Bustling 11th Street street scene. This is a view from the Perkins Building (1101 A Street) on May 29, 1926. Buildings on the left (front to rear) are: the Federal Building (1102 A Street) and the Peoples department store (1101-07 Pacific Ave.) The 17-story, two-winged skyscraper on the right is the Washington Building (1019 Pacific). Looking uphill from the Washington Building are the Rust Building (950 Pacific) and the Fidelity Building (949-55 Broadway). In the distance can be seen the Romanesque Pierce County Courthouse (1012 So. "G"). G57.1-124
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Office buildings--Tacoma--1920-1930; Federal Building (Tacoma); Peoples (Tacoma); Washington Building (Tacoma); Rust Building (Tacoma); Fidelity Building (Tacoma);
This damaged print is of the Puget Sound National Bank Building (1117-19 Pacific Avenue-formerly the National Realty Bldg.) taken from the 12th St. viewpoint on June 25, 1926. On its right at the corner is the National Bank of Tacoma. Looking northbound, buildings right to left are: the barely visible one-story structure at 1115 Pacific Avenue which had been built as an annex/addition to the National Realty Bldg., then the Bankers Trust building at 1109-13 Pacific, Peoples department store (1101-07 Pacific) with the 17-story Washington Building skyscraper at the far left (1019 Pacific). Flags and bunting decorate both Peoples and the Puget Sound National Bank Bldg. G61.1-043
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Puget Sound National Bank (Tacoma); National Bank of Tacoma (Tacoma); Banks--Tacoma; Peoples (Tacoma); Washington Building (Tacoma); Office buildings--Tacoma--1920-1930;
This is Pacific Avenue at South 12th St. looking north as pictured in June of 1926. Prominent downtown buildings right to left are: the National Bank of Tacoma, built in the Italian Renaissance style, at 1123 Pacific Avenue (later site of the Tacoma Art Museum), Puget Sound National Bank Building (1117-19 Pacific), building at 1115 Pacific built as annex to the Puget Sound National bank Bldg. (then called National Realty Bldg.), Bankers Trust Building, Peoples department store and at the far left, the 17-story Washington Building with Brotherhood Bank sign on rooftop. BU-12645
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; National Bank of Tacoma (Tacoma); Puget Sound National Bank (Tacoma); Washington Building (Tacoma); Banks--Tacoma; Peoples (Tacoma); Office buildings--Tacoma--1920-1930;
Exterior view of Puget Sound National Bank Building in July of 1926. This block of Pacific Avenue was home to many prominent businesses including (L-R) the Washington Building, Peoples department store, the Bankers Trust Building, building at 1115 Pacific Ave. built as annex/addition to the National Realty Bldg., Puget Sound National Bank Building and the National Bank of Tacoma. When completed in 1910, the 16-story Puget Sound National Bank Building (then called the National Realty Building) was the tallest on the West Coast and the first built on the West Coast to withstand earthquakes. It was also the first in Tacoma to use cantilevered beam construction. Puget Sound Bank purchased the building in 1920. Some 80+ years later, Heritage Bank now occupies the structure. G61.1-041
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Puget Sound National Bank (Tacoma); National Bank of Tacoma (Tacoma); Washington Building (Tacoma); Peoples (Tacoma); Banks--Tacoma; Office buildings--Tacoma--1920-1930;
This is a view of the Provident Block from March of 1919. It was located on Pacific Avenue between South 9th and South 10th Streets. The six-story Provident Building (later renamed Security Building before reverting back to the Provident name in 2006) is in the center of this slice of Tacoma's business district. It is surrounded by smaller establishments including several restaurants, Thomas Billiards, and Bloom & Alexander Money & Loan. The Olympus Hotel is one block up the street on the far left. Of special note is the entrance to a "Ladies Only" comfort station in the middle of 10th Street right outside of Washington Dye Works. The actual bathroom was located under the street; it was the only public restroom for women downtown at that time. TPL-2499 ; G61.1-012
