On May 16, 1942, an everyday game of marbles among a group of boys is captured by the photographer; except that these Japanese American boys, Tasuo Matsuda, Yoshinori Kondo and Hira Matsudo, are being held at "Camp Harmony," an assembly center in Puyallup for the evacuation and relocation of Seattle and Tacoma area residents of Japanese ancestry. Over 7,000 of them, including 1200 from Tacoma, were detained there from April 28 - September 12, 1942 before being shipped out to Minidoka Relocation Center in Southern Idaho. They lived in makeshift barracks divided into "apartments," one per family. The furnishings consisted of one army cot per person. There was no running water. Toilets, showers, mess halls and laundry room were communal and located a walk away. Privacy was non existent. The Japanese tried to keep life as normal as possible for the children, forming their own schools when the U.S. government provided none. (T. Times 4/30/1942, pg. 9)

Camp Harmony (Puyallup); Relocation camps--Puyallup; World War, 1939-1945--Relocation camps; Japanese Americans--Evacuation & relocation, 1942-1945; Marbles (Game); Children playing with marbles; Matsuda, Tasuo; Kondo, Yoshinori; Matsuda, Hira;

Hashimoto-Fujita wedding. A formal portrait of the bride and groom, their wedding party and four generations of their families. The large group stood in front of a Buddhist altar on November 12, 1950.

Japanese American families--Tacoma; Weddings--Tacoma--1950-1960; Wedding costume--1950-1960; Brides--1950-1960; Grooms (Weddings)--1950-1960; Altars--Tacoma;

December, 1953, graveside exposure of Japanese-American funeral for Mr. Yonezo Mizoguchi, 83 years of age. Mr. Mizoguchi lived at 1710 Tacoma Ave. So. He was born in Japan and came to the United States in 1908. He had lived in Tacoma for 6 years, after retiring in 1941 from 46 years of farming. He was a member of the Buddhist Church. He was survived by his wife Taka and three sons, Hiroto, Kanae and Charles M.- all of Tacoma, and one daughter Mrs. Masaye Shigeno and nine grandchildren. (TNT 12-15-1953, pg. 30) TPL-10139

Japanese Americans--Tacoma; Cemeteries--Tacoma; Funeral rites & ceremonies--Tacoma--1950-1960;

A Native American chief in headdress and buckskins gazes at the remainder of downed trees on November 27, 1954. He is standing on a trailer hitch of the large truck that will haul the giant peeler log through the streets of Bellingham as part of a parade. Georgia-Pacific Plywood Co. had arranged for several giant Douglas firs to be cut and transported for this special parade. Photograph ordered by Georgia-Pacific Plywood Co. TPL-8281

Indians of North America--Bellingham; Logs;

The Tacoma Buddhist Church at 1717 Fawcett Ave. held an O-bon Festival on Sunday, July 19, 1959. Dressed in kimonos with obis around their waists and zori sandals on their feet are (l to r) Carol Hayashi, Lynne Nakagawara, Laurie Tanabe, Kathy Tanabe, Atsuko Duchi and Joyce Nakagawara. The festival opened at 7 p.m. with a religious ceremonial dance. This was followed by a selection of colorful Japanese folk dances. Japanese paper lanterns were used as decoration, and Japanese flower arrangements by the women of the Buddhist Fujin-Kai were on display in the church basement. (TNT 7/17/1959, pg. 14) Picture ordered by the Tacoma Buddhist Church

Kimonos; Japanese Americans--Tacoma; Girls--Tacoma--1950-1960; Hayashi, Carol; Nakagawara, Lynne; Tanabe, Laurie; Tanabe, Kathy; Duchi, Atsuko; Nakagawara, Joyce;

A large group of Japanese Americans are pictured on the steps of Jones Hall on the University of Puget Sound campus during the Pacific Northwest District Methodist and Youth Conference on November 27, 1960. Photograph ordered by the Japanese Methodist Church.

Japanese Americans--Tacoma; Religious meetings--Tacoma;

Back of photo:
Eastside youth Center
Jul 9 1968
Constructive Cutting Work 

Grand opening of Ed Taylor Barber & Beauty Salon. Beauticians Alice Burns (foreground) and Willie May Harris smile at the photographer while at work with two customers. On February 23, 1969, Ed Taylor celebrated the grand opening of his remodeled combination beauty salon and barber shop at So. 23rd & K (now Martin Luther King, Jr. Way). Photograph ordered by Puget Sound National Bank.

Barbershops--Tacoma--1960-1970; Beauty shops--Tacoma--1960-1970; Hairdressing--Tacoma--1960-1970; Ed Taylor Barber & Beauty Salon (Tacoma); Burns, Alice; Harris, Willie May;

Ed Taylor Barber & Beauty Salon. View of exterior of modern one-story building with traditional barbershop striped pole attached. February 23, 1969, saw the grand opening of the remodeled Ed Taylor Barber & Beauty Salon in the So. 23rd and K (now Martin Luther King Jr Way) neighborhood. Photograph ordered by Puget Sound National Bank.

Barbershops--Tacoma--1960-1970; Beauty shops--Tacoma--1960-1970; Signs (Notices); Facades--Tacoma--1960-1970; Ed Taylor Barber & Beauty Salon (Tacoma);

In February of 1969 Edward Taylor (far left) showed a new electric hair clippers to an unidentified customer in his newly remodeled barber shop. Mr. Taylor opened the Ed Taylor Barber & Beauty Salon at 2151 South K Street (now Martin Luther King, Jr. Way) in Tacoma's Hilltop area in 1965. With "lots of hard work" and help from the Small Business Administration he was able to develop a salon that could accommodate all types and textures of hair. In a News Tribune article published in February of 1972 he was shown working on the hair of Mel Jackson, at that time administrative assistant to Tacoma's city manager.

