appears to have been altered to increase its grandeur. Major buildings before it were the Rust Building (950 Pacific Ave.) and the imposing 17-story Washington Building with the Brotherhood Bank neon rooftop sign (1019 Pacific Ave.). TPL-6713; G8.1-020
Rainier, Mount (Wash.); Cityscapes; Rust Building (Tacoma); Washington Building (Tacoma); Business districts--Tacoma--1930-1940;
This is the newly decorated Point Defiance Pavilion dining room, empty at the moment, but ready to greet Easter throngs in April of 1930. The park had formally opened for the summer season on April 20th. Besides the refurbishment of the Pavilion dining room, early spring blooms and spruced-up picnic grounds helped convey the brightness of a new season. (Tacoma Sunday Ledger, 4-20-30, 4C)
This may be the Nisqually Glacier as photographed by Marvin Boland on September 20, 1922. It is one of the larger glaciers on the southern side of Mt. Rainier (then called Mt. Tacoma by locals). G76.1-086 (print has been clipped on left corner)
This is the Point Defiance Pagoda as viewed in February of 1923. Built in 1914, the Point Defiance Pagoda with its ornate roof resembles a 17th century Japanese lodge. Its original use was as a streetcar station. Hard working Tacomans would flock to the park on Sundays, often the only day of rest, and were able to enjoy the elegant station with its couches, fireplace and comfortable chairs. The restrooms were truly awe inspiring with its enormous stalls, marble walls and in the ladies' room, an attendant equipped with hand towels. The streetcar station was in use until 1938 when motorized buses became common. Although the restrooms remained open for park visitors, the Pagoda slowly slipped into disrepair until a park district bond provided funds for restoration in the mid-80's. The Pagoda is still in use nearly a hundred years after its original construction as a beautiful site for weddings, receptions, banquets and family gatherings. G41.1-043 (Dutton: "Tacoma's Exotic Pagoda" Tacoma's Monthly, 2/94; www.metroparkstacoma.org)
Only the tip of Mt. Tacoma (Rainier) is visible among the clouds on this spring day in 1925. The view of The Mountain was taken from the Odd Fellows Temple in downtown Tacoma. Some of the prominent businesses/buildings noted are: Puget Sound National Bank Bldg on the far right edge; the towering Washington Building near center, the Winthrop Hotel at the left edge, and the Y.M.C.A. with its rooftop signage in the left foreground. G8.1-075
Rainier, Mount (Wash.); Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Washington Building (Tacoma); Puget Sound National Bank (Tacoma); Hotel Winthrop (Tacoma); Young Mens Christian Association (Tacoma);
A large group of children enjoy the refreshing coolness of the circular Lincoln Park wading pool in late July of 1926. Both swimming suits and regular play clothes are in evidence. Several trees provide shade on these hot summer days and the flower gardens in the background present both beauty and scent for the enjoyment of all. G41.1-011
Wading--Tacoma; Pools--Tacoma; Lincoln Park (Tacoma);
Concert at Wright Park. View of the many spectators watching children's concert; large flag hanging on line before the children. The first public children's "sing" was held on August 5, 1919, in Wright Park. It was enjoyed by about 2000 people who packed the north end of the park. The program was arranged and directed by Mrs. Zoe Pearl Park who had rehearsed the children for three months. Edward Benedict's "Tacoma, We're Proud of You" and "Keep the Home Fires Burning" were two popular numbers performed that evening. The large crowd pictured above also joined in singing the chorus of some of the songs. (TNT 8-6-19, p. 15) G41.1-127B, TPL-1463
Wright Park (Tacoma); Audiences--Tacoma--1910-1920; Concerts--Tacoma--1910-1920;
ca. 1900. This photograph of Wright Park, taken around 1900, accompanied an article entitled "Do You Remember" in a 1922 News Tribune. The newspaper had been running a nostalgic series of pictures of events and places of times past. In this view of Wright Park, taken from the east side of the park looking westward, the park appears a little sparse with many of the trees little more then saplings. Several people are using the rustic bridge to cross Bird Lake. The houses beyond the park are on South I Street between Division and 3rd. Most were already gone by 1922; the bridge was still there but had been reconstructed. The Tacoma-Pierce County Blood Bank now stands where several of these houses once stood. G41.1-123; TPL-987 (TNT 3-9-22, p. 11)
Framed by two towering firs, Mount Rainier (called Mount Tacoma by locals) still wears a cap of snow although it is August of 1929. This photograph was taken from the viewpoint of Tipsoe Lake, at the summit of Chinook Pass. G76.1-091 (see Boland , B21291, for another view of the mountain from Tipsoe Lake)
Mount Rainier (then called Mount Tacoma by locals) looms starkly in the background as it overlooks this small community of houses apparently on the Orting-Sumner highway. This photograph was believed to have been taken in May of 1929. G76.1-109 (Corrected identification provided by a reader)
