Bert Gilliard. Mobilgas. Maxwell station. South Tacoma Way at 38th Street, Tacoma.

ca. 1942. Mobilgas station. 1942 City Directory shows Alfd. Iverson as owner.

Paul H. Carlson, Mobilgas. Maxwell station. U.S. Tires.

Mc Murdy Truck & Equipment Co., International trucks, sales and service. Mobilgas.

B.K. Super Service. Mobilgas, Maxwell station. Second and Stewart Street, Puyallup, Washington.

Mobilgas, Maxwell station. Combination service station and grocery store with fresh meats for sale. Locted at U.S. 99 at Little Rock Road, Route 5, Olympia, Washington. Date of photograph not provided.

Stuermer's Service. Mobilgas, Maxwell station. Accessories; Expert repairing. Tacoma-Sumner Highway, Route 1, Box 784, Puyallup, Washington.

Hunter's. Mobilgas, Maxwell station. Used Cars. Lubrication. "Drive so all may live."

Andrew's Service. Mobilgas, Maxwell station. Groceries. Yelm Highway, Route 5, Box 444, Olympia, Washington.

ca. 1940. William Jennings Meade and employees at Meade's Shurfine Market, a neighborhood grocery store at the intersection of North 6th and North K Streets, circa 1940. Mr. Meade is flanked by meat cutter Bob Fulton at left and Dick Holm, produce, at right. Driver of the delivery van is not identified. Built in 1902 as a drug store/pharmacy, the building was remodeled in 1933 for a grocery store. Mr. Meade operated the Shurfine Market from 1938 to 1944. Today, it is known as the Corner Store. (Additional identification provided by a reader)

ca. 1942. Mobilgas station. Doty's Little Store on right.

Stan's Corner. Mobilgas. Waller Road at 96th Street, Tacoma. The service station, in this undated photograph, had three gas pumps. In addition, Stan's Corner sold groceries for the passing motorist.

Undated photograph of Mobilgas station located at Legion Way and Jefferson Street, Olympia, Washington. Two old cars parked near open bay. Norwalk tires were sold at this station. Ed Whitney was the independent dealer.

Undated photograph of Mobilgas station located at Legion Way and Jefferson Street, Olympia, Washington. Two old cars parked near open bay. Norwalk tires were sold at this station. Ed Whitney was the independent dealer.

When the first imported strawberries reached the Ryan Fruit Co., 1137 Dock Street, on March 3, 1927, Rhoda Merritt, cashier, couldn't resist slipping outside to nibble the choice fruit. A rough Washington breeze was blowing and her bobbed locks, about the same color as the plump luscious fruit, blew with the wind. However, Miss Merritt still smiled for the camera, delighted with the taste of southern sunshine. (TNT 3/8/1927, pg. 2)

Centralia Motors celebrated its opening in mid-October of 1926. This interior view of the business is of the office staff at work. The office was situated so that workers were in clear view of any potential customer who could then be helped immediately. G75.1-015

Centralia Motors (Centralia); Office workers--Centralia; Automobile dealerships--Centralia;

Cascade Paper Co. On August 29, 1927, an unidentified man in business attire was photographed with one hand on the handle of an enormous machine at the Cascade Paper Co., 4302 Chambers Creek Rd., Steilacoom. Cascade Paper built a $600,000 plant in Steilacoom in 1918 and advertised itself in the 1928 City Directory as "Tacoma's First Paper Mill." A pulp mill was added in 1925. Cascade Paper Co. was headed by Frank S. Baker, president, and John Hewitt, vice-president. G37.1-008

Cascade Paper Co. (Steilacoom); Paper industry--Steilacoom; Machinery;

Ten men doffed their hats as they posed in front of the Peninsula Cafe in Gig Harbor on October 8, 1927. The men were not identified. They may have been photographed for the Seattle Times. G72.1-142

Peninsula Cafe (Gig Harbor); Group portraits--1920-1930;

The Otsuka Family opened the Panama Garage at 1320 Market Street in 1923. Roy, Eddie and Hidegoro Otsuka operated the repair shop, car wash and service station. The family posed for this photograph in front of their business in November of 1927. The business was later managed by Ted Semba and Ken Hayashi. It closed during World War II. TPL-6371; G48.1-042