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1910-1920; Business districts--Tacoma--1910-1920; Provident Building (Tacoma); Olympus Hotel (Tacoma); Billboards--Tacoma--1910-1920;
This is how the corner of South 9th & Broadway appeared in February of 1927. The Broadway Theater, 902-14 Broadway, was preparing for its grand opening on February 4th. It had previously been well known as the Tacoma Theater before being purchased for $450,000 in December of 1925, at that time the largest single realty transaction in the city's history. Extensive remodeling, including the loss of the familiar red exterior, cost the new owners another $150,000. There was a huge new sign, 40 feet high, with 3,000 bulbs that was visible for three miles. The theater would retain the "Broadway" name until 1933 when it became the Music Box Theater. Another of Tacoma's landmarks is clearly visible at right rear, the unusually shaped Bostwick Building with the Smith Flower Shop on the lower level. TPL-1602; G59.1-002 (TDL 12-19-25, p. 1-article on sale of theater; TDL 12-1-26, p. 1-article on remodeling; TNT 2-2-27, p. 9-article on signage)
This section of East 25th St. in 1927 contained several businesses located side-by-side. From L-R: Tacoma Biscuit & Candy Co. (601-605 E. 25th); Olympic Ice Cream Co. (615-617 E. 25th); Olympic Ice Co. (619-623 E. 25th) and the Carman Mfg. Co., a furniture and mattress factory, at 701-723 E. 25th. Several cars, including at least one delivery truck, are parked outside the buildings. G57.2-040; TPL-2405
Bustling Broadway looking south from 9th St. This was a segment of vibrant downtown Tacoma during the summer of 1927. Cars and pedestrians throng Broadway. The area around 9th & Broadway was a mixture of motion picture theaters (Colonial in center, Broadway, Pantages and Rialto not pictured), large department stores (McCormack Brothers, Rhodes Bros.), fraternal organizations (Pythian Temple), variety stores (Kress) and assorted shops. Drivers were still getting used to automatic traffic lights, recently installed in late March, in the downtown area. This may have been "movie season" as banners and flags advertised such luminaries as "Gish," "Chaney," and movies like "Barbed Wire," "Ben Hur," "Annie Laurie," and "Beau Geste." TPL-1880; G59.1-028
This is another view of Broadway looking south from 9th St. in late summer of 1927. The photo studio has added lines crossing the streetcar tracks to mark where cars were warned to stop to allow pedestrians to cross the street in safety. One of the city's first automated traffic signals is just beyond view in the foreground. The Pantages theater is on the left along with Lou Johnson's ladies clothing store and the Lewis Bros. men's clothing store. On the right are the Colonial theater, Pythian Temple, Kress store and the Rhodes Bros. department store. Broadway, like Pacific Avenue, had many stores and shops nesting cozily side-by-side. Shoppers could catch a convenient streetcar or just walk to the numerous establishments downtown. More and more people, however, were starting to own automobiles and as the above photograph shows, street parking was at a premium. TPL-10041; G59.1-029
An unidentified party of four from Bremerton posed in front of a parked automobile on the east side of Pacific Avenue near South 8th St. in May of 1919. The well-dressed couples were perhaps out on a Sunday drive. In the background looking north are the Eau-Claire Apartments, Auto Parts Supply Co., D.C. Modrall & Co., Jim's Place (restaurant) and a tailoring establishment. TPL-1640; G61.1-009
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1910-1920; Business districts--Tacoma--1910-1920; Couples--Tacoma--1910-1920; Automobiles--Tacoma--1910-1920;
This was 13th & Broadway in downtown Tacoma in 1928. The Merchants Hotel occupied the Durgin Block with Bagley Drugs on the ground floor. The building had been constructed in 1890 and had already undergone alterations. The Mayflower Cafe and Palmer Hotel were close by. Visible in the background is the Luzon Building at 1302-04 Pacific Ave., then occupied by the Wm L. Davis & Sons furniture store. TPL-9721; G59.1-024
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Merchants Hotel (Tacoma); Luzon Building (Tacoma); Bagley Drug Co. (Tacoma); Mayflower Cafe (Tacoma); Palmer Hotel (Tacoma); William L. Davis & Sons (Tacoma);
