ca. 1928. Two men stand next to a biplane with the name Tacoma painted on its side. A third man sits in the rear cockpit of the plane which sits in a grassy field. The plane may belong to the Tacoma Airways aviation school.

Biplanes--Tacoma--1920-1930;

ca. 1928. Young woman in flying jacket, flying cap, and parachute stands on wing of Bergen Bromley Flying Service bi-plane. Photograph probably taken at Mueller Harkins Airport. For more images of the same person, see TPL images 7034 and 7036.

Airplanes--Tacoma--1920-1930; Bergen Bromley Flying Service (Tacoma);

ca. 1894. The whaleback steamer "City of Everett" under construction in Everett, Washington, circa 1894. Her revolutionary design, reminiscent of both a cigar with tipped ends and the body of a whale (when fully loaded only the curved part of the hull was above water), was created by Alexander McDougall, a captain on the Great Lakes. He managed to bring forth a vessel that could carry heavy loads but also be fast, cutting through water with little resistance. His body of work totaled 40, 24 barges and 16 steamers, all whalebacks. The "City of Everett," which was launched in 1894 but not completed until 1895, was the only whaleback steamer built in Everett. She measured 346 feet long with a 42-foot beam. Truly a workhorse, she was in service for 29 years, including such memorable trips as sailing to India for famine relief, at which time she became the first American steamer to navigate the Suez Canal and continuing on to Spain, becoming the first American steamship to circumnavigate the world. The "City of Everett" had survived collisions at sea and a fire in port but on October 11, 1923, she went down with all hands during a storm in the Gulf of Mexico. The wreck was not found until September 10, 2010, in 400 feet of water about 150 miles due west of Naples, Florida. The whaleback steamship was nearly intact and appeared to have sunk stern first. (St. Petersburg Times, "Fishermen find big one that didn't get away: a steamship resting miles off Naples," 12-12-2010; Armitage, "Alexander McDougall and the Whaleboat," 6-8-2008)

Steamboats--Everett; Boat & ship industry--Everett;

ca. 1906. A fleet of new Ford automobiles is lined up outside the Washington Automobile Co., 710-12 Pacific Ave., circa 1906. The firm, operated by W.W. Pickerill, was the first automobile dealership in Tacoma. Prior to being occupied by the Washington Automobile Co., the building had been the home of the Tacoma Athletic Club and also served later as the Odd Fellows Temple.

Ford automobile; Washington Automobile Co. (Tacoma);

ca. 1903. Noted Northwest marine photographer Wilhelm Hester photographed the crew of the "Buckingham" circa 1903 with grain elevator A on Tacoma's waterfront in the background. The men were under the command of William Roberts and all were neatly dressed in suits. There was also one woman in the center of the group, perhaps a family member of one of the crew. Wilhelm Hester, a Seattle resident, had offices in Tacoma's Bernice Building at 1106-08 Pacific Ave. for several years in the first decade of the 20th century. He took photographs of ships and sailors on the Tacoma, Seattle and Port Blakely waterfronts. This ship was probably in port to pick up a cargo of flour.

Shipping--Tacoma--1900-1910; Cargo ships--Tacoma--1900-1910; Waterfronts--Tacoma--1900-1910; Grain elevators--Tacoma--1900-1910;

ca. 1915. This 43-foot tug with 14-foot beam, the Foss #12, was constructed by Gig Harbor designer/builder Robert Crawford and entered service in 1914. She was the first Foss vessel planned and ordered exclusively for towing. #12 handled so well that she was also used as a steamer assist vessel and became the area's first motorized fireboat. With a 75 horsepower gas engine, she was capable of pumping 1,000 gallons of water per minute. #12 was hired as the City of Tacoma's fireboat in 1915, a service for which Foss was paid nearly $3,000 a year. The vessel was a favored one and was skippered by Henry and Drew Foss and later by Capt."Bill" Case. She faithfully served the company as a steady workhorse until 1966. Then on July 4, 1967, the hull was towed out into the Bay and set afire as part of the celebration of the Nation's 191st year of Independence. Foss #12 literally went out in a blaze of glory. (photograph courtesy of the William T. Case collection) (Johnson & Skalley: "Foss: A Living Legend;" Skalley: "Foss: Ninety Years of Towboating" )