Barbershops--Tacoma--1960-1970; Beauty shops--Tacoma--1960-1970; Shaving equipment; Ed Taylor Barber & Beauty Salon (Tacoma); Taylor, Edward;

Back of photo: Cascadia Juvenile Reception Diagnostic Center Photograph by Jerry Buck

Back of Photo:
Tom Dixon
Staff photo by Jerry Buck

Back of Photo:
Ramona Bennett

Staff photo by Jerry Buck

Back of Photo:
Ramona Bennett

Back of photo: Cascadia Jan 1 1977

Back of Photo:
Bill Sterud

Front of Photo:
Photo by Bruce A. Kellman

Back of photo: Tribal Leaders

Back of Photo:
Bill Smitherman

TACOMA., Washington -- A WINNER -- Bill Smitherman, left, won his race for a seat in the Washington House of Representatives, to become the only Black in that legislative body. His father, Willy Joel Smitherman, right, also ran for a House seat, but lost.
Associated Press Photo

Front of Photo:
Rep. Bill Smitherman, center

Front of Photo:
Ramona Bennett shown with her daughter, Ee-Nuck-A-Mee, 7, is best known for her years of activism as Chairwomen of the Puyallup Tribe in Tacoma, Wash. Today, Ms. Bennett is Director of Family Services at the Seattle Indian Center where her job involves finding Indian foster homes for homeless Indian children.

Staff photo by Bruce Kellman

Back of Photo:
Tom Dixon, president of the Tacoma Urban League speaks to the media. The Rev. J.A. Boles sits beyond. These men delivered a statement to the press after conferring with other Black community leaders at St. John Baptist Church. The subject is police procedures and the shooting of a Black purse snatching suspect.
Staff photo by Peter Haley

Back of Photo:
The Rev. George Stallings conducts services at the Allen African Methodist Episcopal Church/ Stallings has broke away from the Roman Catholic Church and has founded his own Imani Temple in Washington D.C.
NEWS/MAYNARD; Staff Photo by Bill Hunter

Front of Photo:
DEAD AT 66--Yakima Indian fishing rights activist David Sohappy Senior stands on the bank of the Columbia River in front of an old fishing platform at Cooks Landing, Washington, in this November 1990 file photo. Sohappy died Monday at Hood River Care Center in Oregon. Sohappy had been in ill health since suffering a stroke in 1988.
Associated Press File Photo, 1990

Front of Photo:
WHITE SWAN, WASHINGTON -- SOHAPPY BURIED -- Mourners circle the grave of David Sohappy Sr. during his funeral service Thursday on the Yakima Indian Reservation. Sohappy, a well-known fishing rights activist, died on Monday.
Associated Press Photo

Photo description from Vanna Sing:

When taken: 1980s and 2000s
Where taken: Eastside, Salishan
What memory is contained in these photos? Lister Elementary was a generational school. My first grade teacher was my daughter's first grade teacher.
Vanna Sing's childhood in Salishan and Eastside; Growing up in Salishan, spiritual healing. 43 year old survivor from the country of Cambodia. Roots are from SE Asia, Cambodia, Thai, and Laos. Our family escaped the Khmer Rouge in 1978 In July 1979, we entered United States. Our sponsors were from Mineral Wells, Texas. Trying to adapt to the American culture was a struggle. Through the word of mouth, Tacoma, Washington was the place to be. 15 families migrated to Tacoma, WA. We first arrived in Hilltop, Tacoma, around St. Joseph hospital area. We spent a year here. Tacoma Housing Authority supported refugees by providing rental assistance. Department of Social and Healthy Services gave us TANF, food stamp, and medical.

Back of photo: Cascadia- Indian Tile Uncovered, Cascadia Juvenile Diagnostic Center

This early 1880s photograph by C. E. & Hattie King is of the Tacoma waterfront. Several European Americans are standing near Indian canoes moored along the shoreline. The location is believed to be south of the James Williams salmon cannery in Old Tacoma. The Kings brief period of photographing Tacoma views documents the blending of cultures and history--the presence and traditions of local Native Americans and the presence of newer Americans establishing homes, industries and towns in the West. KING 016, TPL-3746.

U.S.O. #2, 713-15 Commerce St., circa 1946. During World War II, although black and white soldiers fought side by side, the United States Army was still segregated. In Tacoma, African American service men and women had their own USO Club at 713-15 Commerce. It was dedicated on September 4, 1942 and closed late in March of 1947. The Kaufman-Wolff building where it was located had previously housed the Soldiers and Sailors Clubhouse during World War I. USO #2 was enlarged in 1944 by adding an annex in the building to the north of the original club. The enlarged structure provided the following facilities: dark room, music room, hobby room, game room, showers, sleeping accommodations, library and snack bar. It was operated by the YMCA and staffed primarily by volunteers. (brochure from Recognition Ceremony USO Number Two on 3/30/1947; photograph by F.L. Powell of Tacoma).

On October 22, 1945, this group of unidentified individuals were photographed seated around a table after what appears to be a dinner at the USO #2, 713-15 Commerce St. (photograph by F.L. Powell of Tacoma)