Titus Motor Company delivers a new 1940 Ford truck to the G. Andersen Fuel Co. at their offices at 1549 Dock St. The 95 horsepower truck will bring the company's service fleet to 8 vehicles. Andersen has been in the fuel business for 20 years. Proudly posed with their new truck are O. Andersen, secretary and treasurer (left), and G. Andersen, president. (T. Times 12/13/1939, pg. 8) (filed with Argentum)
G. Andersen Fuel Co. (Tacoma); Ford trucks; Andersen, O.; Andersen, G.; Fuel trade--Tacoma--1930-1940; Fuel--Tacoma--1930-1940;
New Fuel Oil Service Corp. truck in street in front of residence. The driver casually poses with his elbow outside the Mack truck's window. The bright red vehicle would have been visible for quite a distance away. ALBUM 15.
Fuel Oil Service (Tacoma); Trucks--Tacoma--1930-1940; Fuel trade--Tacoma--1930-1940;
Four men in front of three McKenzie Fuel Company trucks parked in front of two wooden industrial buildings. Photograph ordered by Titus Motor Co. The 1940 City Directory lists the McKenzie Fuel Co. address as Taylor Way at Dolge Mill. The company offered slab and mill wood, hogged fuel, sawdust and stove and diesel oil. (filed with Argentum)
Two trucks hauling two caterpillar tractors at Northwest Hauling Co., 2318 South Tacoma Way. Photos ordered by Holte Trucks. In the 1956 City Directory, they described their services as "expressing and moving." In 1957, they described their services as "Rigging and hoisting, heavy hauling, house moving and crane service."
Two City Fuel Company GMC delivery trucks are parked outside the Coffee House Roasters, Inc. at 3700 Center Street in October of 1955. They were probably not stopping for a cup of coffee. City Fuel was at 3702 Center and the two businesses shared the building. Owned by Douglas O. Howe, City Fuel had been in the business of delivering fuel oil to customers for thirty years. Their slogan "When it's cool call City Fuel" was painted on their trucks. City Fuel had moved into their Robert Billsbrough Price-designed new building at 3702 Center St. in August of 1953. They advertised a complete one-package heating program including automatic metered fill-up service, Winkler heating equipment and Mobilheat stove and furnace oils. Coffee House Roasters, Inc. opened in 1955 and was in business in Tacoma for over 20 years. Photograph ordered by City Fuel and used in the News Tribune's 10-31-55 issue with slight modification. (TNT 10-31-55, p. 2-ad)
City Fuel Co. (Tacoma); Fuel trade--Tacoma--1950-1960; Trucks--Tacoma--1950-1960; Signs (Notices); Coffee House Roasters, Inc. (Tacoma);
According to Richards Studio notes: "Tacoma Bread Co. truck which was involved on Mountain Highway accident." Photograph ordered by Charles A. Peterson, lawyer. Delivery truck with Manthou's Kream Krust Bread logo parked in front of three bay garage. Tacoma Bread Co.'s main product appeared to be their Kream Krust Bread. The bakery was located at 2836-38 So. I St. It was owned and operated by the Manthou family. (filed with Argentum)
Crew of the freighter Wildwood stand on dock by bow of ship in Tacoma in this photograph dated April 18, 1940. Walter Arntz, Captain, shown in left top inset. The vessel had returned to Tacoma from mid Pacific to unload her hot cargo of copper, brass and machinery.
Truck built by Highway Truck Equipment for AA Star Transfer Co. photographed on May 29, 1940 in front of the Washington State Vehicle Safety Inspection Station, 3415 So. 38th St. Highway Truck Co. was located at 3224 South Tacoma Way and specialized in manufacturing hoists and bodies for dump trucks, trailers of all types, truck alterations and brake installations. (filed with Argentum)
Trucks--Tacoma--1940-1950; Highway Truck Co. (Tacoma); Vehicle Safety Inspection Station (Tacoma);
ca. 1950. Copy of customer print. Two airmen, backs to the camera, grip the wing of an Air Force jet in an undated photograph. The plane is a F-102A fighter intercepter. Each serviceman is wearing a flight jacket with a "318th F15" label on the back, along with the same Mach Wave emblem shown on the tail of the plane. The logo consisted of two overlapped chevrons, suggesting space age theme. These men may have been assigned to the 318th Fighter Interceptor Squadron at McChord Air Force Base. The photograph was possibly part of a set produced by the Public Relations Office when the 318th was upgrading their aircraft from the F-94c two seat fighters to the pictured version. The F-102A fighters were later assigned to the 57th Fighter Group 64th FIS, Paine Field. They were assigned to the Philippine Islands for support during the Vietnam War. Photograph ordered by Munson-Smith Motors. Copy of print was made on March 25, 1957. (information on the fighter and emblem supplied by patron)
ca. 1950. Copy of customer print. Six Air Force personnel, three of them pilots, pose in front of three jets in an undated photograph. The pilots are equipped with parachutes and holding helmets. These men are probably assigned to the 318th Fighter Interceptor Squadron. The actual date of the original print is unknown; a print was made on March 25, 1957. Photograph ordered by Munson-Smith Motors.
