The A A Insulation & Roofing Co. packed their small 1954 Tacoma Home Show exhibit booth with a variety of roofing, siding and foundation materials. Asphalt roofing manufactured by the U.S. Gypsum Co. in a number of colors plus asbestos cement siding samples and examples of weather stripping could all be viewed by home show customers. A rotting foundation could be easily replaced with cement blocks by A A Insulation. The company had two locations in this area, one was at 1502 South Tacoma Way and the other on Milwaukee Avenue in Puyallup. Their ad in the 1954 City Directory stated they provided "Always reliable and dependable service."

A A Insulation & Roofing Co. (Tacoma); Building materials; Roofing tiles; Exhibit booths--Tacoma; Greater Tacoma Home Show (Tacoma);

Interior of Bank of California building. Built in 1928 of Wilkeson sandstone and granite, the Bank of California building was designed in the Italian Renaissance style with interiors of walnut and Travertine masonry. This elevated view of the bank's lobby highlights the enormous skylight, arched windows, chandeliers and tiled flooring. John Graham was the architect involved in the Bank of California building and J.E. Bonnell & Son, contractors. TPL-8452

Bank of California National Association (Tacoma); Banks--Tacoma; Chandeliers;

This photograph from August, 1956 shows the Kegel's Furniture store at 105-11 South 11th Street shortly before the building was taken over by Selden's carpet and floor covering store. Kegel's, owned by Otto Kegel, had opened in 1938. Built in 1902, this building was demolished in November of 1975, and a parking garage was built on the lot in 1987.

Kegel's Inc. (Tacoma); Furniture stores--Tacoma--1950-1960;

The Auto Clinic, ordered by Bethlehem Pacific Coast Steel. This location combined an auto repair shop with a five story "pigeon hole" parking structure. A hydraulic lift was used to "park" the cars in their places.

Auto Clinic (Tacoma); Automobile repair--Tacoma--1950-1960; Automobile service stations--Tacoma--1950-1960; Parking garages--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Capital Finance Co. interiors. This loan company was managed by Clarence E. Cubbage. A single office area is occupied by four loan officers and two female secretaries or accountants. The women's desks sport an adding machine and typewriter. A counter with open spaces for customer interaction stands at the front.

Capital Finance Co. (Tacoma);

Bert's Mens Wear at 938 Broadway was closing to make way for Leeds Shoe Store in June of 1956. The large signs in the front windows read "Lease expires! We must vacate!" and "Closing out entire stock! Fixtures for sale!" Bert's sold men's clothing, such as Lancer shirts and Jarman shoes. Wilbur Meier was the manager.

Clothing stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Berts Mens Wear (Tacoma); Signs (Notices);

Grand opening of Deans Tavern at 759 So. 38th St., owned and operated by Charles Zigmont. The back of the bar is covered with floral tributes from well wishers on the Tavern's inaugural 4th of July. A curved counter with stools fronts the bar. Booths line the other wall of the tavern. A game table can be seen in the lower left hand of the photo. A lowered curved ceiling over the bar and wood panelling lend atmosphere, while new, unopened bottles of liquor stand at attention like soldiers behind the bar. Zigmont had operated the tavern for several years; it was formerly located at 3807 So. Yakima. (TNT 8/1/1956, pg. A-6 & A-11)

Deans Tavern (Tacoma); Bars--Tacoma--1950-1960;

ca. 1956. Artist's rendering of the planned new branch of the National Bank of Washington in Buckley, Wa. Lea, Pearson & Richards, Architects. The design is compact and one story, with lots of floor to ceiling windows to supply natural lighting. Buckley is located 2 1/2 miles south of Enumclaw on the White River. It was originally a saw mill and logging center. The planned location for the bank is the corner of Main and River Ave. It would have a square footage of 4276 sq. feet, cost $75,000 and take approximately four months to complete. It would have six teller windows, safe deposit boxes, a community meeting room and a lounge and kitchen for employees. Carl Nilsen and Son were the contractors. (TNT 7/15/1956, pg. B-5)

National Bank of Washington (Buckley); Banks--Buckley--1950-1960;

Mallon Motor Co.; new school bus for St. Martins College. A large bus intended for use by the athletic teams of St. Martins College in Olympia stands beside the showroom for Mallon Motors. The front of the bus has "Rangers" in big, bold letters.

