This photograph taken in 1938 shows Mayor George A. Smitley buying a "Buddy Poppy" from Mary Lee Burrows (left) and Elizabeth Armstrong, the youngest members of the American Legion Rhodes Post Auxiliary, at his office in (Old) City Hall. Mayor Smitley was born in Fort Wayne, Indiana in 1872, and although his formal education was limited to four years in a country school, he went on to be a successful businessman and Mayor of Tacoma from 1934 through 1938. Buddy poppies date to the early 1920s. They were inspired after WWI by the poem "In Flanders Fields" and are sold by the VFW to raise funds for disabled and needy veterans and their dependents.

Mayors--Tacoma--1930-1940; Smitley, George A., 1872-1956; Patriotic societies--Tacoma; American Legion Edward B. Rhodes Post No. 2 (Tacoma); Girls--Tacoma--1930-1940; Burrows, Mary Lee; Armstrong, Elizabeth;

Six days after Pearl Harbor, Eleanor (Mrs. Franklin D.) Roosevelt, Assistant Director of the Office of Civilian Defense, speaks to Tacoma Mayor Harry Cain and local Civilian Defense leaders about wartime issues in the Mayor's office at City Hall. Mayor Cain appears to be diligently taking notes on Mrs. Roosevelt's speech. After her stop in Tacoma, she went to another conference on civil defense in Seattle. (T.Times, 12-13-41, p. 1) ALBUM 1

Presidents' spouses; Roosevelt, Anna Eleanor, 1884-1962; Visits of state--Tacoma; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; World War, 1939-1945--Civil defense--Tacoma;

Drum majorettes Phylis Scott (left) and Marilyn Nelson sold Mayor Harry P. Cain a "forget-me-not" or "Buddy Poppy," for the benefit of Disabled American Veterans, at his office in (Old) City Hall in early September of 1941. The annual fund raiser was directed by chairman Floyd Brassfield of the Tacoma Chapter No. 1, Disabled American Veterans. The proceeds from the sale were used to support various veterans' relief programs; the VFW made no profit from the sale. (T.Times 9-4-41, p. 2) ALBUM 12.

Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Fund raising--Tacoma--1940-1950; Disabled American Veterans, Tacoma Post No. 1 (Tacoma); Scott, Phylis; Nelson, Marilyn; Drum majorettes--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Mayor Harry P. Cain makes a broadcast appeal over station KMO for the Tacoma Community Chest from the Mayor's Office in (Old) City Hall. The Community Chest preceded the United Way. ALBUM 13. TPL-10183

Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Radio broadcasting--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Tacoma Mayor Val Fawcett, son of the celebrated Mayor A.V. Fawcett, at (Old) City Hall for his swearing in ceremony on June 3, 1946. Members of the city council flank the mayor. They are: (l-r) L.W. "Roy" Craig, Abner R. Bergersen, Robert S. Temme and C.A. "Clif" Erdahl. (T.Times 6-3-46, p. 1)

Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fawcett, Clarence Valdo, 1900-1965; Craig, L.W.; Bergersen, Abner R.; Temme, Robert S.; Erdahl, C.A.; Municipal officials--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Newly sworn in mayor Val Fawcett posed proudly with his immediate family on June 3, 1946. This is a cropped version of D22427, image 6, with the portrait of Mayor A.V. Fawcett nearly removed. Mayor Val Fawcett is holding his granddaughter Linda Knecht, and is flanked by wife Linda (with orchid corsage) and mother Margaret, widow of A.V. Next to Margaret Fawcett is Val's daughter, also named Margaret and her husband, Norbert Knecht. ALBUM 14.

Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fawcett, Clarence Valdo, 1900-1965; Fawcett, Clarence Valdo, 1900-1965--Family;

In December of 1945 Mayor Harry P. Cain returned to Tacoma to once again take up his mayoral duties. In 1943 he had taken a leave of absence from his elected office to enter the Army as a major. He left the city in the capable hands of C. Val Fawcett, who had previously served as Commissioner of Finance. By the end of the war Mayor Cain had risen in rank to Lieutenant Colonel. Once back in office he served as mayor of Tacoma until June 15, 1946, when he chose to run for the U.S. Senate. Album 13.

Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Military uniforms--United States;

Mayor Val Fawcett, seated center, and city Public Utilities Commissioner C.A. "Clif" Erdahl (seated foreground) listen patiently to delegations from church groups and others, who have just delivered petitions calling for the outlawing of pinball machines. A city Legal Department memo, dated 12/29/1946, is on the table in foreground. Despite two hours of fervent protest by council visitors, the mayor and council would go on to pass an emergency ordinance on December 30, 1946, amending pinball regulations in the city. Pinball machines would not be outlawed but instead have a 5% tax on these "payoff" machines. ALBUM 14. (T.Times 12-30-46, p. 1, 14-article; TNT 12-30-46, p. 1-article)

Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fawcett, Clarence Valdo, 1900-1965; Petitions--Tacoma;

Tacoma Mayor Val Fawcett wears a Hawaiian lei in a publicity photo for KVI Radio taken at his office in (Old) City Hall. ALBUM 14.

Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fawcett, Clarence Valdo, 1900-1965; Leis;

Mayor John H. Anderson is shown here issuing a proclamation setting aside the period from January 14 to 21, 1951, as Junior Chamber of Commerce week. With him in his office are L-R, G. Hanley Barker, Jaycee director; Fred F. LeVeque, local president; Warner Matson, first vice president; Marc H. Miller, award chairman; and Howard Perkin, secretary. John H. Anderson was one of the partners in Anderson Construction Company. (TNT, 1/14/1951, p.A-4)

Anderson, John H.; Mayors--Tacoma--1950-1960; Tacoma Junior Chamber of Commerce (Tacoma); Barker, G. Hanley; LeVeque, Fred F.; Matson, Warner; Miller, Marc H.; Perkin, Howard;

Mayor John Anderson, in his office at (Old) City Hall, admires a bouquet of rhododendrons held by Mrs. John Skupens of the Washington Rhododendron Society. Mrs. Skupens had called on the mayor to invite him to the upcoming 9th annual Tacoma Rhododendron Show. The two day show would take place at the Oakland Community Center with free admission. Publicity photo for Tacoma Rhododendron Society. (TNT 5-9-57, C-6) ALBUM 14

Mayors--Tacoma--1950-1960; Anderson, John H.; Rhododendrons; Skupens, John--Family;

Mayor John H. Anderson meets with Elder Osgood of the Seventh Day Adventists and several others for a publicity picture on March 26, 1953. There are several large white cans marked "SDA Disaster Kit", holding emergency supplies for household use in case of disaster, while Mayor Anderson displays an American Red Cross medical kit. DeWitt Osgood is the pastor of the Central Seventh Day Adventist Church. His and other Seventh Day Adventist churches worked together to assemble these emergency kits; bandages, antiseptics, splints, dressings, and water purification tablets were some of the supplies contained in each kit. (TNT 3-22-53, A-15)

Anderson, John H.; Osgood, DeWitt; Disaster relief--Tacoma;

On October 29, 1924, a group of city and railroad officials met in Mayor A.V. Fawcett's office in (Old) City Hall, 625 Commerce St., to sign Belt Line contracts. The municipal carline was now the industrial belt line, effective November 1st. Mayor Fawcett is seated at far left; also seated are City Attorney E.K. Murray and chairman Ernest Dolge of the traffic bureau. Among others present was the mayor's son, and future mayor, Val Fawcett, second man standing in rear at left. The sole woman in the group is city clerk, Genevieve Martin. (other officials are listed in the Tacoma Daily Ledger article, 10-30-24, p. 4) TPL-10461

Mayors--Tacoma--1920-1930; Fawcett, Angelo Vance; Fawcett, Clarence Valdo, 1900-1965; Municipal officials--Tacoma--1920-1930; Contracts; Martin, Genevieve; Dolge, Ernest; Murray, E.K.;

Christmas, 1941, party for City employees given by Mayor Harry Cain in his office in (Old) City Hall. The staff apparently enjoyed snacks as the dessert-laden table testifies. Small gifts may have been exchanged as well. City Hall closed at noon on Christmas Eve that year. ALBUM 12.

Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Christmas--Tacoma;

Eleanor Roosevelt chatted with Mayor Harry Cain and his wife Marjorie in the Mayor's office in (Old) City Hall, 625 Commerce Street, on December 13, 1941. The First Lady had come to Tacoma to speak to local civilian defense officials. Pearl Harbor had occurred just six days before her visit and Mrs. Roosevelt had made several stops at major cities, including San Francisco and Portland, to assess the nation's readiness and listen to local concerns. While in Tacoma, she also met with a small delegation representing the Japanese American Joint Defense Corp. She was accompanied to Tacoma by her daughter and son-in-law, Anna and John Boettiger. (TNT 12-13-41, p. 1) TPL-153 ALBUM 1.