Copy of customer print. A man appears to be studying plans on perhaps how to complete the body of the aircraft behind him. The fuselage is not finished although windows have been positioned. The plane appears to have been largely constructed of plywood. Photograph ordered by Douglas Fir Plywood Association. Original print was imprinted 11-23-1955 with "SM 197293" also on print. Copy of print was made in March, 1958.
Undated photograph of three different types of vessels dockside. The location of this particular dock is not known. All three boats represent different eras in sailing with the sailboat by far the smallest in size. The three-mast ship is named the "San Francisco" but names of the other two boats are not discernible. Copy of photograph ordered by Richard E. Warren of Kramer, Chin & Mayo, Seattle. TPL-9480
The dirigible "Shenandoah," commissioned by the US Navy, paid a two day visit to Camp Lewis in October of 1924. A special 165 foot tall striped mooring mast was specially constructed for the visit. The giant dirigible, patterned after a German Zeppelin captured by the French in 1917, hovered silently in the air over gawking spectators and their automobiles. On September 3, 1925, a mere nine months later, the airship was caught in a thunderstorm and torn to pieces over Noble County, Ohio. Miraculously, 29 of its 43 crew members survived. The mast stood at Fort Lewis until 1936. (Richards copy negative)
Airships; Mooring masts; Camp Lewis (Wash.); Military camps--Tacoma--1920-1930;
Copy of customer print. Undated photograph of #78, a buoy layer, as she churns through the water. This buoy layer would position and service the buoys, important navigational helpers, that mark out shipping channels and indicate the shallows in waterways. Photograph ordered by Tacoma Boatbuilding. (additional information on buoy layers from www.voithturbo.com)
Drawing of an airplane with the propeller behind the cockpit and two wings that point towards the back after coming straight out to the sides of the craft.
On July 28, 1948, this unidentified man, possibly the Bart's Drive-In airplane pilot, had landed his small plane on an ocean beach. It appears that he had made a quick stop for razor clams as his shovels and metal cans seem to indicate. Publicity photo ordered by O'Connell-Ragan advertising agency. (Additional information provided by a reader)
ca. 1950. Copy of old prints of airplanes pinned to a board. People boarding United Airlines. Large group of people next to Pacific Air transport air mail airplane. Ordered by WSHS, Chapin Foster, 2/20/50. (Argentum)
Copies of a customer's prints, ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association. Actual date of photographs is unknown. A plane is being constructed largely of plywood. A man operates a table saw, cutting the plywood to the correct shape for cabin windows. The unfinished plane body can be seen in the background.
Copies of a customer's prints, ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association. Actual date of photographs is unknown. A man works inside the incomplete fuselage of the plane, riveting around the cabin window.
Copies of a customer's prints, ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association. Actual date of photographs is unknown. A man works on the engine housing of the plane, attaching plywood to its curved surface.
Copies of a customer's prints, ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association. Actual date of photographs is unknown. Two men can be seen through the doorway to the right of what will be the cockpit of the new plane. The plane is being built of plywood and the workers mark a sheet of it to the needed dimensions.
Copies of a customer's prints, ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association. Actual date of photographs is unknown. Two men observe a wooden structure that might be the housing for the landing gear on the all wood plane.
Small black automobile stopped at railroad crossing, sign and light, tall tower building at right, industrial area in background. Photograph taken on July 24, 1940.