Automobile dealerships--Tacoma; Mallon Motors, Inc. (Tacoma); Ford automobile;

The beauty salon at Rhodes Department Store. A day shopping at the downtown Tacoma Rhodes Store in the mid fifties was not just a quick shopping junket; it could be an elegant all day affair including a luxurious shampoo and style at the beauty salon and lunch at the store's cafe. Women would dress up in hats, gloves and dresses to peruse the latest in fashions and home apparel and enjoy the day at the store. The salon is beautifully appointed with elegant lighting, a mirrored makeup table and a receptionist stand with styling stations behind. The standing hair dryers can just be glimpsed in the background.

Department stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Rhodes Brothers Department Store (Tacoma); Beauty shops--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Food Giant Supermarket. Numerous cars are parked at the Food Giant supermarket which was conveniently open 9 am to 9 pm in 1956. The location of this particular supermarket was not provided. The 1956 and 1957 City Directories did not list a Food Giant.

Food Giant; Supermarkets; Grocery stores--1950-1960;

A smiling woman sits on a stool in a model kitchen. Photograph ordered by Meyer Linoleum, at 8220 South Tacoma Way in Lakewood. The kitchen has a patterned linoleum with matching counter tops and backsplash. Meyer Linoleum was owned by Ray E. Carlson and Robert Stumpf.

Meyer Linoleum (Lakewood); Home furnishings stores--Lakewood--1950-1960; Floor coverings; Kitchens--Lakewood--1950-1960;

The Pioneer Room of the Oregon Trail Restaurant. A waitress takes two men's order at a small table against a background of western murals. Photograph ordered by Carolyn Sholdar Associates.

Oregon Trail Restaurant;

Exterior of the Oregon Trail Restaurant. The restaurant featured a special dining room called the Pioneer Room, as well as dining and dancing.

Oregon Trail Restaurant;

The Towne House Restaurant, ordered by Carolyn Sholdar Associates. Two men in suits peruse the menu and decide what to order as a uniformed waiter stands by. The men sit at a formica table with straight chairs; booths can be seen around the corner with table settings and candles. A relief of a wild west hero decorates the partition; it is possibly copper toned, carrying out the theme of the room. The hallway has linoleum tiles, while the men's table sits on patterned carpet. Although the Richards appointment book lists the restaurant's location as Auburn, it is most probably the one located at 209 Williams in Renton.

Towne House Restaurant (Auburn); Restaurants--Auburn--1950-1960;

The sign for Highland Hills (originally Highland Hill) Shopping Center. The parking lot was still under construction; the Grand Opening was scheduled for December of 1956. The shopping center was built to serve the growing population of the West End, including University Place and Fircrest. Located on 6th Ave. near Peal, the center would be convenient to these areas. The first tenant was the Big Bear Store, which opened in 1955. The center would house 21 stores in a modern layout with a pedestrian mall in the center and 5 acres of customer parking. The angled roofline created visual interest. (TNT 10/28/1956, pg. C-17)

Big Bear Stores (Tacoma); Supermarkets--Tacoma--1950-1960; Grocery stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Electric signs; Highland Hills Shopping Center (Tacoma); Highland Hill Shopping Center (Tacoma); Shopping centers--Tacoma;

Peerless Laundry and Drycleaning. Peerless was owned by Edward V. Hudson and offered complete laundry service, dry cleaning and linen supply. Exterior view of the cleaning plant with company delivery fleet parked in front and staff in foreground of picture, some in uniforms. The business was founded in 1937 and still operates in this same area in 2002, despite two large fires and building replacements. TPL-9661

Peerless Laundry (Tacoma)--Employees; Cleaning establishments--Tacoma;

Exterior view of J.C. Penney store. Built in 1916 and known as the Frye Building, the J.C. Penney department store made substantial renovations to the building with its occupancy in the 1930's, prompting a visit from company founder, J.C. Penney in 1934. Ornamental frieze and the Italianate style of architecture make an interesting contrast to the more modern display windows found on the first floor. Photograph ordered by the J.C. Penney Co.

