Unidentified workers laying concrete at the foot of the first Narrows Bridge. Construction began on the first Narrows Bridge, better known as "Galloping Gertie," in November of 1938 and the bridge was open to the public on July 1, 1940. It collapsed in a fierce windstorm just four months later on November 7, 1940. It took ten years with WWII and lack of materials intervening, before the second Narrows Bridge was dedicated in October of 1950. TAC-326 ; TPL-2757
ca. 1931. Marymac Apartments, 615 So. 7th St., Tacoma. The apartment building was built in 1929 by C. F. Davidson & Co. It was designed by Silas E. Nelson, architect.
ca. 1900. View of Pierce County Court House from the corner of South 9th Street and Tacoma Avenue South looking southwest. The clock has yet to be installed in the court house tower.
Pierce County Courthouse (Tacoma); Courthouses--Tacoma;
Ca. 1892. View of Tacoma from bluff southeast of the City Waterway (the McKinley Hill area,) circa 1892. The wide street running up and down on the right is East E St. The second street to cross it from the bottom up is East 28th St. The East Congregational Church can be seen at the corner, 423 East 28th St. It was built in 1885 and destroyed by fire in 1927. Behind the steeple and to the left is the bell tower of the Engine House No. 4, 405 East 26th St. The fire station was built in 1887 and was the home of the "Our Boys" Hose Co. #4. To the left of the fire station is the two story Danish Brotherhood Hall, 402-04 East 26th St., built in 1890, sold and converted to apartments around 1902 and demolished around 1970. At the end of East E, the roof of the Northern Pacific roundhouse, 2211 East D St., can be seen. On the other side of the Waterway, some landmarks are, left to right, the Tacoma Grocery Co., F.S. Harmon Furniture, the clock tower of Old City Hall and the old 11th Street Bridge crossing the waterway.
ca. 1931. Rhodes Medical Arts Building and Garage, 747 Market, Tacoma. Originally known as the Rhodes Medical Arts Tower, this Art Deco structure was built by the United Rhodes Realty Corp. John Graham, Sr., was the primary architect with the local firm of Heath, Gove & Bell serving as associate architects. The building was dedicated on January 31st, 1931. At 17 stories, it was the tallest building in Tacoma at the time of its construction. It was a full-service medical care building in Tacoma's central business district. An attached garage provided much needed parking. There were two entrances to the Medical Arts Building, one on Market St. and the other on Saint Helens. It was purchased by the City of Tacoma in 1977 for use as government offices and was renamed the Tacoma Municipal Building in 1977. It is currently listed on the Tacoma and national registry of historic structures.
Medical Arts Building (Tacoma); Parking garages--Tacoma; Office buildings--Tacoma--1930-1940;
The Publix Market & Garage building at 1110-16 Pacific Ave. While under construction. This building was later remodeled, in 1965, and became the Bank of Tacoma.
Members of Tacoma's Drama League spend a lazy August day in 1925, paddling an Indian dug-out at the Olympus Manor on Hood Canal. A float plane rests on the water behind them. The Olympus Manor was begun in 1918 by local art instructor, world traveler and friend of the famous Orre N. Nobles. It was located on Hood Canal two miles northeast of Union. By the 1920's, the 16 room retreat was frequented by the local summer art colony and scores of the famous. It was decorated with Nobles' invaluable collection of Tibetan and Oriental art, furniture and artifacts. The two story retreat was destroyed by fire in 1952. No one was hurt, but the building and its priceless collection was destroyed and never rebuilt. (Shelton-Mason County Journal 7/31/1952; 8/7/1952) (photograph from the Erna Tilley Collection)
Olympus Manor (Hood Canal); Tacoma Drama League (Tacoma); Canoes; Nobles, Orre--Homes & haunts;
Undated photograph of gas powered ship the "Fossberg" in City Waterway (now Foss Waterway.) 11th Street bridge at left. This is believed to be the largest of Foss Launch & Tug Co.'s launches, a 15 ton, 100-hp engine and 64-feet in length. She was built in 1912 in Gig Harbor as a combination passenger and freight boat. Passengers and freight were able to be transported to and from ships. In addition, excursion parties and groups of workers were carried to destinations around the Tacoma area. The "Fossberg" also put in extra duty as a tug. (Skalley, Foss Ninety Years of Towboating, p. 32-article)
ca. 1920. Foss launch identified by William L. Case as the "Tyee." The Foss family rowboat rental business, started by Thea Foss in 1889, was thriving at the turn of the century. With an eye for opportunity, Thea branched out into the business of supplying anchored and arriving ships in Tacoma with provisions. With the purchase of the family's first launch, sons Arthur and Wendell Foss were able not only to bring supplies, but also to ferry ship's personnel to land. By 1912, the company owned seven launches, the "Tyee" being one of the smallest. (photograph courtesy of the William T. Case collection) ("Foss: A Living Legend" by Bruce Johnson and Mike Skalley)
Undated photograph of foot bridge over railroad tracks. Unidentified man on bridge waves his arms exuberantly while high above the ground. (Wheelock - Lemon collection)
In July of 1931, the Publix Market and Garage at 1110-16 Pacific Ave. was under construction. North Coast Service Garage and Pacific Ave. Building Co. were the builders of the structure and Roberts & Johnson were the contractors. The structure was 9 stories with a "Z System" parking garage.