Panama Garage (Tacoma); Japanese American families--Tacoma; Japanese Americans--Tacoma;

Workmen at lunch. Men employed at the building of the new Union Bag & Paper Power Corporation plant in the Tideflats relax and enjoy their lunch outdoors at the construction site in March of 1928. No eating facilities are available so the men make-do by sitting on stacks of lumber and makeshift tables in order to eat their homemade lunches. TPL-1437; G37.1-035

Union Bag & Paper Power Corporation (Tacoma); Construction workers--Tacoma--1920-1930; Rest periods--Tacoma;

Seven usherettes in bat capes and bat ears line up outside the Rialto Theatre where the silent film version of "The Bat," the world's greatest mystery play, was showing in 1926. L-R: Rose Travaglio, Mary Marko, Lillian Hansen, Ann Brower, Irene Carnahan, Helen Morley (chief usherette) and Florence Lloyd. They received many favorable comments on their costumes from patrons of the theater. Based on Mary Roberts Rinehart's 1920 play which ran an impressive 867 performances at the Morosco Theatre on Broadway, "The Bat" was produced and directed by Roland West. It features a mysterious masked master criminal called The Bat whose identity is unveiled only in the last moments of the movie. Cartoonist Bob Kane was so impressed with the film when he saw it as a young boy that his memories of its images formed the basis for his cartoon character Batman. The film opened in Tacoma to rave reviews and could be seen at the matinee for 35 cents or in the evenings for 50 cents, 10 cents for kiddies. (TNT 8-17-26, p. 8) Boland B15500, TPL-2038

Rialto Theatre (Tacoma); Motion picture theaters--Tacoma--1920-1930; Ushers--Tacoma--1920-1930; Motion picture industry--1920-1930; Morley, Helen; Travaglio, Rose; Marko, Mary; Hansen, Lillian; Brower, Ann; Carnahan, Irene; Lloyd, Florence;

The Tacoma Field Inn at Tacoma Field (Pierce County Municipal Airport) in Lakewood. The inn served "Notter's Chicken Dinners" and Medosweet ice cream. TPL-7089

Restaurants--Lakewood--1930-1940; Tacoma Field Inn (Lakewood); Tacoma Field (Lakewood);

Photograph of the employees of the Oriole Candy Company taken in April of 1918. Picture is labeled "Farewell to H. L. Brown by employees Oriole Candy Co." It is believed that the banquet was held to bid goodbye to Mr. Brown as he would depart for France to help the Y.M.C.A. as a volunteer. The Y.M.C.A. was one of several organizations that set up recreational "huts" overseas for soldiers. In 1907, Harry L. Brown, a budding confectioner and experimenter in sweet treats, opened his own retail candy shop on Broadway, known as Oriole Chocolates. By 1909, he had converted it into a wholesale operation. He made the acquaintance of an ambitious young salesman, currently employed by Schilling Spices, named Jonathan Clifford Haley. Haley offered to market Brown's sweet treats around the Northwest. By 1914, the pair were officially partnered as "Brown & Haley" with Haley as president and chief salesman and Brown as general manager, candy formulator and head of manufacturing. The company's Oriole Chocolates were made by hand and satisfied the sweet tooth of the soldiers stationed at Fort Lewis during WWI. Brown & Haley is now the oldest, largest candy company in the Tacoma area and one of the oldest in the U.S. G33.1-128; TPL-1027, TPL-9553

Oriole Chocolates (Tacoma); Candy--Tacoma; Chocolate industry--Tacoma--1910-1920; Laborers--Tacoma; Brown & Haley (Tacoma);

Automobile dealers of the 1920s built palaces of prestige to showcase their latest models. Architect C.F. W. Lundberg designed the Mutual Motors Building for pioneer Tacoma automobile dealer Edward P. Leonard. The Lincoln dealership opened in June 1925. Later, a giant milk bottle was installed on the building's roof to identify it as the Olympic Dairy Products plant. As of 2000, Washington Tent & Awning, Inc. occupies this building on Martin Luther King Way. B12455, BU-10023, TPL-5683