Presidents' spouses; Roosevelt, Anna Eleanor, 1884-1962; Visits of state--Tacoma; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Cain, Marjorie Dils, 1908-1994; World War, 1939-1945--Civil defense--Tacoma;

Small audience listening to Eleanor Roosevelt speak in the Mayor's office on December 13, 1941. Six days after Pearl Harbor, Eleanor (Mrs. Franklin D.) Roosevelt, Assistant Director of the Office of Civilian Defense, speaks to Tacoma Mayor Harry Cain and local Civilian Defense leaders about wartime issues in the Mayor's office at City Hall. The man to the far right is ex-Mayor J.J. Kaufman. (T.Times, 12-13-41, p. 1) ALBUM 1

Visits of state--Tacoma; World War, 1939-1945--Civil defense--Tacoma;

Union Officials direct Wartime Salvage Committee. Mayor Harry Cain and John Jacobs, Business Agent for Teamster's Union 313, look at map of Seattle/Tacoma area during a meeting at the Mayor's office in (Old) City Hall. They are planning the upcoming salvage drive for November 1st. On that date, 600 union volunteers, with trucks borrowed from their employers, will pick up scrap piled on the curb in front of private homes. The yield from this type of collection was expected to exceed that of earlier scrap drives.

Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Jacobs, John; World War, 1939-1945--Scrap drives; Labor unions--Tacoma;

Mayor Harry P. Cain samples a doughnut at (old) City Hall on April 5, 1941, with Camp Fire Girls Margaret Turner, Ruthella Raver, Joan Thrasher and Billie Mellis. These Camp Fire Girls club presidents were interested in selling Mayor Cain the first ticket for their current doughnut drive. Participants could enjoy a week's outing at Camp Sealth on Vashon Island. ALBUM 12. (TNT 4-7-41, p. 9)

Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Camp Fire Girls (Tacoma); Doughnuts; Turner, Margaret; Raver, Ruthella; Thrasher, Joan; Mellis, Billie;

Tacoma Mayor Harry P. Cain reads the city charter to CCC boys who took over the running of city government for a day. Mayor Cain had proclaimed March 29, 1941, as "CCC Day in Tacoma." Howard Hembree of Spata, Tennessee, believed to be kneeling on the left, was named mayor for that day. The CCC would be celebrating its eighth anniversary with open houses the following week. There were 300,000 boys in 1500 camps nationwide. The northwest area district had 27 Washington and two Alaskan camps. The 55,000 boys trained in eight years planted 20 million trees, fought fires, built trails and telephone lines and manned lookout towers. Names and camps of the CCC participants shown above were listed in the News Tribune's March 28, 1941, edition. (TNT 3-28-41, p. 1) ALBUM 12.

Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Civilian Conservation Corps (Tacoma);

Marjorie Cain, wife of the Mayor, and son Harry P. Cain II (Buzzy) at (Old) City Hall for the installation of city officials, including Mayor Harry P. Cain, reelected to a full term in March, 1942. This would be Mayor Cain's first full four year term. He had previously been elected, in 1940, to fill the last two years of Dr. John Siegle's term after his death in office. Cain had lost in the 1940 primary to Dr. G.B. Kerstetter, a former Senator. When Kerstetter died just days before the election, Cain's name was placed on the ballot. He defeated former mayor Melvin G. Tennent, who hotly contested the election. (T. Times 6/1/1942, pg. 1)

Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979--Family; Cain, Marjorie Dils, 1908-1994; Cain, Harry P.;

Mayor Harry P. Cain buys a ticket for the Cooks' and Waitresses' Union Derby Dance at his office in (Old) City Hall. Mayor Cain carried on a long held tradition in buying tickets to support local business endeavors. L to R in this February 24, 1942, photograph are: Harold Elrod, Coffee Pot Cafe owner; Jim Canto, Local 61 Bus. Agent, Helen Martineau, The Turf; Eula Nick, Coffee Pot Cafe. (TNT 3/1/42) ALBUM 13.

Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Elrod, Harold; Canto, Jim; Martineau, Helen; Nick, Eula;

A uniformed Harry P. Cain in the Mayor's office in (Old) City Hall, shortly after his return from Europe. A Christmas tree, dripping in tinsel, is in the background. Framed photographs fill the wall behind Lt. Col. Cain. He had interrupted his mayoral duties to join the US Army in 1943 and fought in the European theater. ALBUM 13.

Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Military uniforms--United States; Christmas trees--Tacoma;

Tacoma Mayor Harry P. Cain, in civilian suit, giving "V for Victory" sign at mayor's office in (Old) City Hall in May, 1943. The mayor was about to take a leave of absence to serve in the Army. One of two photos used for a Tacoma Times montage. The second photo was designed to show Major Cain, in Army uniform, saluting. The two photographs were blended so that Harry P. Cain could be seen acknowledging his own salute. ALBUM 13. (T.Times 5-12-43, p. 1)

Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Tacoma Mayor Harry P. Cain, in Army Major's uniform, giving salute at mayor's office in (Old) City Hall in May, 1943. The mayor was about to take a leave of absence to serve in the Army. He was apparently wearing his major's uniform for the first time. The second of two photographs used for a Tacoma Times montage. The mayor would preside over his final council meeting for the indefinite future on May 12, 1943. He would request that acting mayor C. Val Fawcett and Commissioners Abner R. Bergersen and R.D. O'Neil continue support for the planning programs for Tacoma and Puget Sound. (T.Times, 5-12-43, p. 1) ALBUM 13.

Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Military officers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Military uniforms--United States; Saluting--Tacoma;

Tacoma Mayor Harry P. Cain in salute in the mayor's chambers. This is a cropped photograph of D14478-2. A solemn Cain is caught in salute; he is wearing his Army major's uniform for the first time on May 11, 1943. He would be leaving very shortly for military training school. Commissioner C. Val Fawcett would become acting mayor during Major Cain's absence. (T.Times, 5-12-43, p. 1) ALBUM 13.

Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Military officers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Military uniforms--United States; Saluting--Tacoma;

Tacoma Mayor Harry P. Cain and county PTA President Mrs. Byron Moye are pictured on April 27, 1943, at the Mayor's Office in (Old) City Hall. Mrs. Moye is buying a $1000 War Bond, fulfilling a promise made the previous Saturday at the Liberty Center. All purchasers of Series E Bonds at the rally were given a wild ride in an open Army Jeep. Mrs. Moye promised to buy a bond for every jeep load of women buyers that afternoon. (TNT 4/29/1943, pg. 27)

Cain, Harry P., 1906-1979; Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; War bonds & funds;

Three generations at the June 3, 1946, swearing in of Tacoma Mayor Val Fawcett. Left to Right: wife Linda, granddaughter Linda, Mayor Fawcett, mother Margaret (widow of Mayor A.V. Fawcett) and daughter Margaret. The City of Tacoma got a new mayor and two new councilmen on Monday morning, June 3rd, as Val Fawcett and L.W. (Roy) Craig (new Finance Commissioner) and Robert S. Temme (new Public Safety Commissioner) took the oath of office. Mayor Fawcett was no stranger to the office of mayor - he had managed the dual role of acting mayor and finance commissioner for 2.5 years while Harry P. Cain was on military leave with the Army. Harry Cain had vacated the mayor's post to run for U.S. Senate. ALBUM 14 (TNT 6-2-42, A-1-article)

Mayors--Tacoma--1940-1950; Fawcett, Clarence Valdo, 1900-1965; Fawcett, Clarence Valdo, 1900-1965--Family;

Mayor John Anderson accepts an invitation from the Greater Seattle Gospel Crusade's Official Committee, Tacoma division, to hear evangelist Billy Graham speak during the summer of 1951. Mr. Graham is coming to Seattle for a series of revivals beginning July 29, 1951, to be held at the Memorial High School Stadium. Choir director Cliff Barrows and gospel singer George Beverly Shea will be accompanying Mr. Graham. From left to right are Rev. Don R. Rogne, Mayor Anderson, A.W. Pitts and Rev. Harris G. Hunter. Special arrangements are being made for Tacomans to attend the August 3rd revival as it has been designated as Tacoma Night. Photograph commissioned by Rev. Harris G. Hunter, pastor of the Tahoma Terrace United Presbyterian Church. (TNT 7-29-51, A-10) ALBUM 16.

Anderson, John H.; Mayors--Tacoma--1950-1960; Graham, Billy; Revivals; Rogne, Don R.; Pitts, A.W.; Hunter, Harris G.; Clergy;

Tacoma Mayor "Big John" Anderson with two members of the Pierce County Association of Catholic War Veterans at the Mayor's Office in (Old) City Hall. On March 13, 1952, Mayor Anderson received the "Cross of Peace" from Lew Turner (L), state commander of the Catholic War Veterans organization and Peter J. Schmalz, commander of the Pierce County chapter of the C.W.V. ALBUM 14. (TNT 3-14-52, A-6)

Mayors--Tacoma--1950-1960; Anderson, John H.; Veterans' organizations--Tacoma--1950-1960; Turner, Lew; Schmalz, Peter J.;

C. Val Fawcett takes the oath as City Finance Commissioner for the third time from Clerk Genevieve Martin at (old) City Hall on June 6, 1938. Newly installed Mayor John C. Siegle looks on smilingly. Mr. Fawcett would serve multiple terms as finance commissioner for the city. He would go on to become acting mayor during Mayor Harry P. Cain's absence during WWII and then be elected mayor in March, 1946. In 1938, Ms. Martin had already held the position of City Clerk for 16 years. (T.Times, 6-6-38, p. 14)

Fawcett, Clarence Valdo, 1900-1965; Oaths--Tacoma; Mayors--Tacoma--1930-1940; Siegle, John C., 1885-1939; Martin, Genevieve;