City Refuse Department office in Tacoma's Old City Hall. Three women and three men are working in the office. Flowers decorate the office desks, and a calander from the Tacoma Savings & Loan Association hangs on the back wall. The "Spanish steps", next to the Elks Building, can be seen through the window.
City Refuse Department (Tacoma); Refuse disposal--Tacoma--1930-1940
ca. 1900. German immigrant Henry Mahncke, with partner Charles Muehlenbruch, built the Berlin Building in 1892. It was the American dream come true for Mahncke who had toiled in his Tacoma bakery since 1882. Losing everything but his dignity in the economic Panic of 1893, Mahncke became a janitor and elevator operator in the building he once owned. The Berlin Building was demolished in 1920 to make way for the present Washington Building. Mahncke went on to a successful career in real estate and died in 1937.
Office buildings--Tacoma--1900-1910; Berlin Building (Tacoma); Mahncke, Henry;
ca. 1905. The steamer Fairhaven is in drydock for repairs at Quartermaster Harbor, Vashon Island, circa 1905. Built in Tacoma in 1889 and launched from the yards of Cpt. John Holland, the stern-wheeler was 130 feet long with 26-foot beam. She was built at a cost of $30,000 for the Fairhaven Land Co., of which Nelson Bennett was president. The wooden stern-wheel steamer was used by more than one company including the La Conner Trading & Transportation Co. and the Island Transportation Co. She had suffered several accidents during her long tenure on local waters including sinking in ten feet of water after striking a rock near Utsalady in 1902 and smashing her bow while caught by strong gales at Coupeville in 1907. Here the Fairhaven is undergoing repairs circa 1905 at Quartermaster Harbor, a nearly five-mile-long inlet which is formed by Vashon Island on the west and Maury Island on the east. The drydock was one of the largest in the Puget Sound. It could lift several large ships at a time and was in place until 1909. The Fairhaven was beached in 1918 after a fire and ended her days as a quasi-houseboat. (Carlaw, 'The Pickrell Brothers recall the Fairhaven,' The Sea Chest, XV1 (Dec. 1982-article)
ca. 1913. A crowd estimated at 10,000 cheered on February 15, 1913 when Miss Enola McIntyre christened Tacoma's new 11th Street bridge by smashing a quart bottle of champagne against one of its shiny, black steel girders. Speakers at the official opening for the $600,000 vertical lift bridge included Governor Ernest Lister and Mayor W.W. Seymour. A 20 piece band kept the crowd in high spirits, and souvenir postcards bearing pictures of both the new bridge and its predecessor were handed out to all. The huge 2,100 foot steel bridge made the Tideflats more accessible, connecting it to the downtown business district, and allowed taller and larger ships access to the south end of the city waterway. In 1997 the bridge was officially renamed the Murray Morgan Bridge to honor the local author and historian of that name. TPL-1792
Ca. 1892. View of Tacoma from bluff southeast of the City Waterway (the McKinley Hill area,) circa 1892. The wide street running up and down on the right is East E St. The second street to cross it from the bottom up is East 28th St. The East Congregational Church can be seen at the corner, 423 East 28th St. It was built in 1885 and destroyed by fire in 1927. Behind the steeple and to the left is the bell tower of the Engine House No. 4, 405 East 26th St. The fire station was built in 1887 and was the home of the "Our Boys" Hose Co. #4. To the left of the fire station is the two story Danish Brotherhood Hall, 402-04 East 26th St., built in 1890, sold and converted to apartments around 1902 and demolished around 1970. At the end of East E, the roof of the Northern Pacific roundhouse, 2211 East D St., can be seen. On the other side of the Waterway, some landmarks are, left to right, the Tacoma Grocery Co., F.S. Harmon Furniture, the clock tower of Old City Hall and the old 11th Street Bridge crossing the waterway.