This is the east side of Pacific Avenue between S. 10th & 11th St. as viewed on October 2, 1928. The Bank of California (center, at 1011-13 Pacific) would be opening for business in six days. Designed by John Graham and built by the J.E. Bonnell & Son construction firm using Wilkeson sandstone and granite, the Italian Renaissance-styled building had stately Ionic columns. Tacoma's newest bank was flanked by the venerable Dougan Building (1007 Pacific) containing the Hotel Bennett and Western Union and the somewhat newer Dickson Building, home of the Shaw Supply Co. (1015 Pacific). G61.1-018
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Bank of California National Association (Tacoma); Dougan Building (Tacoma); Dickson Building (Tacoma); Shaw Supply Co., Inc. (Tacoma); Hotel Bennett (Tacoma); Western Union Telegraph Co. (Tacoma);
Broadway in downtown Tacoma is festive with decorations as Christmas, 1928, draws near. This is a view of the street looking north from about 12th Street. Fisher's, "Tacoma's Own Store," and the Rhodes Brothers Department Store are on the left; the 12-story Fidelity Building towers over the other buildings on the right. Signs for the Hotels Warburton and Ritz and the McMillan Bros. drugstore can be seen on the right. TPL-1581; G59.1-022
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Fishers Department Store (Tacoma); Fidelity Building (Tacoma); Hotel Warburton (Tacoma); Hotel Ritz (Tacoma); McMillan Brothers (Tacoma); Christmas decorations;
This is a slice of Pacific Avenue south from 7th St. as it appeared on March 11, 1929. Among the many businesses on the near right are the Ajax Electric Co., the Keystone Hotel and the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. Across the streetcar tracks on the left are the Olympus Hotel, Provident Building, and Brotherhood Bank in the Washington Building. Photograph ordered by the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. TPL-2745; G61.1-026;
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co. (Tacoma); Olympus Hotel (Tacoma); Keystone Hotel (Tacoma); Street railroad tracks--Tacoma--1920-1930;
This is how Market St. near So. 9th looking south appeared in November of 1929. Goodwin's Garage, an unidentified building undergoing work, a smaller two-story unit and the Singer Sewing Co. warehouse are on the left; the Azure Pool at 748 Market St. is on the right. G60.1-140
One of Tacoma's busier intersections in 1931 was North 1st St. and Tacoma Avenue North. The San Clare Cafe (at left) featured everything from cigars to candy and Medosweet ice cream. Further down Tacoma Avenue North was the Supreme Cleaners & Dyers. Across the street was the Davis & Hollingsworth retail furniture concern at 20 Tacoma Avenue North. The First Presbyterian Church, a beautiful example of Romanesque architecture, rises high above the street at 20 Tacoma Avenue South. TPL-1605; G62.1-064
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1930-1940; Streets--Tacoma--1930-1940; San Clare Cafe (Tacoma); Supreme Cleaners & Dyers (Tacoma); Davis & Hollingsworth (Tacoma); First Presbyterian Church (Tacoma);
Downtown Tacoma street scene. Not much traffic or people visible at South 11th & A Streets on this spring day in 1920. A streetcar has just made a turn onto A Street from South 11th as it moves past the L. Schoenfeld & Sons store at 105-11 So. 11th. This would be the Schoenfeld furniture store location until 1924 when they would move to the skyscraper at 1423 Pacific Ave. To the left of the photograph is the Federal Building, home of the federal courts (until 1992) and the Main branch of the Post Office. Also on the left is a portion of the towering Puget Sound National Bank building with spire. G57.1-121
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Street railroads--Tacoma--1920-1930; L. Schoenfeld & Sons (Tacoma); Federal Building (Tacoma); Puget Sound National Bank (Tacoma);
This is what the South 17th & Broadway & Jefferson area looked like in April of 1920. The 11-year-old Carlton Hotel, with the address of 1552 Jefferson Ave., is in view in the center of the photograph. A juxtaposition of old and new modes of transportation is on the left - a horse-driven cart is next to a modern streetcar. Power lines create geometric designs above. TPL-1363 G59.1-039