Case, William T.--Associated objects; Fireboats; Foss Launch & Tug Co. (Tacoma);

ca. 1920s. Buses of the Sumner Tacoma Stage Co. parked in front of the bus depot on Main St. and Ryan Ave. in Sumner, Washington in the 1920's. The bus company was owned by Peter "P.O." Conlon and his brother John W. Conlon. The people who can be identified in this picture are (l to r) Pete Gratzer, Frank Conlon, Peter Conlon, John W.Conlon, Charley Marquardt, and Mac Wilson. The small buses at the far right in the picture were tourist buses that were used to take riders to Wilkeson and Carbonado, Washington. (Photograph courtesy of the Jack Conlon collection)

Buses--Sumner; Bus drivers--Sumner; Sumner Tacoma Stage Co. (Sumner); Gratzer, Pete; Conlon, Frank; Conlon, Peter; Conlon, John W.; Marquardt, Charley; Wilson, Mac;

ca. 1921. The steamship "Indianapolis," one of two ships used in the Seattle to Tacoma steamship passenger service, docked at the Municipal Dock. The dock was located on the City Waterway (now the Thea Foss Waterway.) The ships would dock with their bows headed up the channel. The services of a tug would be required to turn the bow of the ships around to head back to Seattle. The Foss #12 and its captain William T. Case were assigned this duty. The "Indianapolis" was launched on May 5, 1904 as a Great Lakes steamship. Her inability to serve the large holiday crowds prompted her sale to the Puget Sound Navigation Co. in October of 1905. The vessel travelled around the Cape and began her new run in April of 1906. She served as a passenger transport from 1906-1938. She was converted in 1933 to a car ferry and scrapped in 1939. (photograph courtesy of the William T. Case collection) ("Ferryboats" by M.S. Kline and G.A. Bayless; "Puget Sound Ferries" Carolyn Neal & Thomas Kilday Janus)

Steamboats--Tacoma--1920-1930; Puget Sound Navigation Co. (Tacoma); Ferries--Tacoma--1920-1930; Marine terminals--Tacoma;

Officers of the dirigible USS Shenandoah stand in front of the mooring mast at Camp Lewis in October, 1924. The Shenandoah was the first rigid airship built on US soil. It was first airborne in September of 1922, one of a proposed fleet of German Zeppelin-like lighter than air craft. It came to a tragic end in September of 1925 when it broke apart during a thunderstorm, killing 14.

Military air pilots; Airships; Mooring masts;

Officers and crew of the dirigible "Shenandoah" pose in front of the mooring mast at Camp Lewis in October of 1924. The mooring mast was constructed by the Navy for this two day visit. The Shenandoah was the first rigid airship built in America. Commissioned by the Navy, it was a copy of the German Zeppelin that so impressed our military in World War 1. The Shenandoah was first airborne in 1922. It came to a tragic end in September of 1925 when it broke apart in a thunderstorm with 43 persons aboard, killing 14.

Military air pilots; Airships; Mooring masts;

Donna Francisca. The 'bald-headed' four masted steel barque 'Donna Francisca', 2277 tons, under sail. This ship is 'Jubilee-rigged' [steel 4 mast barque, 2277 tons. ON99059. 277.5 x 42.0 x 24.5. Built 1892 (4) Russell and Co. Greenock. Owners: J Hayes and Co. registered London. Sold 1910 and renamed Herbert and registered in Germany, renamed Lemkenhafen in 1922 and was wrecked in 1924. One of the early ships to be fitted with water ballast tanks. State Library of South Australia, B 3456, PRG 1218/3 or OH 456/1, Digital Collections, South Australiana Collection, Photographs, A. d. Edwardes Collection, https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/PRG+1373/1/81

Sailing ships;

Crompton, The four masted steel barque 'Crompton', 2810 tons, under sail [steel 4 mast barque, 2810 tons, ON97800, 310.0 x 45.3 x 24.9. Built 1890 (7) T. Royden and Sons Liverpool. Owners Steel Sailing Ship Crompton Co. MacVicar, Marshall and Co. registered Liverpool. State Library of South Australia, B 3456, PRG 1218/3 or OH 456/1, Digital Collections, South Australiana Collection, Photographs, A. d. Edwardes Collection, https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/PRG+1373/6/67

Sailing ships; barks; barques;

The four masted steel barque 'Snaigow', 2384 tons, in an unidentified port [steel 4 mast barque, 2324 gross, 2193 net tons. 282.7 x 43.0 x 24.1. Built 1890 Russell and Co. Port Glasgow and named Snaigow [later re-named Ecuador] (for Dundee Clipper Lines Ltd. D Bruce and Co. registered Dundee ON96413) Owners: Rehd. von J Tideman and Co. registered Bremen later renamed H Hachfeld by JC Pfluger and Co. registered Bremen. Passed to Italy in 1918 as war reparations. State Library of South Australia, B 3456, PRG 1218/3 or OH 456/1, Digital Collections, South Australiana Collection, Photographs, A. d. Edwardes Collection, https://collections.slsa.sa.gov.au/resource/PRG+1373/10/10

Sailing ships; barks; barques;

Ship name: Occidental

Sailing ships;

Bark Brown Brothers

Sailing ships; barks; barques;

Ship name: Grey Feather

Sailing ships;

Ship name: Glory of the Seas

Sailing ships; Clipper ships;

USS Constitution.

