On May 15, 1943, Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company was presented with the coveted "E" pennant for efficiency in the production of vital chemicals for wartime uses. Holding the "E" pennant are two U.S. seamen and back of the pennant are, left to right, Capt. James R. Tague, Col. Arthur J. Ericcson, Col. Clarence B. Lober, and Fred C. Shanaman. (T.Times, 5/17/1943, p.16)

World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Awards; Shanaman, Frederick Charles, 1901-1982; Tague, James R.; Ericcson, Arthur J.; Lober, Clarence B.;

ca. 1943. Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company, formerly Tacoma Electrochemical Company. Crowd gathered for star award ceremony outside office building, a one-story brick building with weather vane on roof. Photograph was taken circa 1943.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma)--Employees; Crowds--Tacoma--1940-1950; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950;

ca. 1943. Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company, formerly Tacoma Electrochemical Company. Large crowd including employees watches as flags are raised during star award ceremony occurring circa 1943.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma)--Employees; Crowds--Tacoma--1940-1950; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Flags--United States;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company seen on the Tacoma tideflats. Elevated view of industrial complex, chemical plant.

Waterfronts--Tacoma--1940-1950; Industrial facilities--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma);

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company seen on the sparsely populated Tacoma tideflats. In 1850, five Philadelphia Quakers organized the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company to produce lye and other alkaline salts of soda from natural salt. Tacoma's multi-million dollar Penwalt Corporation plant grew from these roots. In 1928, the eastern firm built a plant on 14 acres of filled ground adjacent to the Hylebos waterway. They began business as the Tacoma ElectroChemical Company and produced chlorine for the pulp and paper industry. The company became Pennsalt Chemical Co. when the parent firm decided to diversify its chemical production. In 1969, the company merged with Wallace and Tiernan, Inc., becoming Pennwalt Corporation. ("South on the Sound" Murray and Rosa Morgan)

Waterfronts--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Aerial view of Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. The Tacoma plant covers nearly 40 acres of tideflats on the Hylebos waterway. This location was chosen in 1929 because of favorable electric power rates, availability and quality of water, access to water, rail and motor transportation and its central location for its principal customers, the pulp and paper mills. The name of the corporation was changed to Pennwalt Corp. prior to the merger of Pennsalt and Wallace & Tierman, Inc. (TNT, 11/29/1968)

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Hylebos Waterway (Tacoma); Waterfronts--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Pennsylvania Salt was created in 1927 to serve the pulp and paper industry in the Northwest. Interior view of Pennsylvania Salt plant with workmen filling tank cylinders with compressed ammonia gas. This gas is used by refrigeration plants, water development and other industries. Ammonia gas tank is sitting on a Toledo scale (T. Times, 2/26/47, p. 8-B).

Scales; Storage tanks--Tacoma; Laborers--Tacoma; Industrial facilities--Tacoma; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma);

Pennsylvania Salt manufactured the following chemicals: chlorine, caustic soda, sodium hypochlorite, bleaching powder, hydrogen, sodium arsenate, dairy and poultry germicides, special chemical cleaners and laundry and dry cleaning products. Interior view of Pennsylvania Salt plant with cylindrical tanks and two workmen in chemical storage room (T. Times, 2/26/47, p. 8-B).

Storage tanks--Tacoma; Laborers--Tacoma; Industrial facilities--Tacoma; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma);

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. A view of a large ventilating or cooling system on the exterior of one of the buildings at the plant yards. Several series of narrow tubes stand vertically with dials visible at the front. One series of four tubes run from underground to a square metal box near the middle of the apparatus.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company.A view of a large piece of machinery at the Penn Salt plant. The name "General Electric Company" is molded into the housing on the base of the machine. It is large enough to have a portion of the machine below floor level.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. The exterior of one of the buildings at the plant is pictured on June 7, 1947. The roof line includes elongated V shapes: the shorter side is translucent to allow light into the factory during daylight hours.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Factories--Tacoma;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. The exterior of one of the buildings at the plant. A flag pole stands in front of the building. The $2 million Tacoma plant covered about 40 acres of tideflats on Hylebos waterway. Their products included chlorine and caustic soda (used in pulp, paper, plywood and soap manufacture as well as for sanitation purposes), chemical manufacturing, metallurgical and other processes and herbicides.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Factories--Tacoma;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. An exterior view showing a cooling system at the rear of the building. Refer to D28,041-2 for a more detailed view of the cooling system.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Factories--Tacoma;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. An interior view of the plant. Three large funnels are shown with large tanks in the background. One man is painting some of the metal surfaces of the internal structures. Another man is standing reviewing the process.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Factories--Tacoma;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. Two men stand by a large control panel. One of the men is turning a valve. Dials are displayed on the large metal face of the panel.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Factories--Tacoma; Industrial facilities--Tacoma;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. An interior view of the plant showing a line of very large storage tanks along the left side. On the right are stacks of bagged materials.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Tanks (Storage); Factories--Tacoma;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. A large room filled with rows and rows of tanks in the electrolytic cell department. Two men are walking along the aisles to assure all is well. This electro-chemical company manufactured chlorine, caustic soda, sodium hypochlorite, bleaching powder, hydrogen and sodium arsenate among other substances. (TNT, 2/15/1949, p.A-6)

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Tanks (Storage); Factories--Tacoma; Laborers--Tacoma--1940-1950; Industrial facilities--Tacoma;

