Post War Celebration at Griffin Fuel Company. A large group of men associated with the company. Ed Griffin, president and manager of Griffin Fuel Company, is the ninth from the left, standing, shaking hands with another man.

Griffin Fuel Co. (Tacoma); Griffin, Edwin L., 1908-1955; Business people--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Post War Celebration at Griffin Fuel Company. L-R, Dan O'Leary, Fredric Griffin, Ed Griffin, Ernest Columbus, Adolph Traverjo, George Maurer and Graham Steel stand outside the Tacoma company. Fred Griffin, Ed's brother, became president and manager of the Seattle Griffin Fuel Company, and the gentlemen here are with the Seattle company with the exception of Ed Griffin and Graham Steel. Mr. Steel is with the Seattle Chamber of Commerce.

Griffin Fuel Co. (Tacoma); Griffin, Edwin L., 1908-1955; Business people--Tacoma--1940-1950; O'Leary, Dan; Griffin, Frederic P.; Columbus, Ernest; Traverjo, Adolph; Maurer, George; Steel, Graham;

McKinley Thriftway Store, Younglove Grocery Company. McKinley Food Market is on the ground floor of this three story building. The Porter Apartments are located on the top two floors. The folding doors on two of the front panels of the market are open showing boxes of produce and cold cases. This newly remodeled grocery store will open August 24, 1945, and serve the South Tacoma Way area. Motto on sign: "Every Day Low Prices".

Grocery stores--Tacoma--1940-1950; McKinley Thriftway Store; McKinley Food Market; Younglove Grocery Co. (Tacoma); Commercial buildings;

The McKinley Food Market, at the corner of So. 35th and McKinley Ave., joined the Thriftway Store group in August of 1945. They occupied the first floor of the Porter Apartments building. The McKinley Market was owned by Arthur Hooker, manager of the grocery section, and Sumner More, who was in charge of the meat department. The store had been recently remodeled. Thriftway Food Stores was a new and expanding group of supermarkets sponsored by the Younglove Grocery Company of Tacoma, with stores in Tacoma and in the Bremerton area, home-owned and home-operated. The Younglove Grocery Company was sold to Associated Grocers Co-op of Seattle in 1948. (TNT 8/30/1945 p.26 & 8/18/1948 p.1)

Grocery stores--Tacoma--1940-1950; McKinley Thriftway Store; McKinley Food Market; Younglove Grocery Co. (Tacoma); Commercial buildings;

Titus Motor Company, showing of 1946 automobiles. People looking at two 1946 Ford sedans. Neon signs in windows, art deco light fixtures, tile floor, double interior doors with stained glass. Plaque with names of employees who served in WWII.

Titus Motor Co. (Tacoma); Automobile dealerships--Tacoma--1940-1950; Ford automobile;

Titus Motor Company, showing of 1946 automobiles. People looking at two 1946 Ford sedans. Art deco light fixtures, tile floor, double interior doors with stained glass. WWII employees plaque, signboard on "Engineering Advancement" in background..

Titus Motor Co. (Tacoma); Automobile dealerships--Tacoma--1940-1950; Ford automobile;

Turner Garage and Towing Co., 1222 Tacoma Ave So., photographed in September of 1945. The garage offered 24 hour towing as well as Standard Oil gasoline. It was located in the building built in 1925 for the Olympic Garage. In 2007, the building, now located next to the parking lot for the Tacoma Public Library, is vacant. It was previously home to Candid Photo Service from 1964 to 1995 and later Labor Ready.

Turner Towing Co. (Tacoma); Automobile repair--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Exterior of the Hotel Winthrop for North Pacific Bank note. The building is ten stories on the front facing Broadway, made of stone on the lower floors and brick above. At the top is a separate roof line, perhaps a penthouse. The busy street below shows automobiles, pedestrians and a bus. The first floor houses a shoe store, men's apparel. Heading down 9th Street is the entrance to the Coffee Shop and the Fountain Lunch counter.

Hotels--Tacoma--1940-1950; Hotel Winthrop (Tacoma);

Central Motors building shots. The front of the building with at least three stories is shown. Automobiles are seen through the windows and the front garage doors are open. They advertise that their "motive is service". TPL-1759.