Automobile dealerships--Tacoma; Mutual Motors (Tacoma); Building construction;

Sumner E. Orr and E.J. Gauthier, proprietors of Tacoma's all-night garage Gauthier & Orr, were photographed receiving leases for six Union Oil stations from company officials E.C. Wilson, Tacoma agent, and N.W. Watson, special agent, on July 17, 1928 (order of men in photo unknown). They exchanged the documents at Station #119 located at 601 No. 1st St. The new owners planned for Tacoma motorists to receive the best service possible. They intended to install lifts for grease work and to modernize the equipment at each station. The six stations leased by the pair were located at 58th & S. Union, 25th & Jefferson Ave., N. 1st & Tacoma Ave. (pictured), 21st & Pacific Ave., East 11th & St. Paul Ave. and 302 Puyallup. (Tacoma Sunday Ledger, 7-22-28, p. G-5) BU-13106, TPL-9637

Automobile service stations--Tacoma--1920-1930; Union Oil Co. of California (Tacoma); Orr, Sumner E.; Gauthier, E.J.; Wilson, E.C.; Watson, N.W.;

Interior view of Hirsch Cycle Co. shop. Hirsch Cycle, managed by Clarence Potter, was the local Harley-Davidson motorcycle and Columbia bicycle dealership. On February 6, 1925, five Harleys were parked on the stained concrete floor of the firm's repair department. Four men, probably employees, are also in the room. Hirsch Cycle was located at 1010-12 Tacoma Avenue South. G66.1-145

Hirsch Cycle Co. (Tacoma); Motorcycles--Tacoma--1920-1930;

Walker Cut Stone located at 2403 Center Street employed a large number of skilled stonecutters at their plant in Tacoma. They were photographed in March of 1925, hand carving the hard surfaced stone. The sandstone, quarried in Wilkeson, was used by the tons in such edifices as the Temple of Justice in Olympia, Bank of California, and the Walker Apartments. G33.1-115; TPL-3182

Walker Cut Stone Co. (Tacoma); Building materials industry--Tacoma--1920-1930;

Rustic Naches Tavern. The Naches Tavern appears to be composed of a two-story log cabin-designed building with deep porch and a log archway a few yards away. It is surrounded by tall trees. It is located at the foot of the Naches Pass. A Captain Craine was the tavern's proprietor. TPL-5815; G75.1-001 (Tacoma Sunday Ledger, 4-4-26, G-1-article on Naches Pass highway and surroundings)

Naches Tavern;

On April 4, 1924, the Bell System Telephone company celebrated the 40th anniversary of telephone service in Tacoma by holding a luncheon for the surviving original subscribers to Tacoma's first telephone exchange. Five female employees, dressed in the manner of 1884, welcomed the guests. They are, left to right, Icle McDowell, Lucille Croxall, Eva Mollett, Mrs. Signe Hultgrew and Mrs. Mildred Sinclair. Their guests are, left to right, A.E. Dean, R.F. Radebaugh, I.W. Anderson, Major C.O.Bates, E.W. Melse, Judge John Arthur, Arthur Patrick, John Schlarb, W.P. Bonney, W.G. Rowland, Walter J. Ball, J.M. Ashton, W.J. Thompson, Henry Drum and Stuart Rice. The first telephone company office was located in Rebard's Cigar Store, and the owner acted as "central", dropping his work at the cigar counter to work the switchboard. The group is standing outside the Bell Telephone building at 1101 Fawcett Ave. Built in 1901 by J.E. Bonnell, it was added to the National and Tacoma historic registries in 1985. Boland B9815, BU-13,178

Pacific Telephone & Telegraph Co. (Tacoma); Telephone companies--Tacoma;

ca. 1921. Ole B. Lien, pioneer pharmacist on Tacoma Avenue since 1894, and partner Harry B. Selvig opened this drug store in 1901 in the 1888 Greer Building. The Queen Anne-style structure was designed by architects Farrell & Darmer and built by contractor H. M. Matheson. It was torn down in 1951 to make way for a modern addition to the Tacoma Public Library. B8252.

Drugstores; Pharmacists; Lien & Selvig (Tacoma);