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Carlton Hotel (Tacoma); Street railroads--Tacoma--1920-1930;
ca. 1920. In 1920, Pacific Avenue was taking on a new look. Buildings had been demolished and work had begun on William R. Rust's 12 floor Rust building at 950 Pacific Ave. (under construction in this photograph.) Left to right, the buildings are 948 Pacific Ave. - home to Burnside hats on the ground floor and the Dayton Agency upstairs. The Dayton Agency, according to their signage, carried supplies for bicycles and motorcycles and did repairs. Next comes 946 Pacific with Scobey Cigar Co. downstairs and Naubert & Manning English Billiards upstairs. The following building at 942-44 Pacific Ave. included Walk Over Shoes, M&M Hat Store and Phil Friedman Jeweler downstairs with the Peterson & Cooksie Billiard Parlor above. The Shriners must have been in town at the time of the photograph because most of the buildings are decorated with bunting, Shriner emblems and American flags. G61.1-032
Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Rust Building (Tacoma); Burnside Hats (Tacoma); Scobey Cigar Co. (Tacoma); Naubert & Manning Billiards (Tacoma); Walk Over Shoes (Tacoma); M& M Hats (Tacoma); Peterson & Cooksie Billiard Parlor (Tacoma);
Jefferson Avenue near Pacific. A few vehicles, including a Tacoma Power & Rail street car, are captured in motion on Jefferson Avenue in early March of 1921. The stately Hotel Carlton is on the right. TPL-5538; G60.1-075
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Carlton Hotel (Tacoma); Hotels--Tacoma--1920-1930; Mass transit--Tacoma--1920-1930; Electric railroads--Tacoma--1920-1930;
A streetcar climbs Jefferson Avenue as it makes its daily rounds on March 3, 1921. The Wickersham Triangle Building at 1702 Jefferson Avenue is to the far left; it was demolished in 1936. To the right of the Wickersham is the Hotel Carlton, 1552 Jefferson, now known as the Carlton Center. It was built in 1909 by Anton Huth, based on a design by C.A. Darmer, Architect. In the far background is the skyline of the 1500 block of Pacific Ave., much of which has been demolished. This curving intersection is one of the few sections of road in downtown Tacoma that resembles the unique street plan for Tacoma created by Frederick Law Olmstead; the design was rejected as impractical. G60.1-078;
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Carlton Hotel (Tacoma); Hotels--Tacoma; Mass transit--Tacoma--1920-1930; Electric railroads--1920-1930;
At first glance, this 1921 photograph taken in downtown Tacoma appears to be of two separate streets; however, it is actually looking east down 11th Street toward the 11th Street (now Murray Morgan) Bridge. The composite picture shows the many pedestrians and occasional vehicles, including a streetcar. Prominent buildings to the left (and again on the right) are the Fidelity Building, Rust Building, and unfinished Scandinavian-American Bank Building (later completed and known as the Washington Building). The building in the center of the photograph is the Stone-Fisher Department Store, later to be known as the Bon Marche. TPL-6362; G57.1-137
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Fidelity Building (Tacoma); Rust Building (Tacoma); Washington Building (Tacoma); Scandinavian-American Bank (Tacoma); 11th Street Bridge (Tacoma);
Horse-drawn mail carts and 19th Century houses, seen in the background, were still prevalent in Tacoma's Central Business District when a postal employee posed with his rig in front of the 12th Street entrance to the Federal Building in June of 1921. The Federal Building housed the Main branch of the U.S. Post Office. The horse-drawn carts transported mail prior to the advent of motorized vehicles. TPL-164; G42.1-114
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Federal Building (Tacoma); Mail wagons--Tacoma--1920-1930; Postal service--1920-1930; Postal service employees--Tacoma--1920-1930; Letter carriers--Tacoma--1920-1930;