Automobile dealerships--Tacoma--1940-1950; Central Motors (Tacoma);

This view of the South Tacoma Business District was taken from just north of South 54th Street looking south on South Tacoma Way. To the left can be seen: (l to r) the Washington Electric Company, 5235 So. Tacoma Way; Herman Dier's furniture store, 5239 So. Tacoma Way; and the Crabb Drug Company, 5243 So. Tacoma Way. The buildings on the west side of the street include (center to r): the Safeway Store, 5402 So. Tacoma Way; John W. Bowlby's Richfield gas station, 5248 So. Tacoma Way; Steve's Tavern, 5238 So. Tacoma Way; and the West Coast Grocery, 5236 So. Tacoma Way. A stoplight hangs over the center of the street at the corner of South 54th and South Tacoma Way.

Grocery Stores--Tacoma--1940-1950; Business districts--South Tacoma; Commercial streets--Tacoma--1940-1950; Safeway Stores, Inc. (Tacoma);

A display of Nestles' prooducts at the Big Bear store including Nestle's instant cocoa, Nestle's Quick, Nestle's cookie mix, and Nestle's chocolate morsels. Ordered by Nalley's, Henry Willis.

Big Bear Stores (Tacoma); Grocery stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Nalley's, Inc. (Tacoma)--Products; Food--Tacoma--1950-1960; Food industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Merchandise displays--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Sepic Electric opened a new, second furniture and appliance store at 7208 Pacific in May 1951. The new store included complete sales and service facilities and featured nationally advertised, quality appliances and furniture. Fred and Stan Sepic were the owners while Ed Cushing headed the furniture department and H.H. Princehouse headed the appliance department. Ordered by Sepic Electric, Mr. Langdon. (TNT, 6/1/1951, p.A-3)

Furniture stores--Tacoma; Sepic Electric Co. (Tacoma);

The interior of the High Hat Tavern located at 8920 South Tacoma Way showing booths and counter seats. An alcove for Mel McLaughlin's Trio has been added along the far wall close to the jukebox. Ordered by Mr. Pep Greco.

High Hat Tavern (Tacoma); Bars--Tacoma;

A display of new refrigerators in the window at Selden's. Trade-ins of old refrigerators were allowed. Signs advertised that "$5.00 Now is all it Takes". The new 7.6 cubic foot Frigidaire on the left was selling for $239.75. Ordered by Sunset Electric Company.

Home furnishings stores--Tacoma; Refrigerators; Window displays--Tacoma--1940-1950; Selden's, Inc. (Tacoma);

Candy racks in front of the cash registers at Sib's Thriftway are loaded with Nalley's candies, tempting everyone to try them. Ordered by Nalley's, Mrs. Hildreth.

Sib's Thriftway (Tacoma); Food industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Nalley's, Inc. (Tacoma)--Products; Merchandise displays--Tacoma--1950-1960; Candy--Tacoma--1950-1960; Grocery stores--Tacoma--1950-1960;

A Sears, Roebuck employee demonstrates a new television console to a young Tacoma family in August, 1951. A similar television with rectangular screen is on sale for $259. Sears was having a sale on household appliances and furnishings with low down payments advertised. A sign on the wall indicates that a 15% down payments would be accepted. Several refrigerators are lined up just a few short steps away. TPL-5046

Sears, Roebuck & Co. (Tacoma); Televisions--1950-1960; Children watching television; Refrigerators; Selling--Tacoma; Sales personnel--Tacoma;

Ardens on Broadway was a women's clothing store. They sold the latest fashions and styles; view of interior of store shows racks of evening wear, dress suits, dresses and coats. According to the 1951 City Directory, the store was managed by W.C. Inskeep. Photograph commissioned by Jess Jackson.

Ardens (Tacoma); Clothing stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Evening gowns--Tacoma--1950-1960; Coats--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Opened in 1933, and then rebuilt on the same site in 1949, Fife's Poodle Dog restaurant advertised "Good Food" with a variety of items ranging from hamburgers to fancy seafood. Interior view of serving area; carts full of clean cups and glasses, silverware drawers and clean plates on counter in a U-shaped kitchen area. Rollaway serving table with used dishes and dirty pan in containers is next to a metallic cabinet. A black rotary phone is hung on an adjacent wall. TPL-9691

Diners (Restaurants)--Fife; Poodle Dog (Fife); Business enterprises--Fife; Equipment;

Candy Nook in the Winthrop Hotel, featuring greeting card stands on the right and rear sides with glass candy cabinets on left wall behind cabinets.