Sailing ships; Frigates;

Undated photograph of the stern-wheeler "Telegraph" docked at The Sumner Iron Works in Everett, Washington. She was built in Everett in 1903 for use in the Seattle-Tacoma run. The "Telegraph" was one of the last stern-wheelers built in Puget Sound. The slender vessel was 153.7 feet long. She was purchased by the Puget Sound Navigation Co. in 1910 and used regularly in routes from Seattle to Bremerton. On April 25, 1912, she was sunk by an errant steamer, the "Alameda," while docked at Seattle's Colman Dock. The "Alameda" had struck the dock, knocking its famous 72-foot tower into Elliott Bay and driving the "Telegraph" as far as the Grand Pacific Dock before sinking the stern-wheeler. The "Telegraph" would live to float another day; it was raised and repaired and remained in service for two more years before laying up. (Dorpat, "Steam Rolled," Seattle Times 3-17-2002; Findlay, Mosquito Fleet of South Puget Sound, p. 107)

Stern wheelers; Steamboats; Sumner Iron Works (Everett);

ca. 1904. U.S.S. Tacoma on maiden voyage to Tacoma after being commissioned on January 30, 1904. She was laid down on September 27, 1900, at Mare Island, California by Union Iron Works and launched on June 2, 1903. The ship was the second "Tacoma" and was Cruiser No. 18. She was under the command of Comdr. R.F. Nicholson. After her visit to Tacoma she voyaged to Hawaii in the spring of 1904 and then, after returning to San Francisco, proceeded to sail for Cape Horn. In the next couple of years the busy "Tacoma" voyaged to Hispaniola, Europe and the Mediterranean. She spent the next ten years providing service on the east coast and cruising the Caribbean and West Indies to protect American interests there. More cruising involving the Canal Zone, Costa Rica, Nicaragua and Honduras followed. After a short spell in reserve, she once again began patrolling in 1912 where she cruised the Gulf of Mexico, Nicaragua, Honduras and Guatemala. The "Tacoma" cruised the Mexican coast in 1914 and then to Haiti. After another stint in reserve in 1916 she was fully commissioned for patrol duty. The warship made five round trips to Europe protecting US convoys once the United States entered World War l. The "Tacoma" ran aground on January 16, 1924 near Vera Cruz. She was unable to be freed and her name was struck from the Navy list in February of 1924. (Dictionary of American Naval Fighting Ships, p.7-8-article)

Cruisers (Warships)--United States--1900-1910;

ca. 1916. J.E. "Ed" Hahn and Bill Gray (behind steering wheel), foreman and sales manager, respectively, of the Gerlinger Motor Car Co., are seated on a Gersix truck ca. 1916 while a band plays in the rear. The Gerlinger Motor Car Company, 3011 South Fife Street, manufactured 6-cylinder, structural steel trucks in Tacoma beginning in 1915. This particular truck may have been the third truck manufactured by the Tacoma Company. Gerlinger Motor Car Co. eventually became the Kenworth Motor Truck Co., a leading producer of custom trucks. A Kenworth dealership opened in Tacoma in 1929 and both Bill Gray and Ed Hahn worked there for many years. Mr. Gray left in 1940; Mr. Hahn stayed until 1950. Photograph provided by Robert (Bob) Hahn, Ed Hahn's son.

Hahn, J.E.; Gray, Bill; Trucks--Tacoma--1910-1920; Gerlinger Motor Car Co. (Tacoma);

Inside hanger at Tacoma Field. Four airplanes are clearly visible, a single-wing tri-motor passenger plane and three bi-planes. Two of the bi-planes are marked Bennett Air Transportation Inc. Photograph was taken in March of 1931.

Airplanes--Lakewood--1930-1940; Bennett Air Transportation Inc. (Lakewood); Tacoma Field (Lakewood);

ca. 1928. A man with a fuel can stands next to a Red Crown Gasoline truck as two men work at fueling a biplane.