Scene of Accident. View of Pacific Avenue near South 19th Street. Union Station on right, Shaub - Ellison Company and Garretson - Woodruff - Pratt Building on left. Photographed on August 31, 1940 for United Pacific Insurance Company. Virgil Jones became the city's 11th traffic fatality on August 30th when his Packard coupe collided head-on with a Portland-Seattle Auto Freight truck. Mr. Jones, along with his three passengers, was hurled from his vehicle from the collision's impact. (T.Times 8-31-1940, p. 1+ -article-only)
Traffic accidents--Tacoma--1940-1950; Commercial streets--Tacoma--1940-1950; Union Station (Tacoma); Shaub-Ellison Co. (Tacoma); Garretson-Woodruff-Pratt Building (Tacoma); Street railroad tracks--Tacoma--1940-1950;
Scene of Accident. View of Pacific Avenue near South 19th Street taken on August 31, 1940 for United Pacific Insurance Company. Union Station on right, American Plumbing and Steam Supply, Shaub - Ellison Company and Garretson - Woodruff - Pratt Building on left. Wreckage of the fatal automobile-truck accident had already been cleared away by the time of this photograph. A Portland-Seattle Auto Freight truck had collided head-on with a Packard coupe the late evening of August 30th at South 19th & Pacific Ave. This caused the 11th traffic fatality of the year when Tacoma boilermaker Virgil Jones, along with his three passengers, was thrown from his vehicle. Although his passengers, and the truck's occupants, were injured, they did survived. A coroner's jury the following week found the accident to be "unavoidable" and no charges were filed against either driver. (T.Times 8-31-1940, p. 1+, article-only; T.Times 9-7-1940, p. 8-article only on coroner's inquest)
Traffic accidents--Tacoma--1940-1950; Commercial streets--Tacoma--1940-1950; Union Station (Tacoma); American Plumbing & Steam Supply Co. (Tacoma); Shaub-Ellison Co. (Tacoma); Garretson-Woodruff-Pratt Building (Tacoma); Street railroad tracks--Tacoma;
Wrecked semi-truck at 19th and Pacific Avenue. Goodyear Tire sign and gas pumps of Shaub - Ellison Company in background. The 25-ton truck had been involved in a fatal car-truck head-on collision at 19th & Pacific on late Friday evening, August 30, 1940. It had skidded to the north entrance of Shaub-Ellison Co., remained upright, and landed on the sidewalk. Killed was the Packard coupe driver, 35-year-old Virgil Jones, a Tacoma boilermaker with Seattle-Tacoma Shipyards. Injured were his three passengers as well as the truck driver, M.L. Burr and Mr. Burr's passenger. Virgil Jones was the city's 11th death in 1940. Photograph taken for the United Pacific Insurance Co. (T.Times 8-31-1940, p. 1+, article-only)
Traffic accidents--Tacoma--1940-1950; Trucks--Tacoma--1940-1950; Portland-Seattle Auto Freight, Inc. (Seattle); Shaub-Ellison Co. (Tacoma); Death--Tacoma;
A heavy-duty flatbed truck with a large Wendell Willkie sign rolls slowly down Commerce Street prior to Election Day, 1940. The sign questions FDR's decision to seek a third term, comparing him to Hitler, Stalin and Mussolini. The Republicans were having a rally at the Jason Lee Auditorium; trucks were on parade to urge voters to turn out and listen to the party message. The Democrats countered with rallies and parades of their own: they also traveled through residential and downtown streets on the final drive for election votes. The rain and wind that evening did not keep party members away; an estimated 1500 attended the two rallies. TPL-1975 (T. Times 11-1-40, p. 1, T. Times 11-2-40, p. 12) ALBUM 2.
The wet streets of downtown Tacoma did not hinder the procession of the Willkie-McNary campaign trucks prior to Election Day in November of 1940. The trucks were photographed in front of the Roxy (Pantages) Theater as loudspeakers and a large sign urged voters to attend a rally of Republicans at the Jason Lee Auditorium. Arthur Langlie, gubernatorial candidate, and Stephen Chadwick, candidate for the U.S. Senate, were scheduled to speak at the gathering. The Democrats chose the same evening for their parade and rally. Candidates Mon Wallgren (for senator), C.C. Dill (for governor) and John Coffee (re-election to Congress) spoke at the Lincoln High School Democratic rally. Franklin Roosevelt carried the presidential election, beginning his third term with a popular vote of 54.7 % and an electoral landslide of 84.6%. Republican Arthur Langlie was elected governor. ALBUM 2. (T.Times, 11-1-40, p. 1, T. Times 11-2-40, p. 12)
This covered steel barge was launched on January 25, 1941 at J.M. Martinac Shipbuilding Corp., 1501 Railroad Ave. It was ordered by the Navy and was fabricated by Birchfield Boilers. The barge was 110 feet long and 34 feet wide. It was the second ship to be delivered to the Navy in 1941. [T Times, 1/27/1941, pg. 12].
This photograph from January 1941 shows a newly completed 110 ft. by 34 ft. covered steel barge being launched at the J. M. Martinac Shipbuilding Corp. yards. Built by the Birchfield Boiler Company, the barge was the second ship to be finished for the United States Navy in Tacoma in 1941. The J. M. Martinac shipbuilding facilities have been part of the Tacoma waterfront since 1924. They are the Thea Foss Waterway's oldest continuous tenant. [T. Times, 1/27/1941, pg. 12].