Pennsalt; 8 people at a desk. The man in the lab coat holds a glass bottle with a grainy substance inside.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma)--Employees; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Factories--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington had its headquarters in Tacoma. Despite its name, Pennsalt did not produce table salt but instead was a basic manufacturer of chemicals from salt. It, along with Hooker Electrochemical, supplied caustic soda and chlorine to the Pacific Northwest's pulp and paper industry. View of some of the machinery used by Pennsalt in their Tideflats plant; these are believed to be rotary converters used to convert AC power to direct current. Photograph ordered by Edwin Cliffe, supt. of Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington. (Additional information provided by a reader)

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Machinery;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington had long been established in Tacoma; it was to celebrate its 25th anniversary locally in 1954. It started with a 40 acre tract of land on the Hylebos Waterway and has steadily expanded, adding new buildings and machinery, to fill the needs of the pulp and paper industry. View of machinery in Pennsalt plant; this may be a large burner. Photograph ordered by Edwin Cliffe.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Machinery;

Pennsalt; Plant & employees for magazine. This appears, from the large number of adding machines, to be the accounting department. Construction of the Pennsylvania Salt plant began in 1928; production of chemicals began in 1929. The 40 acre Tacoma plant was the western headquarters for the Philadelphia, Pa., parent company. Raw materials were brought to the plant by ship and rail. Pennsalt was the major consumer of city water and power.

Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma)--Employees;

Pennsalt; Plant & employees for magazine. President and general manager Fred C. Shanaman sits at the desk. Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co., with 40 acres on the Hylebos Waterway, was one of the larger plants in the Tideflats industrial section of Tacoma. It was the Western headquarters for its parent company, the world's largest chemical manufacturing firm. The company had other branches at Portland and Bryan, Texas. Together, the three branches produced an estimated 6 million dollars worth of products annually. The main products were sodium arsenate, hydrogen & sodium hypochlorite, chlorine salt, caustic soda and DDT. These products were used in pulp, paper, plywood and soap manufacturing and in sanitation.

Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma)--Employees; Shanaman, Frederick Charles, 1901-1982;

Pennsalt; Plant & employees for magazine. As the western headquarters for Pennsylvania Salt, the Tacoma plant also employed a large office staff. This group may have been attached to the sales department. The chemicals produced at Pennsalt were sold mainly to pulp, paper, plywood and soap manufacturers.

Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma)--Employees;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. Family Day; employees' picnic and open house. Photograph labelled, left to right, Sgt. Bob Marshall, Mr. Fred Shanaman & Ed Sorger. Sgt. Marshall was the head of the Tacoma Police Department's Safety Division, Fred Shanaman was president and general manager of the company and Ed Sorger was Washington State's Safety Supervisor. The trio stand in front of a display case containing a trophy, certificates and memorabilia of the company's safety record. In 1950 & 52, Pennsalt won the National Safety Council's Award of Merit for no "lost time accidents" and the Pennsalt national award for best yearly safety record. Pennsalt opened on the Tideflats in June of 1929. The 40 acre plant manufactured industrial chemicals. (TNT 9/6/1953, pg. A-12)

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma)--Employees; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Factories--Tacoma--1950-1960; Marshall, Bob; Sorger, Ed; Shanaman, Frederick Charles, 1901-1982;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. Family Day; employees' picnic and open house. An unidentified group of employees stands in front of a display case set up for the open house. Wives, husbands and children of employees were invited on this day to tour the plant. A brief program was devoted to safety measures practiced at the plant. Lunch for 300 employees and their visitors was followed by a tour of the plant. The manufacturing facility opened on the Tideflats in June of 1929 as Tacoma Electro-Chemical Co. Despite its deceptive name, Pennsalt manufactured industrial chemicals, some of which were used in the manufacture of pulp and paper. (TNT 9/6/1953, pg. A-12)

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma)--Employees; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Factories--Tacoma--1950-1960;

This is the office of Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. (commonly known as Pennsalt), located in Tacoma's tideflats area, in January of 1952. The big chemical plant covered 40 acres on the Hylebos Waterway. The Ionic columns are believed to have been manufactured by the (Washington) Mutual Fir Column Co. who were neighbors of Pennsalt.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

A "Sreen", a high bias installation at Penn Salt.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Factories--Tacoma--1950-1960;

A view of the exterior of Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company's facilities showing the proximity of the railroad spur to one of the buildings. A stack is seen over the building. Pennsalt's expansion program begun in 1951 was to include four structures, the largest of which was to be an 80 x 120-foot section of the primary production room. (TNT, 7/29/1951)

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Railroad tank cars--Tacoma--1950-1960; Railroad sidings--Tacoma;

Tall tanks are shown in the interior of the Tacoma Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. Penn Salt began a $172,000 plant expansion program in 1951 where the biggest investment was in new equipment in the plant's chlorine and caustic soda departments. Some building modification was also included. Ordered by Penn Salt for their annual report. (TNT, 3/30/1951)

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Transport tanks are shown loaded on railroad cars at the Tacoma Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company's spur. President Fred C. Shanaman announced in April 1951 that the capacity of the Tacoma plant for production of chlorine and caustic soda was being increased 30 percent. (TNT, 4/26/1951)

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Railroad tank cars--Tacoma--1950-1960; Railroad sidings--Tacoma;