Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington; yard employees' Christmas party. Pennsalt president and general manager Fred C. Shanaman, in center, enjoys a bowl of soup with employees. Pennsalt, at 40 acres on the Hylebos Waterway, was one of the largest plants in the Tideflats industrial area. Materials were brought into the plant by ship and rail. The company was also the major user of Tacoma power & water.
Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma)--Employees; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Factories--Tacoma--1950-1960; Shanaman, Frederick Charles, 1901-1982;
This aerial view of Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company shows their building complex, 2901 Taylor Way, as it appeared in July 1956. Storage tanks dot the area around the plant and one of the Pennwalt barges can be seen being maneuvered to the dock by two tugs. In 1928, the eastern firm was invited to build a caustic soda and liquid chlorine plant on 14 acres of filled ground adjacent to the Hylebos Waterway. The plant opened the following year as Tacoma ElectroChemical Company. As the parent firm diversified the plants' chemical production, it became known as Pennsalt, and then Pennwalt. Pennwalt Corp. was taken over by Elf-Atochem in 1990. ("South on the Sound" by Murray Morgan)
Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma);
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;
ca. 1960. Aerial photograph of the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. in 1960 Richards Studio's stock footage. This Tacoma plant, opened in 1929, covered nearly 40 acres of tideflats on the Hylebos Waterway. A ship is docked ready to transport Pennsalt's chemical products. TPL-6578
Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1960-1970; Aerial photographs;
Interior view of Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington plant which was taken in June of 1937. The chemical firm was established on 40 acres located in the industrial Tideflats area. It produced chlorine and other chemicals to serve the pulp and paper industry. This view of one section of the plant shows ladders, ductwork, gauges and steel/concrete beams.
Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Industrial facilities--Tacoma--1930-1940; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1930-1940;
ca. 1960. Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co.'s 40-acre plant faced the Hylebos Waterway and portions of undeveloped Northeast Tacoma, including an enormous gravel pit. Aerial photographs taken by the Richards Studio in 1960 show the large facility along with numerous storage tanks. A ship is docked ready to be loaded with the company's chemical products.
Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1960-1970; Aerial photographs;
Aerial photographs of the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington were taken on September 22, 1958. The Tacoma plant covered nearly 40 acres of land in the Tideflats near the Hylebos Waterway. It had easy access to motor and rail transportation as well as water routes. Despite its name, the firm did not manufacture table salt but was a thriving chemical concern, initially focusing on pulp and paper customers. TPL-6577
Aerial photographs; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Industrial facilities--Tacoma--1950-1960;
Close-up of chlorine tank cars for Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company. Three men on top of tank car adjusting equipment overhead in this photograph dated July 2, 1940.
Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Railroad tank cars--Tacoma;
Man on platform of Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company chlorine tank car in this photograph dated July of 1940. Hylebos Waterway in background.
Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Railroad tank cars--Tacoma; Hylebos Waterway (Tacoma);
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. 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;
This photograph of six cans of caustic soda manufactured by Pennsalt was taken on September 15, 1951. The black metallic cans are of various sizes; five of them contain flake caustic soda while the remaining container is labeled solid caustic soda. Caustic soda, also known as sodium hydroxide, is a white brittle solid used especially in making soap, rayon and paper. It can be in liquid, solid or flake form. The Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. had a large chemical plant in the Tideflats which manufactured basic chemicals from salt for pulp mills and then onto other products.
Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Pennsalt (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Containers; Minerals--Tacoma;
A Pennsalt employee carefully monitors a pressure gauge at the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington's tideflats plant in October, 1951. He has one hand on a handle and stares directly at the gauge. Two tanks of liquid chlorine flank a Toledo scale nearby.
Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Pennsalt (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Industrial facilities--Tacoma--1950-1960; Storage tanks--Tacoma; Scales; Pipes;
Two men are seen working on the railroad tank cars at the Tacoma Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company's spur. It was reported at the company's annual shareholders' meeting in April 1951 that Pennsalt of Washington was expanding its production of DDT at Portland by about 70 per cent. (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;
A small group of visitors stand in front of the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company of Washington's Taylor Way plant. Nearby is a tank used to contain liquid chlorine, one of Pennsalt's many chemical products. The company opened its doors for a celebration of its parent firm's 100th anniversary which included tours, demonstrations, and refreshments. (TNT 8-6-50, p. A-9)
Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Pennsalt (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;
In 1943 the United States celebrated the second wartime Mother's Day of WWII. Hundreds of local mothers took jobs in Tacoma's industrial plants to help the war effort. Women employees like these photographed at the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. helped the company that year achieve the coveted "E" pennant for efficiency in production. During the war, much of the American work force was composed of women who had replaced the thousands of men serving in the Armed Forces. (T.Times 5-8-43, p. 1-article)
World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950; Women--Tacoma--1940-1950;
Service mothers in Defense Plants. Lunch served at many tables outdoors at Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company on May 8, 1943, to honor the war-time workers on Mother's Day who are mothers of service men. (Penn Salt) (T. Times)
World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Luncheons--Tacoma;
Interior view of Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company with man in overalls and cap reading gauges and dials on Boiler No. 2 Control Panel. Also shown are paper readouts, other gauges, a clock and pipes with turn-off valves.
World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Working class--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma);
Worker at Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Company inspecting pressure gauge in May of 1943. During World War II Penn Salt produced chemicals important in manufacturing ammunitions products. (T.Times, 2/23/44)
World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Working class--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950;
Three security officers were photographed in May of 1943 outside of the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co.
World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Working class--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950;
A male and a female worker were photographed during their regular daily tasks in May of 1943 at the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co.
World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Working class--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950;
One of the gardeners poses proudly with his irises in May of 1943 outside one of the factory buildings at the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. During World War II, the factory manufactured chemicals necessary for the war effort.
World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Working class--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950;
Workers at the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. were pictured in May of 1943 with a machine that appears to be filling drums with chemicals. "PennSalt" manufactured chemicals for many industries, including the defense industries.
World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Working class--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950;
Two men are photographed working on a piece of machinery at the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing plant in May of 1943.
World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Working class--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950;
A worker is photographed at his job at the Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. in May of 1943. The company produced chemicals, some of which were necessary for the war effort.
World War, 1939-1945--Economic & industrial aspects--Tacoma; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1940-1950; Working class--Tacoma--1940-1950; Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Factories--Tacoma--1940-1950;
