A huge crowd waits on the wharf as the first people leave the U.S. Grant transport ship and walk down gang plank. Waiting on the dock to meet the returning members of the 15th Infantry are various dignitaries and the Daffodil Queen, followed by several persons bearing large bouquets of daffodils for distribution. (T.Times, 3/24/1938, p.1)

Troop movements--1930-1940; Government vessels--1930-1940; Warships--1930-1940; Military personnel--1930-1940; Military uniforms--United States --1930-1940;

It is said that armies march on their stomachs, and here the culinary staff at Camp Murray prepares some tasty pies to make that process more enjoyable. Once a year, the camp exploded with an influx of almost 3000 Washington National Guardsmen at the camp for their annual training. They arrived by troop train and motor convoys, and they arrived hungry. Camp Aston, held June 11-25th 1938, was no exception.

Washington National Guard (Wash.); Camp Murray (Wash.); Military uniforms; Military personnel--Tacoma--1930-1940;

One reservist stares forlornly at his list of instructions while the other attempts to fix the wheel on the motorbike on which he is riding. They are part of the annual two week field training held at Camp Murray June 11-25th, 1938. The camp is given a different name each year, a memorial to a fallen comrade. In 1938, the camp was named after Thomas Aston, the late Colonel who commanded the 161st Infantry in Spokane.

Washington National Guard (Wash.); Camp Murray (Wash.); Military uniforms; Military personnel--Tacoma--1930-1940; Motorcycles--Tacoma--1930-1940;

Fleet Week 1938 began in Tacoma with the arrival of 4 battleships of the US fleet and their 5200 officers and men. In Tacoma for the week of July 5- 11 were the USS California, West Virginia, Tennessee and Maryland. Pictured are five U.S. Navy battleships which have dropped anchor in Commencement Bay. Northeast Tacoma can be seen in the background. During Fleet Week, officers and enlisted men will be wined and dined, a military parade will feature 3,000 troops and 4 military bands, the ships will be open for tours and boating contests will take place. (T. Times 7/5/1938, pg. 1; 7/7/1938, pg. 1) TPL-9110

Battleships--1930-1940; Celebrations--Tacoma--1930-1940;

Two Army trucks were photographed on February 10, 1940 at Camp Murray showing the contrast between old and new models. The vehicle at left is one of 23 new General Motors trucks which had recently arrived at Camp Murray for use by the National Guard. Next to it is a circa 1917 truck which was used in the World War (I) to haul equipment and troops. Brig. Gen. Maurice Thompson, adjutant general at Camp Murray and Harry H. Watson, assistant to the state quartermaster, stand in the foreground. The three men in the rear were not identified by the News Tribune. (TNT 2-18-1940, 9-A) (filed with Argentum)

Military vehicles--Tacoma--1940-1950; Camp Murray (Wash.); Thompson, Maurice W., 1878-1954; Watson, Harry H.;

148th Field Artillery Band with instruments. Group will play at Military Ball on May 20. Under director, Warrant Officer Louis G. Werson, the band won the state championship at Camp Murray encampment in 1938. The 148th F.A. was headquartered in Tacoma. (T. Times 5/12/1939, p. 20).

Washington National Guard, 148th F.A. Band (Tacoma); Camp Murray (Wash.); Military uniforms; Military personnel; Military bands;

On board the U.S.S. Lexington, aircraft carrier known as the "Queen of the Flattops,"in mid-December, 1929, were those instrumental in bringing emergency power to Tacoma. L-R, Chief Engineer Lt. Cdr. H.L. White, General Electric (maker and owner of the generators) representative Robert E. Lee, Utilities Commissioner Ira S. Davisson, City Light Supt. Llewellyn Evans, Tacoma Mayor James G. Newbegin (appointed in March of 1929 to replace the resigning Melvin G. Tennent), and ship commander, Frank D. Berrien. Tacoma experienced a severe shortage of electricity due to drought conditions; the Lexington, with its enormous generators, would deliver over 4 million kilowatts or about 25% of the city's power. TPL-1775. ALBUM 16.