Biplanes--Tacoma--1920-1930; Fuel tanks;

ca. 1929. Two men work at filling a plane with fuel from a truck that has two signs on it that read Red Crown Gasoline. This photograph was taken circa 1929.

Airplanes--Tacoma--1920-1930; Fuel tanks;

ca. 1929. People crowd around to view Harold Bromley's airplane, the "City of Tacoma," at the Tacoma Field. This picture was probably taken on July 19, 1929 when Bromley arrived at Tacoma Field after a flight of 8 hours 17 minutes from Los Angeles in his new bright orange Lockheed Vega monoplane. To the right was the temporary hangar erected for the plane, a wooden framework covered by canvas. The city also erected a new 5400 foot runway for the flight. Bromley and his plane had captured the attention and newspaper headlines of Tacoma. The newspapers rang out "Tacoma to Tokyo!" Bromley was planning, with the backing of Tacoma businessmen, to make the first transPacific flight, a distance of 4,762 miles. It would be the longest flight segment ever flown. Thousands crowded the airfield to see the plane and history in the making. On July 28, 1929, Bromley's roared down the runway from the top of a ramp. It proceeded down the runway before veering off to the left and crashing nose first in the ground. A dazed Bromley descended from the cockpit, now 9 feet from the ground due to the plane's 45 degree angle, unhurt.The plane had crashed when gasoline from the overloaded tanks blinded Bromley. The crowds rushed the plane in a mob, held off by a ring of firemen and officers surrounding the gasoline soaked plane.

Bromley, Harold--Associated objects; Airplanes--Tacoma--1920-1930; Aeronautics--Tacoma--1920-1930;

ca. 1928. Young woman wearing 1920s style flight suit and parachute stands on wing of a bi-plane. She may be practicing for a parachute jump. The plane is sitting on the ground, probably at Tacoma Field. The plane has a winged logo that says, "Bergen Bromley Flying Service." Next to the pilots cockpit, on the side of the plane is the name R. N. Bergen. His partner was Harold Bromley, best remembered for his failed attempts to fly from Tacoma to Tokyo.

Airplanes--Tacoma--1920-1930; Bergen Bromley Flying Service (Tacoma);

ca. 1930. Man in suit holding a hat and woman in coat and hat holding a closed umbrella stand at the entrance door to a plane. Man in old style pilots suit and cap crouches next to the plane, sorting what appears to be mail. Word "Pacific" clearly visible on side of plane. The plane is possibly a carrier for Pacific Air Transport, which handled air mail and package delivery from Tacoma in the late 1920's. Man to the right holds what appear to be mail bags.

Airplanes--Tacoma--1920-1930; Mueller-Harkins Airport (Lakewood); Air mail service--Tacoma--1920-1930;

ca. 1942. William L. (Bill) Case and friends aboard his pleasure craft, the "Baby Dumpling." The vessel had a mysterious beginning. She is crafted from a 30 foot lifeboat found abandoned in mid Pacific by the Silveray, a British motorship of the Silver-Java-Pacific line, sailing from the Philippine Islands to Puget Sound. In the craft were oars, two casks of fresh water, empty sea biscuit cartons, a cigaret package from Sidney, Australia and several .38 caliber bullet slugs, but no people. The slugs had punctured the air tanks and made several holes in the craft. No name was on the boat and its original owner was unknown. Foss Tug and Launch purchased the boat from the crew and towed it to their repair yard where Bill L. Case converted it to a pleasure craft. (Photograph courtesy of the William T. Case Collection) (lifeboat story T. Times 8/23/1939, pg. 18)

Case, William L.; Sailboats--Tacoma--1940-1950;

ca. 1896. A two-masted sailing ship is docked on Tacoma's waterfront circa 1896 at the Northern Pacific Railroad's Ocean Freight warehouse to take on cargo. In the background to the left is the Crescent Creamery at what is now 100 Schuster Parkway. The creamery was built in 1890 and demolished about 1920.

Shipping--Tacoma--1890-1900; Sailing ships--Tacoma--1890-1900; Warehouses--Tacoma--1890-1900; Crescent Creamery (Tacoma); Waterfronts--Tacoma--1890-1900;

Spartan. Wrecked at Spreckelscille on the island of Hawaii August 17, 1905. The Spartan was first owned on the Pacific Coast by P. B. Cornwall of San Francisco. She was built 1874 in Boston by R. E. Jackson. (Gibbs, Jim. Pacific Square-Riggers : Pictorial History of the Great Windships of Yesteryear. 1987. Pg. 87.)

Sailing ships;