ca. 1931. Fidelity Building, 949-55 Broadway, Tacoma. The Fidelity Bldg. was built in 1890 from a design by Burnham & Root, architects. It was originally six stories, with six more added in 1909. The structure was demolished in 1949 to make way for the Woolworth Co. building. Bowen # 1061-2
Fidelity Building (Tacoma); Office buildings--Tacoma--1930-1940;
ca. 1940. This building designed by Farrell & Darmer, architects, was built in 1890 as an addition to the Prager Bros. Mechanics Block at 1534-36 Commerce St. Photo shows view of Broadway side, 1537 Broadway. Occupants of the building over the years included a restaurant, coffee dealer, laundry and the infamous Hotel Ewen, described as "Tacoma's No. 1 vice spot." The Rose Rooms boarding house at 1537 1/2 Broadway and the Hotel Ewen at 1533 Broadway were the scene of many vice and prostitution raids. TPL-6554
Tacoma ushered in the new decade of 1900 with a huge 4th of July celebration. It was estimated that 50,000 people poured into town for the big event. Festivities turned to disaster on the morning of the 4th when an overcrowded streetcar plunged into the ravine at South 26th and C Streets instantly killing 37 passengers and maiming many others on board. Some of the planned activities proceeded including this military drill on July 5th. Members of the Washington National Guard, Co. H, 1st Regiment, Spokane, under Capt. M. M. Richardson, receive the silver loving cup for the best drilled company in the regiment from Colonel Weisenberger. Guardsmen stand at parade rest along the 1100 block of Tacoma Avenue South where a crowd has gathered for the award ceremony. (TDL 7/6/1900, p. 8).
Military training; Military parades & ceremonies--Tacoma--1900-1910; Fourth of July celebrations; Washington State Guard (Tacoma);
Charles Evans, as Leif Eriksson, commanded a boatful of stern looking Norsemen, armed with swords and shields, who were "Bound for Wineland" on May 17, 1895. Tacoma's Scandinavians celebrated the 81st anniversary of Norwegian Constitution Day with a small parade, outdoor concerts and picnic games. Fireworks and dancing capped the activity-filled day. This photograph was probably taken between So. 13th and So. 15th on Tacoma Avenue. (Tacoma Morning Union, 5-18-1895, p. 4)
Pacific Avenue appears rather empty on the morning of May 19, 1912, except for the parishioners of St. Joseph's Slovak Catholic Church who were celebrating the dedication of their new church with a parade in downtown Tacoma. Two small girls are pictured in the foreground in a small buggy pulled by one horse as they pass the McCormack Bros. store. The new church, the first Slovak Catholic church built in the Northwest, was located at South 34th and Tacoma Avenue South. It was dedicated at 10 o'clock a.m. with Bishop Edward J. O'Dea conducting the service. Church members provided the labor necessary to build the 92 x 46-feet brick veneer building. The church and building site was paid for entirely by Slavonians, the congregation and/or other Slavonians in the community. (TDL 5-19-12, p. 33-article)
Parades & processions--Tacoma--1910-1920; Commercial streets--Tacoma--1910-1920; St. Joseph's Slovak Catholic Church (Tacoma); Church dedications--Tacoma;
ca. 1931. V.F.W. float shaped like a battleship in front of the Reynolds & King Inc. building at 711 Broadway circa 1931. Sign on the side of the float says, "On to Sacramento." Elks Temple, 565 Broadway, can be seen in the background.
