From September of 1942 until the end of March, 1947, 713-15 Commerce housed USO #2, a club reserved for the entertainment of servicemen and women of color. One of the unique activities in the club took place each year during "Be Kind to Animals" week. Servicemen assisted in the planning and production of a dog show with the pets of local children. Ribbons were presented to the best in each catagory. In this photograph dated September 16, 1945, unidentified children and servicemen pose with a variety of dogs at the club. (photograph by F.L. Powell of Tacoma)
ca. 1946. One of the purposes of the USO was to make the holidays more festive for servicemen stationed away from home and their families. This picture of a local pair, left, and four servicemen was taken around Christmas at the USO Club #2. All of the people in the picture are unidentified. The Club was reserved for servicemen of color; at this time, the military was still segregated. (Photograph by F.L. Powell, YMCA, Tacoma).
ca. 1946. A group of at a refreshment table at the USO #2, 713-15 Commerce St., around 1946. The border in the background is formed of a line of thumbtacked photographs of the USO Club. (photograph by F.L. Powell of Tacoma)
This undated photograph was taken in front of the snack bar at the USO No. 2 in Tacoma. At the head of the table was Arthur Hayes and at the end closest to the camera was Helen B. Stafford, local civic activist. USO No. 2 opened at 713 Commerce Street in September 1942 to serve Tacoma's African American servicemen and closed in March 1947. This location also served servicemen during World War I as the Army-Navy Club.
Volunteers of USO No. 2 shown in this undated World War II era photograph include community activist Helen Stafford, second from right. USO No. 2 opened at 713 Commerce Street in September 1942 to serve Tacoma's African American servicemen and closed in March 1947. This location also served servicemen during World War I as the Army-Navy Club. TPL-5977
ca. 1946. One of the functions of the United Service Organizations (USO) was to create a welcoming atmosphere for servicemen and women away from home, especially during the holidays. From the look of the guests' hats and leis, the social event in this undated photograph was held during the holidays in the main hall of the USO #2, 713-15 Commerce St. The military was still segregated during World War II, so USO #2 was provided for the entertainment of African American soldiers.
Undated photograph of the Matrons Club. The woman seated front left is Helen Beck Stafford, one of the founders of the group. Dr. Stafford moved to Tacoma in 1926 to marry Wendell P. Stafford on New Years Eve. Even though she had taught for a few years in Kansas schools, Tacoma school personnel directors refused to hire a black teacher. She stayed at home and cared for her husband and daughter. She and several other women who stayed home to rear their children would get together for a social outlet. In 1927, they formally organized the Matrons Club. The women who attended the meetings often brought their children along and the children would play together. (TNT 2/22/1982- NWR clipping file) (photograph by Liberal Engraving Co., 907 1/2 Commerce)
Back of Photo: "Damon Herd, the Tacoma Fire Dept's 1st black Fire Marshal, stands before a fire truck at the station that also is home to his office (901 Fawcett)."
Herd is 36 years old in the photo and became a firefighter in 1971. According to Herd, he was a part of the first group of minority applicants that the Tacoma Fire Department recruited in the early 1970s.
Back of Photo: Tooting her own horn! Carolyn "Mickey" Cunningham, Basileus of Sigma Gamma Rho (her college sorority), toots down S. K Street in part of the ethnic fair on the Hilltop. News/Szymanski Photo by Bill Hunter
Back of Photo: Monique Johnson, 3 yrs, can't contain her glee as she gets a horseback ride with Rich Gayles, a rodeo bull rider who rides by the name of "Daddy Rich", after the ethnic fair parade on the Hilltop. News/Szymanski Bill Hunter Photo
Back of Photo: Volunteer Edward Fynn sweeps away litter and broken glass from the sidewalk at 23rd and L Streets on Hilltop this morning as volunteers from the Hilltop Action Coalition, St. Joseph Hospital and citizens of the Hilltop community joined several on-duty officers from Tacoma PD in a sweep into the neighborhood to deliver some TLC as part of the "Area 5" neighborhood clean-up project. The group swept, cleaned and painted over graffiti the area from South 23rd to South 25th and from South K street to South Sheridan. News/Godchaux Geff Hinds Photo
Back of Photo: The Rev. Jerry Sanders rejoiced in his God given freedom from heroin and cocaine as he witnessed at an anti drug service at New Jerusalem Church of God in Christ, on the Hilltop, in Tacoma. News/Maynard Bruce Larson Photo
Back of Photo: Willie and Joyce Hellems, rows one and two, joined with others in the sanctuary of St. John The Baptist Church on 20th and J Street to pray for an end to the drug problem on Tacoma's Hilltop. News/Eskenazi Bruce Larson Photo
Back of Photo: News/ National Night Out/ Hilltop Celebration and Prayer service. Members of Safe Streets, and Hilltop neighbors joined their hands in prayer on the corner of S. 16th and L streets, where two Tacoma residents where shot and killed July 16th of 1990. The men, Scott Higley, and Chris Sherrod were remembered during a Hilltop celebration of National Night Out, with the theme "Sweep, Walk and Talk" for our neighborhood, or "SWAT." Two members of the gathered held hands and then placed a flower on the spot of the drug related shootings. Left to right in main pic are Randy Herrid, Sister Laura Neal, organizer of celebration, Father Bill Bichsel, and Theda Cherry.