U.S.S. Lexington (United States Navy); Aircraft carriers--United States; White, H.L.; Lee, Robert E.; Davisson, Ira; Evans, Llewellyn; Newbegin, James G.; Berrien, Frank D.; Power shortages--Tacoma; Mayors--Tacoma--1920-1930;

ca. 1929. U.S.S. Lexington, aircraft carrier, who came to the aid of the City of Tacoma and provided electricity from mid-December, 1929, to mid-January, 1930. The ship was berthed at the Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in Bremerton with Capt. Frank D. Berrien in command. The fourth Navy ship to bear that name, she had been built by the Fore River Shipbuilding Corporation of Quincy, Mass. Her overall length was 888 feet and she had four turbo-generators. TPL-1937

U.S.S. Lexington (United States Navy); Aircraft carriers--United States;

On February 5, 1921, soldiers at Camp Lewis enjoy reading at the Liberty Library located near the camp's Hostess House. Books, magazines and newspapers were supplied without charge. The Liberty Library opened in November of 1917 with 6000 donated books. The collection had grown to roughly 50,000 volumes a mere six months later. Books were supplied through the auspices of the American Library Association. Camp librarian Arthur Beardsley later indicated that the library had circulated 62,682 volumes in a camp with approximate population of 7094 in 1921. An 40-foot square addition to the original one-story library was made about 1918 as the library needed more space for materials and for patron usage. This addition was a periodical reading room, perhaps shown above, which was attached to the center of the original building. Racks for 150 periodicals and about 50 newspapers were provided and good chairs and tables furnished by the Army and its friends. (www.historylink.org; Tacoma Sunday Ledger, 1-29-22, 10E) TPL-10309

Soldiers' libraries--Camp Lewis; Libraries--Camp Lewis;

Close-up view of recessed entryway of newly constructed building located at Camp Murray in January of 1928. See B17968 for general view of concrete building. G77.1-004

Camp Murray (Wash).; Doors & doorways--Camp Murray;

Once Camp Lewis became officially designated as a Fort in September of 1927, money was appropriated to build permanent structures including new barracks. The exteriors of these new living quarters look nearly complete although landscaping is non-existent.

Barracks--Fort Lewis; Building construction--Fort Lewis--1920-1930;

U.S.S. Lexington tied up at old Baker Dock below Stadium Bowl, December, 1929. Power cables are attached to her side. Tacoma received an early Christmas present as the large aircraft carrier was used as an auxiliary power plant to lend a helping hand to the City suffering from severe drought conditions. During its one month stay, it provided over four million kilowatt hours of electricity to a city whose residents had been utilizing candles, kerosene lamps, and living with dim streetlights and smaller night shifts. The Lexington made its last power deliveries to Tacoma on January 16, 1930, and departed for San Francisco the following day. TPL-1936; G71.1-117.

U.S.S. Lexington (United States Navy); Aircraft carriers--United States; Power shortages--Tacoma;

Four soldiers from the 10th Field Artillery rest on the ground in a field at Brown's Farm, Nisqually. Horses and equipment behind them. Photograph taken on August 15, 1932. TPL-7095

Soldiers--1930-1940; Military life--1930-1940;

Soldiers from the 10th Field Artillery in a military encampment at Brown's Farm, Nisqually. TPL-7097

Military camps--1930-1940; Military life--1930-1940; Soldiers--1930-1940;

Soldiers from the 10th Field Artillery lead horses through a gate in a fence at the military camp on Brown's Farm, Nisqually. TPL-7098

Military life--1930-1940; Military camp--1930-1940; Horses;

Group of soldiers fro the 10th Field Artillery sit in a field at Brown's Farm, Nisqually, eating from their mess kits. Tents and wagons in background. TPL-7099

Military life--1930-1940; Soldiers--1930-1940;

These are the non-commissioned officers of the 146th F.A. at Camp Dent, the 1930 encampment of the Washington National Guard held at Camp Murray in June of that year. G69.1-144

Washington National Guard, 148th F.A. (Tacoma); Military personnel; Military uniforms;