Hotels--Tacoma; Hotel Winthrop (Tacoma);

Four delivery trucks owned by the Maxwell Petroleum Company are parked near the company headquarters at 520 East "D Street in August, 1951. These Chevrolet trucks are labeled with the company name on their doors and appear to be carrying Mobil gasoline. In the background are large holding tanks for petroleum products. Maxwell Petroleum had merged with General Petroleum Corporation of California to form one of the largest gasoline distributors in the country. According to the 1951 City Directory, Maxwell retained its name and kept a separate listing for business purposes. Maxwell was owned by H.D. Maxwell and Osie Thomas. Photograph ordered by South Tacoma Chevrolet. TPL-8464

Maxwell Petroleum Co. (Tacoma); General Petroleum Corp. (Tacoma); Chevrolet trucks;

In 1948 Mueller-Harkin Buick moved into their new building at 455 Saint Helens Ave. They officially opened at their new address on December 6, 1948. This building was large enough to supply the public with all their automotive needs, from selling new and used vehicles to repairing and replacing automobile parts. The 1951 Tacoma City Diretory list Rudolph Mueller as President and John Mueller as Vice-President. In 1953 Rudolph Mueller retired and the Buick agency was sold to Brus Buick.

Mueller-Harkins Motor Co. (Tacoma); Automobile dealerships--Tacoma--1950-1960; Automobile equipment & supplies stores--Tacoma;

Sears Roebuck and Company Department Store, Automotive Department. This elevated view of the automotive department, taken on September 5, 1951, shows tires on right, four tables with oil, seat covers, auto accessories, batteries and mufflers on right back wall. The automotive section seemed to be set next to appliances, including stoves.

Sears, Roebuck & Co. (Tacoma); Department stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Automobile equipment & supplies; Stoves--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Elevated view of Sears, Roebuck & Co.'s parking lot taken in summer of 1951. The Sears parking lot is nearly full; this was the top of a multi-tiered parking garage recently built by Sears. Angled parking provides most efficient use of parking space as many of Sears' customers take advantage of the free parking while shopping. Craig Furniture and Schoenfeld's buildings are visible in photo.

Sears, Roebuck & Co. (Tacoma); Parking garages--Tacoma; Parking lots--Tacoma--1950-1960; Craig Furniture, Inc. (Tacoma); L. Schoenfeld & Sons (Tacoma);

The pillars in the new parking garage at 13th and Market create a forest of concrete trees in this photograph from August of 1951. In 1951 Sears, Roebuck & Co. built a parking garage to help provide inexpensive, plentiful parking for their downtown customers. Sears offered one hour of free parking. Thirty years later, in 1981, Sears moved their store to the Tacoma Mall. This garage, which stands across from the downtown YMCA, became the Cornerstone Building.

Sears, Roebuck & Co. (Tacoma); Parking garages--Tacoma; Parking lots--Tacoma--1950-1960; Signs (Notices);

Fraser's Gift Store at Lakewood Center. Exterior, front side of shop with window displays.

Fraser's (Lakewood); Gift shops--Lakewood--1950-1960;

Fraser's Gift Store at Lakewood Center. View of interior of store, taken on October 29, 1951.

Fraser's (Lakewood); Gift shops--Lakewood--1950-1960;

Interior view of grocery store. Rows of assorted candies, chips, cold remedies and laundry products fill this portion of an unidentified grocery store in a late fall, 1951, photograph. The grocer seems to have made maximum use of a limited space in order to put as many different products out as possible for customers to purchase. A Toledo brand scale stands by to weigh any item necessary.

Grocery stores--Tacoma--1950-1960; Scales;

The "New" Tacoma Hotel in the Savage-Scovell Building on "A" Street. Building by Heath and Twichell, Architects, 1908. For Mr. Bryer Little.

Hotels--Tacoma--1950-1960; Tacoma Hotel (Tacoma); Heath & Twitchell (Tacoma);

View of "New" Tacoma Hotel from the southeast, main facade and south side wall. Duncan's Tacoma Hotel Garage to the south of hotel, Tacoma Savings and Loan (Bowes) Building to the North. Hotel (1908) and Bowes (1909) by Heath and Twichell, Architects.

Hotels--Tacoma--1950-1960; Tacoma Hotel (Tacoma); Tacoma Savings & Loan Association (Tacoma); Banking--Tacoma--1950-1960; Banks--Tacoma; Heath & Twitchell (Tacoma);

Jensen Fuel Company, located at 6238 South Tacoma Way, were dealers in wood, oil and coal. The company was owned by Everett R. Jensen. Attached to the main building was a 24 hour self-service unit where a customer could pay for sacks of prest-o-logs or sacks of coal. View of man retrieving sacks of each fuel item; he has his hand on the coin box. A small sign above the prest-o-log dispenser indicates that seven prest-o-logs could be bought for 60 cents; another sign states a sack of egg coal would cost 65 cents. Photograph ordered by F.D. Dickinson.

Jensen Fuel Co. (Tacoma); Fuel supply; Signs (Notices);