J.C. Penney Co. (Tacoma); Department stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Facades--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Customers in the 1950's could purchase bottled beer in bars to take home. A waitress hands over a six-pack of Heidelberg costing $1.15 to a smiling customer as three other men enjoy a glass of suds at the bar. Although Heidelberg was heavily advertised behind the bar, other name brands such as Olympia, Lucky Lager, and Hamm's were also available for consumption. This bar also carried candy, sodas, eggs, night gowns and even roaring gorilla toys for the discerning consumer. Photograph ordered by Heidelberg Brewing. TPL-8155

Bars; Alcoholic beverages; Heidelberg Brewing Co. (Tacoma)--1950-1960;

Motoramp Garage was built in 1925 as a multi-story parking garage with a 325 car capacity. Designed by architect A.J. Russell and constructed by the Hurley-Mason Co., it was built on the site of the Fife Hotel/Hotel Donnelly. Ben-Dew's, who served fried chicken, sandwiches and spaghetti and Vern's Sandwich Shop were two eating establishments located on the ground floor in the Motoramp building. A sign high up on the building directed passersby to the Hotel Winthrop a block away. Photograph ordered by Al Taylor, Standard Oil of California.

Motoramp Garage (Tacoma); Parking garages--Tacoma; Signs (Notices);

At 10:15 p.m. the new Tradewell supermarket at South 56th and Pacific Avenue is closed for the day. Six cigarette stands are placed before the checkout aisles; popular brands of Pall Mall , Kool, Philip Morris and Camel are readily available for the Tacoma shopper. The SpeeDee automated checkout lines resemble their 2001 counterparts, including rubber "sticks" to separate shoppers' groceries. Photograph ordered by Tradewell, Inc., Seattle.

Tradewell Stores, Inc. (Tacoma); Supermarkets; Cigarettes; Merchandise displays--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Six Sears, Roebuck employees appear to be happily gazing at a check or benefit statement from their employer in this March, 1953, photograph. D.A. Anderson, manager of Sears Tacoma, presents Connie Vaughn, newest member to the profit sharing plan, her annual statement. Sears offered profit sharing as one of their many employer-paid benefits to all regular employees after a year's employment. A poster on the wall behind the employees shows some of the benefits covered by the company; besides profit sharing, these included paid vacation and holidays, group life insurance, group hospitalization and employee discounts. A second poster displays a map locating Sears retail and factory stores nationwide and indicates the possibility for unlimited advancement. (TNT 3-7-53, p. 7)

Sears, Roebuck & Co. (Tacoma)--Employees--1950-1960; Employee fringe benefits; Posters; Anderson, D.A.; Vaughn, Connie;

Mannequins appear to be peering through the shop windows of Lyon's Apparel in this March 1953 photograph. In September of 1952, Lyon's Ladies Apparel at 1151 Broadway was completely destroyed by fire. Six months later, on March 5, 1953, Mr. & Mrs. Herman Lehrer welcomed Tacoma to their newly rebuilt, redecorated Lyon's at the same address. Lyon's carried nationally advertised labels in ladies' sportwear and ready-to-wear apparel. They specialized in extra large and extra small sizes. "Joan Marie" sweaters were on sale for $3.95 (Slip-ons) and $5.95 (Cardigans) in the sweater bar section of the store. Photograph ordered by Fairchild Publications. (TNT 3-4-53, B-2)

Clothing stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Lyon's Apparel (Tacoma); Mannequins; Sweaters--Tacoma;

Munson-Smith Motors, located on South Tacoma Way, sold both new and used Dodge and Plymouth vehicles. They offered a wide variety of models in their large parking lot; cars were parked neatly in rows with plenty of room for customers to walk around them for inspection. Munson-Smith was open in the evenings for those who could not stop by in the daytime; visibility was not a problem with the many bright lights dotting the facility. Photograph ordered by Ed Munson.