Reynolds & King Inc. (Tacoma); Veterans' organizations--Tacoma--1930-1940; Floats (parades)--Tacoma--1930-1940;
Standing among acres of colorful daffodils while holding a beribboned bouquet is Pauline Martin. Miss Martin would reign as the 1941 Daffodil Festival Queen. The 18-year-old blue-eyed, brown haired Sumner High School student is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Paul Martin. Born in a log cabin in Montana, she has lived in Sumner for sixteen years. Five newspaper photographers unanimously chose Miss Martin from a field of eleven Sumner High School students as the new Daffodil Queen. (TNT 3-1-41, p. 1)
Martin, Pauline; Beauty contestants--Sumner; Puyallup Valley Daffodil Festival (1941 : Sumner); Daffodils;
1966 Daffodil Festival Queen. Susan Bona, 17, posed for her first royal portrait as 1966 Daffodil Festival Queen with a beribboned scepter, queen's gold crown, and bouquet of daffodils. Queen Susan I is also wearing the white velvet royal robe decorated with gleaming crowns and daffodils. This picture ran on the News Tribune's front page on April 1, 1966. The new queen is the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Lester M. Bona. She was crowned on March 28, 1966, at Sumner's Spartan Hall by Governor Dan Evans. The event was televised in color by KTNT-TV. Miss Bona, a top Wilson High School student, would continue her education at the University of Puget Sound. (TNT 4-1-66, p. 1; TNT 3-29-66, p. 1)
Bona, Susan; Beauty contestants--Tacoma--1960-1970; Puyallup Valley Daffodil Festival (1966 : Tacoma);
1968 Daffodil Festival Queen. Cheryl Lamka, 17-year-old Stadium High School senior, was chosen to reign over the 1968 Daffodil Festival during April 1, 1968, ceremonies at Spartan Hall in Sumner. Governor Dan Evans had the honor of crowning the new queen. She posed for her formal portrait holding a bouquet of daffodils and ferns and clutching a brass scepter. Queen Cheryl I is the daughter of Dr. and Mrs. Dewane Lamka and the youngest of four children. She was very active in high school, as Wilson High School annual editor, Girls Club service department head, and member of the Stadiana and Triple S, all while holding down a 3.97 grade point average. (TNT 4-2-68, p. 1)
Lamka, Cheryl; Beauty contestants--Tacoma--1960-1970; Puyallup Valley Daffodil Festival (1968 : Tacoma); Daffodils; Crowns; Scepters;
ca. 1952. Work is almost complete on the 1952 Main branch of the Tacoma Public Library. To the left is the Carnegie Library, a Renaissance structure built in 1903 from a design by Jardine, Kent and Jardine and with funds donated by industrialist Andrew Carnegie. To the right is the Main Library, built in 1952 from a design by Silas E. Nelsen. Construction is ongoing on the three floor structure. To the rear of the library soar the memorable spires of the Romanesque Pierce County Courthouse at 1012 So. "G" St. The building was built in 1892 along grandiose lines. It was demolished in 1959 to provide space for a parking lot for the new County City building. To the left of the Courthouse, you can glimpse the Tacoma Vocational School (now Bates), built in 1941 at 1101 Yakima Ave., and the Washington National Guard Armory, built in 1908 at 715 So. 11th St. The large building in the back and to the right of the library is the Central Lutheran Church at 1001 So. "G" St. The church, built in 1889 as the First Presbyterian Church, was demolished to make room for the County City building.
Tacoma Public Library (Tacoma); Public libraries--Tacoma--1950-1960; Building construction--Tacoma--1950-1960; Pierce County Courthouse (Tacoma); Central Lutheran Church (Tacoma);
ca. 1938. 1938 Daffodil Festival Queen. 17-year-old Bliss Lundrigan of Puyallup was chosen the 1938 Daffodil Festival Queen. She was accompanied by princesses Bernice Daniel of Tacoma and Agnes Kucemba of Sumner. Miss Lundrigan is shown seated in a chair hidden by a mass of daffodils. A robe of royal purple is fastened at the collar; 1938 was the first year that Royalty wore official robes. A crown of daffodils adorns her dark hair.
Lundrigan, Bliss; Beauty contestants--Puyallup; Puyallup Valley Daffodil Festival (1938 : Puyallup);
ca. 1899. Engine Co. No. 6 opened on 9th & A Street in 1891. The station also housed Chemical Engine Co. No. 1. The headquarters station cost approximately $24,400. Captain William J. Chisholm led his company of five men; he may have been one of the men standing next to the horse-drawn engines in this sepia photograph. View of flower bedecked wagons and engines outside the two-story brick station; this is probably the 4th of July celebratory parade. (100 Years of Firefighting in the City of Destiny Tacoma, Washington, p. 22)
Tacoma Fire Department (Tacoma); Fire engines & equipment--Tacoma; Fire fighters--Tacoma--1890-1900; Parades & processions--Tacoma--1890-1900;
