Exterior views of some Washington Co-op Farmers Association buildings were taken on February 1, 1956. The brick Farm Service Store was open Mondays-Fridays from 8 am to 4pm for the convenience of its members. A truck and passenger car are parked at the store's loading dock. A Great Northern boxcar is located close to the truck. Photograph ordered by Washington Cooperative Farmers Association.
Washington Cooperative Farmers Association (Tacoma); Railroad freight cars--Tacoma--1950-1960;
Mr. and Mrs. Carl Wilson, ordered by the Washington Coop. He holds pruning shears and she holds what appears to be a Washington state business license. They are perhaps starting their own orchard or berry business.
Washington Cooperative Farmers Association (Tacoma); Wilson, Carl; Pruning; Scissors & shears;
Representatives of the 4-H Clubs of Washington meet with a Washington Co-op Farmers Association official on April 26, 1957, outside the association's headquarters on Taylor Way. Two of the 4-H'ers are standing on the running board of the Co-op's bulk feeds delivery truck. Photograph ordered by the Washington Cooperative Farmers Association.
Washington Cooperative Farmers Association (Tacoma); Trucks--Tacoma--1950-1960; 4-H Club (Tacoma);
Washington Cooperative Farmers Association's Feed Mill. The Co-op spent a million dollars in the late 1940's to construct the modern feed mill pictured above. The feed mill would utilize the most modern techniques to blend and weigh its grains. In addition, a bulk feed unit was constructed where the feed could be funneled directly into waiting delivery trucks or rail cars. The Washington Co-op had been serving the Tacoma area since 1920. Its feed mill manufactured much of the formula feeds used by Western Washington members. As the Co-op continued to grow, new additions were made to improve efficiency including eight huge tanks added to the bulk feed loading-out line to increase storage by 50%. A completely new overhead conveying system was added to speed the handling from the mill to the truck. It made it possible to convey two different products simultaneously and increased the loading capacity from 40 to 100 tons per hour. (TNT 9-1-58, C-2)
Washington Cooperative Farmers Association (Tacoma); Food storage buildings--Tacoma; Shipping--Tacoma--1950-1960; Trucks--Tacoma--1950-1960;
The Washington Co-op farm supply display. On display are items such as milking machines and equipment, egg incubators, tires and freezers. The room is crowded with things that are needed on a family farm.
Washington Cooperative Farmers Association (Tacoma); Merchandise displays--Tacoma--1950-1960; Agricultural industries;
Interior of the Washington Coop warehouse. The forklift driver to the right pauses in his movement of boxes to discuss things with a man with a clipboard. The man to the left of the picture is using a manually operated fork lift.
Washington Cooperative Farmers Association (Tacoma); Warehouses--1950-1960; Hoisting machinery;
Quality control testing in the bulk grain storage, photograph ordered by the Washington Co-op. The uniformed man is selecting samples of the grain in the compartments of a long pole. The length of the pole is perhaps due to the need to test samples from the core of the pile of grain.
Washington Cooperative Farmers Association (Tacoma); Grain elevators--Tacoma; Mills--Tacoma; Food storage buildings--Tacoma; Product inspection; Food adulteration & inspection; Testing;
Exterior shot taken in the country of a feed truck unloading into a bulk feed bin, ordered by the Washington Cooperative Farmers Association. The photograph was shot for a periodical cover illustration. Client wanted to show the new feed truck with its automatic conveyor unloading into the bulk feed bin. Photograph taken by a photographer who climbed to the top of another bulk bin with an 8 x 10 camera.
Washington Cooperative Farmers Association (Tacoma); Shipping--Tacoma--1950-1960; Trucks--Tacoma--1950-1960; Farming--Tacoma; Food industry--Tacoma;
Grange, Redmond. The one-story building appears to be located on a field of gravel in Redmond. It is part of the National Grange, the nation's oldest national agricultural organization formed in the years following the Civil War. This is possibly Happy Valley #322, organized in 1909 by E.M. Smith, incorporated in 1930. Photograph ordered by the R.G. Williams Co.
Interior of Redmond Grange. View of unoccupied Grange hall taken in November of 1968. The stage at the far end of the room is decorated with a flowered bower and white picket fence. Folding chairs are lined up against the walls of the hall. A piano is set in one corner of the room. Several podiums are scattered among the chairs. This is possibly Happy Valley #322 in Redmond which was organized in 1909. In the past, people needed to be farmers in order to join the organization but the Grange now accepts people of all occupations. Membership tended to be concentrated in small towns and rural areas but Washington also has Granges in larger urban areas. Photograph ordered by R.G. Williams Co. (www.wa-grange.org)
Back of Photo: Farmers with tools vegetable, etc. Colonial Gardens, Fife. Was close to the Poodle Dog Rest. This was an Italian operation owned by Italians. Before 1918.