Twelve non-commissioned officers from the 146th F.A., E Battery, pose in the grassy fields of Camp Dent, the 1930 Washington National Guard encampment on the grounds of Camp Murray. All are in uniform with several wearing whistles and chains. They were participating in the annual summer maneuvers which occurred in the last two weeks of June. G69.1-146

Washington National Guard, Battery E, 146th F.A. (Tacoma); Military personnel; Uniforms; Camp Murray (Wash.);

In November of 1919, the battle scarred World War I tank Ermentrude was in Tacoma for a recruitment drive. Posing with her in front of the offices of the Tribune Publishing Co. (711-13 St. Helens Ave.) were her travelling corps, left to right, Pvt. James G. Hall, Sergeant Joseph Appleby and Capt. Edgar Dade Gunning. Gunning was in charge of the tank and Hall was the pilot. Appleby had served overseas with the tank, which was a veteran of 18 fierce battles fought in St. Mihiel and Argonne. (TDL 11/20/1919, pg. 10) G70.1-005 TPL-10065

Tanks (Military science)--1910-1920; Armored vehicles--1910-1920; Hall, James G.; Appleby, Joseph; Gunning, Edgar Dade; World War, 1914-1918--Veterans--Tacoma ; World War, 1914-1918--Recruiting & Enlistment; Tribune Publishing Co. (Tacoma);

Marymount Military Academy, Spanaway, Washington in January of 1937. Built by the Dominican Sisters, Marymount was the only military school in the state of Washington. It existed for 54 years, originally as a military academy for boys ages 6-16 and later as a boarding school catering to the wealthy. The school closed in 1976. The buildings then housed the mother house for the sisters and a retirement location for them as well. The school was later sold to Harold LeMay, the owner of a Pierce County trash and recycling business and an avid collector of antique motor vehicles.

ca. 1931. Residence at 2517 So. 13th St., Tacoma. For Mrs. C. H. Glassco. The home of Charles H. and Minnie Glassco, built around 1920. Photo circa 1931 shows two men and one woman sitting on the front steps, an American flag flying above their heads. One of the men is in military uniform.

3 young ladies looking at cannon of U.S.S. Lexington, December, 1929. The Navy did permit some tours of the ship which had come to Tacoma to assist in the production of auxiliary power. These young women appear intrigued at the size of the Navy's firepower. They had persuaded the ship's officers to lower the 8-inch guns so that they could more closely view the muzzles. Ethel Haasarud, Freda Gardner, and Naomi Dykeman were the panel of judges of the "Supreme Beauty Court of Tacoma." These ladies would choose the most handsome, most happy, and best dancer at the big Chamber of Commerce dance for enlisted personnel of the Lexington on December 26th. TPL-005 (T.Times, 12-23-1929, p. 1)

From mid-December, 1929 to mid-January, 1930 the aircraft carrier U.S.S. Lexington used its enormous generators to provide electricity for the city of Tacoma. It took four powerful navy tugboats assisted by three Foss tugs to push the 33,000 ton vessel into position at the Baker Dock. A severe drought had greatly reduced the amount of electricity available to Tacoma from the city's hydro-electric dams. During its month long stay the Lexington generated enough power to furnish 25% of the city's power needs. (T.Times, 12-16-29, p. 1)

Lt. Commander Richard E. Byrd, left, the first man to fly over the North Pole in an airplane, poses with Tacoma capitalist and explorer Gen. James M. Ashton. Comm. Byrd was in Tacoma on February 5, 1927 to speak at the First Baptist Church about his flight on May 9, 1926 over the North Pole. The two men had much in common. Both men had a military background, Byrd was a Naval officer and Ashton founded Washington's calvary (later known as Troop B, Wa. National Guard.) Both were arctic explorers. In 1922, Ashton at the age of 63 embarked on a 7 month trip on the schooner Iskum to areas of Siberia never seen by a white man. Gen. Ashton published his adventures in 1928 in a book called "Ice Bound." The pair drove about the city and paid a visit to Ashton's home, "Ashtonhill," at 403 No. 11th St. (Ledger 2/6/1927, pg. 1)