Munson-Smith Motors (Tacoma); Automobile dealerships--Tacoma; Dodge automobile; Dodge trucks;

Munson-Smith Motors was a Dodge and Plymouth dealership located on South Tacoma Way. Owned and operated by the Munson family, Ed, Alberta and Donald, they sold Dodge and Plymouth passenger cars and Dodge job-rated trucks, both new and used. Munson-Smith had its grand opening in July, 1946. View of Munson-Smith Motors taken at night on March 18, 1953; rows of vehicles in brightly lit parking lot. Photograph ordered by Ed Munson.

Munson-Smith Motors (Tacoma); Dodge automobile; Dodge trucks; Automobile dealerships--Tacoma--1950-1960;

The interior of the recently remodeled Spellman's Buster Brown Shoe Store is pictured in this March, 1953, photograph. The long, narrow store is brightly lit, with rows of comfortable chairs for waiting customers. There are shelves full of boxed shoes for easy accessibility. They may not have used a storeroom since there are boxes of shoes even behind the cash register counters. Spellman's had two locations in Tacoma, one on Broadway and the other on South Tacoma Way. They were both owned by Jerry I. Spellman, with the 1953 City Directory also listing Eugene Pease as co-owner of the South Tacoma Way store.

Spellmans Buster Brown Shoe Store (Tacoma); Shoe stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Shoes;

Spellman's Buster Brown Shoe Store was located at 1122 Broadway; it had been there for many years and remodeled several times. The store would present its latest remodeling in March, 1953. Night exposure of Spellman's, with neon signs indicating Buster Brown, Roblee and Air Step shoes were sold within. It had a recessed covered entry with large display windows on both sides.

Spellmans Buster Brown Shoe Store (Tacoma); Shoe stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Storefronts--Tacoma--1950-1960; Electric signs--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Temple Motors opened a used cars division in the Banford & Newsome Bldg. on Pacific Avenue on March 1, 1953. The building formerly had housed various tire companies. According to their many signs, Temple Motors offered easy terms for purchasing one of their vehicles as well as paying cash for the customer's trade-in. Temple Motors was owned by Henry G. Geissler and Ed M. Williams. They were a Studebaker dealership whose main location was on Saint Helens. View of Temple Motors, Used Cars division; four cars are parked in the two open garage doorways. Photograph ordered by Henry Geissler. (TPL-6384)

Temple Motors, Inc. (Tacoma); Automobile dealerships--Tacoma; Signs (Notices);

Workers examine the excavation site and footings of the permanent home of the Lakewood Puget Sound National Bank in April, 1953. Unlike its predecessor, a 35 X 75 foot plywood structure which took only 10 working days to complete, the new brick colonial would take a more leisurely six months to construct. It would open on October 5, 1953, on Mt. Tacoma Dr. S.W. in the Lakewood Center. By the end of 1953, its deposits would have increased more than one million dollars from the previous year. (Provorse: Banking on Independence, p. 107)

Puget Sound National Bank (Lakewood); Banks--Lakewood; Excavation--Lakewood; Building construction--Lakewood--1950-1960;

The spacious parking lot is full and more cars seem to be headed toward the grand opening, in early May, 1953, of the newest Tradewell supermarket located at Sixth Avenue & Union. Flags flap briskly in the spring air as shoppers stroll by. The store was built basically in the same style as other Tradewell's; it was a one-story, made of Roman brick, and sported large attractive windows. A Van de Kamps bakery was included in the supermarket. This was store #30; the supermarket would later be destroyed by fire in September, 1963. Photograph ordered by Carl Swanson, Tradewell Stores, Inc.

Tradewell Stores, Inc. (Tacoma); Supermarkets; Grocery stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Parking lots--Tacoma--1950-1960;