Back of Photo: Prayers before sweeping up S. L Street, from left to right: Laura Neal, Theda Cherry, Priscilla Lisicich, and Lynitra Jackson. For Sandy Nelson story. Melissa Stevenson Photo
Back of Photo: Hilltop (Home Ownership Program) Terence Thomas - Real-estate/Personal Banker, working with Evelyn Hargrove.
“Terence Thomas, a Seafirst real estate personal banker, talks with Evelyn Hargrove, one of the potential buyers, at a class Seafirst organized” to educate people about credit applications and real-estate transactions. Seafirst Bank, the Martin Luther King Housing Development Association, and the Tacoma Housing Authority organized a program to help low-income Pierce County residents purchase a home and revitalize Tacoma’s Hilltop Neighborhood.
Back of Photo: Thirteen-year-old Jeffrey Colvin flashes the hand sign of the Crips. (See Story: Colvin is one of two teenagers interviewed who seem to watch and respect the gang members.) K Street Story -- Amy Kunhardt
Taken for the Tacoma News Tribune article titled, "K Street Kids" Aug 19, 1988, Fri p.C1 (see "Hilltop Neighborhood 1988-1992"clipping file)
Back of Photo: Five-year-old Aisha Bell (left) eats her lunch on the front steps of a neighbor's house, watched by her older sister Lashanda, 10 and her niece, Tenika Posey, 3. (Tenika is sister of Cool Papa.) K Street Story -- Amy Kunhardt
Taken for the Tacoma News Tribune article titled, "K Street Kids" Aug 19, 1988, Fri p.C1 (see "Hilltop Neighborhood 1988-1992"clipping file)
Back of Photo: Ernesto, left, wife Marina, and son David stand in front of their store, El Compadre, at the corner of 40th and McKinley Ave. The store has become the hub of information and assistance for the stream of Mexicans who continue to flow into Pierce County. They will be receiving an award from a new Hispanic organization in town. (photo by David Brandt)
Demonstrators show their support for the La Girls show by holding signs. After being cancelled at three Tacoma-area locations, the La Girls show was performed at the Sherwood Inn. The event brought both supporters and opponents of the La Girls show.
Back of Photo: News A happy trio make their way up Broadway and towards Volunteer Park during todays Gay Pride parade in Downtown Seattle. Geff Hinds Photo
Three people participating in a demonstration walk with their arms around each other. One holds a sign reading, "United Against Nazis! Radical Women."
Back of Photo: A group of regulars enjoy the brew and camaraderie at Spags, a gay tavern in Seattle that is off-limits to GI's from Ft. Lewis, as per order of the military. Voelpel Story Haley
Back of Photo: Theatrical Group, Order of Vasa, ca. 1912, Tacoma Photograph courtesy of the Vasa Lodge Norden, Tacoma
From In the Footsteps of Nicholas Delin: the Swedish Presence in Pierce County, a photography exhibition tracing the world of Swedish and Swedish-Finnish immigrants in Pierce County from 1887 - 1930, opening Thursday, December 14, 1995 at the Tacoma Public Library's Handforth Gallery (Main Library, 1102 Tacoma Avenue South in downtown Tacoma).
Robert Thomas wears a raven headdress during the dedication ceremonies for the new Nisqually Tribal Center west of Yelm. Several hundred tribal members and guests attended the ceremonies which included speeches, songs, dances, and an outdoor feast prepared by Army and Nisqually cooks.