This is the view that one would see in February of 1922 of St. Helens Avenue near 7th St. looking south. The YMCA is the tall building on the right at 7th & Market. Streetcar tracks ran down the middle of the road which was not paved with smooth asphalt but more of a brick-like substance. On the left (or east) side of the street was the building housing the News Tribune and Tacoma Daily Ledger newspapers. The papers were published independently and seemed to exist harmoniously. The Daily Ledger would go out of business 15 years later. G61.1-170 TPL-10213
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Tacoma News Tribune Publishing Co. (Tacoma); Street railroad tracks--Tacoma--1920-1930; Young Men's Christian Association (Tacoma);
Tacoma street scene. This is the intersection of South 56th St. and South Tacoma Way (then known as South Union Ave.), one of the area's prime business districts, as seen in March of 1922. North Pacific Bank is at the left. Northern Pacific's South Tacoma Shops were a short distance away at 52nd & South Proctor. The South Tacoma community was a thriving area containing restaurants, garages, theaters, hotels, grocery stores, real estate and other professional enterprises. TPL-2538; G62.1-003
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; North Pacific Bank (Tacoma);
Downtown Tacoma street scene. Foot traffic was heavy at 11th & Pacific in the downtown business district on April 1, 1922. Built originally for the Merchant National Bank in 1891, the large building occupying the center of the photograph was now the home of Pacific Savings & Loan Association. Its clock tower outside the structure was a familiar sight for pedestrians and motorists alike. G61.1-039
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Pacific Savings & Loan Association (Tacoma); Pedestrians--Tacoma; Clock towers--Tacoma;
Street scene. Pedestrians cautiously cross at the intersection of Broadway and 9th in downtown Tacoma on this spring day in May of 1922. They have to keep a sharp eye out for oncoming streetcars and automobiles. The Pantages Theater is the regal structure on the left; the Tacoma Theater is on the right. TPL-3857; G59.1-003
Both pedestrian and cars are blurred as this view of 17th & Pacific looking north was captured on May 8, 1922. This section of Pacific had at least two hotels visible with a third, the Japanese-owned Hotel Rector, on Broadway. The Savoy Hotel on the right was listed in the 1922 City Directory as being on 1535 1/2 Pacific Ave. and owned/operated by B. Bertleson. On the left side was the Hotel Lewis at 1522 Pacific Ave., owned by the Hotel Operating Co. of Seattle. There rooms advertised as "new and modern" could be had for as little as $1.00. The Hotel Rector, far left of the photograph, was listed at 1541 Broadway and owned by K. Nakatsukasa. Rooms were available for 50 cents and up. At the time, there were several other downtown hotels owned by Japanese, including the Madison Hotel, Central Hotel, Hotel Victoria, and the Hotel Dewey. TPL-5550
The corner of South 9th and Pacific was nearly free of traffic -both foot and motor- on this October day in 1922. A single couple was standing outside the Liberty Theater where the Charles Jones (later known as "Buck" Jones) picture "Trooper O'Neil" was playing while another man peers through a nearby doorway. Two people were window shopping at the McGinley-Garness hat store near 9th & Commerce. The brick building with recessed windows is the Wright Building (902-04 Pacific Ave.) which contained in 1922 the United Cigar Store and Imperial Billiards (and bowling alleys). G61.1-045
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Liberty Theater (Tacoma); United Cigar Stores (Tacoma);
1923 downtown Tacoma street scene. This was Pacific Avenue near 12th St. in January of 1923. This view, looking north, shows the Delmonico Hotel on the right at 116 1/2 South 12th next to the familiar spire-topped Puget Sound Bank Bldg. (formerly National Realty Bldg.) Further in the background on the right is the uncompleted Scandinavian-American Bank Bldg. which would later become the Washington Building. Across the street on the left are numerous businesses including the Palace Hotel, Chicago Dentists, and the Dickson Bros. Co. G61.1-038
Commercial streets--Tacoma--1920-1930; Business districts--Tacoma--1920-1930; Delmonico Hotel (Tacoma); Puget Sound National Bank (Tacoma);
