ca. 1890. This portrait of Frank C. Ross was taken in 1891, the year he sold the Tacoma and Lake City Railroad to the Union Pacific Railroad for $153,000. His top hat, double breasted Prince Albert, light overcoat, boutonniere and mutton chop whiskers were typical dress for an affluent businessman of the period. The Tacoma railroad operated from North 25th Street & Union to Lake City. Union Pacific proposed to extend the line from Portland to the Canadian border in exchange for concessions from Tacoma, such as city right of way, land for terminals and waterfrontage for warehouses and docks for their Pacific Mail ships. The Union Pacific sold the Tacoma line to John S. Baker and Robert Wingate whose attempts to keep the railroad afloat failed. They stopped operations in 1897. Mr. Ross celebrated his 80th birthday on March 3, 1938. He was still championing the development of the Tideflats that he had proposed 50 years before. Copy made for T.Times columnist E. T. Short, June of 1936. (T. Times 6/11/1936, pg. 5; T. Times 3/21/1938, pg. 5)

Ross, Frank C.; Tacoma & Lake City Railroad (Tacoma); Men--Clothing & dress--Tacoma--1890-1900;

ca. 1890. Old photograph copied around 1937, showing a wagon, perhaps a fire engine, being pulled at speed by two horses on what seems to be Tacoma's A Street in the 1890s. Tower in background appears to be that of City Hall. (filed with Argentum)

Carts & wagons--Tacoma--1890-1900; Horse teams;

ca. 1890. The original of this photograph was taken circa 1890. Several masted sailing ships are waiting to take on shipments of lumber at an unidentified dock believed to be on Tacoma's waterfront. Tacoma would become known as the "Lumber Capital of the World" due to its many sawmills and access to vast forestlands.

Lumber industry--Tacoma--1890-1900; Cargo ships--Tacoma--1890-1900; Sailing ships--Tacoma--1890-1900; Shipping--Tacoma--1890-1900;

ca. 1890. Copy of customer's print. A parade/procession marches south down Pacific Avenue in 1890. At the bottom of the photograph are six riders on horseback followed by a drum major and small marching band. Military units are next. In the far left corner is Nels P. Neilson's Boots & Shoes (building with "Redfront" sign). The Luzon Building is at 1302-04 Pacific Avenue (left side, center). The historic building was demolished in September of 2009. Copy of photograph made on August 31, 1950. (TPL-3261)

Parades & processions--Tacoma--1890-1900; Commercial streets--Tacoma--1890-1900; Luzon Building (Tacoma);

ca. 1890. Seattle street scene showing W.H. Pumphrey & Co. Booksellers and Stationers, W.P. Boyd & Co., and Haxtun Steam Heating. Building materials and/or rubble line street. Streetcar.

ca. 1890. Street scene in Seattle. Construction in progress. Barber pole advertising baths and shave for 15 cents. V. Hugo Smith Real Estate. John Wielands Lager Beer. Brick buildings, unpaved road, horses and men in street.

ca. 1890. Looking north toward the growing Tacoma business district from about South 30th and C Streets, circa 1890. Small houses dot the landscape in the photograph's foreground. At left center is the South 29th St. Bridge. The South 24th, 25th, and 26th Street steel bridges are at center. At the far right is East "C" Street. Photo from "Northern Pacific Railroad Scenery" with photos by F. Jay Haynes (F. Jay Haynes Collection)

Neighborhoods--Tacoma--1890-1900; Bridges--Tacoma--1890-1900;

ca. 1886. Several long boats (Indian canoes) rest on the beach at about Fifth and Pacific in Tacoma in this photograph from the mid 1880s. Long boats could transport a whole family with supplies for a season of fishing. This group of boats is probably preparing to head upstream on the Puyallup River where members of the Puyallup tribe worked in the hop fields of the Puyallup Valley. The Puyallups are part of the Puget Sound Salish original peoples. They were hunters, gatherers and fishermen, although they inhabited permanent houses along the riverbanks and along the Sound. Salmon was their main food and figured strongly in their culture. Under the Treaty of Medicine Creek, the tribe ceded much of their territories but retained fishing rights. Rutter Collection TPL-564

Longboats--Tacoma--1890-1900; Indians of North America--Tacoma--1890-1900;

ca. 1890. This is how Tacoma appeared circa 1890. This elevated view is taken looking across the "city waterway" and tideflats toward Tacoma. Tacoma in 1890 was a boom town, with its population burgeoning to some 30,000 people, due in part to the Northern Pacific Railroad. Photograph is courtesy of the John Ogden Collection. TPL-10168

Cityscapes;

ca. 1890. This photograph of the Tacoma Hotel (at left) was taken from below the bluff and possibly while on Commencement Bay. Engine House No. 6, 823 A Street, is the building at right still under construction in 1890. The Tacoma Hotel, 913 A Street, opened in August of 1884 and reputedly was the most beautiful hotel north of San Francisco.

Tacoma Hotel (Tacoma); Hotels--Tacoma--1890-1900; Fire stations--Tacoma--1890-1900;

ca. 1890. Copy negative of a Tacoma Fire Department horse-drawn steam pumper, circa 1890.

Tacoma Fire Department (Tacoma); Fire engines & equipment--Tacoma--1890-1900;

ca. 1890. This is a view looking up South 9th from A Street in downtown Tacoma circa 1890. The big building in center of photo (to the right of 9th) is the Fife Block Building, later the Hotel Donnelly. Across 9th from this bulding is the Wright Building. Built in 1874 it was the first brick building in Tacoma. Although massive brick and stone structures were being constructed in the commercial business districts, streets were still rough and unpaved.

Commercial streets--Tacoma--1890-1900; Wright Building (Tacoma); Fife Block Building (Tacoma);

ca. 1890. Tacoma Hotel overlooking Puget Sound TPL-2833, BU-11914

ca. 1890. Copy negative of photograph of old Puget Sound Savings Bank building. Photograph was "improved" by superimposing a sketch of a man on a bicycle and a drawn horse-drawn trolley car. Copy negative produced August 19, 1939.

Banks--Tacoma--1890-1900; Puget Sound Savings Bank (Tacoma)

"Robert Burns: The Oration" by Albert E. Joab booklet of 26 pages. Title page: "Robert Burns: Peasant, Poet, Patriot. An Oration, Delivered Before the Caledonian and St. Andrew's Societies of Tacoma, Washington, on the One Hundred and Thirty-Eighth Anniversary of the Poet's Nativity". c. 1897.

Inside the booklet is a program titled "Concert and Social will be held on the anniversary or Robbie Burns' Birthday. Friday, January 24th, 1890 at 8 p.m. in Bush's Hall, 1131 1-2 Tacoma Ave."

ca. 1890. Station # 3, Tacoma Fire Department. Location of Engine Co. No. 3 was listed at the corner of No. "G" and McCarver in 1889 with Captain Amil Krantz in charge of at least five men. A few weeks after a disastrous Seattle business district fire which saw Tacoma volunteers leap in to assist their Seattle brethren, the Tacoma City Council put its volunteers on salary. Considerable new equipment was purchased from the International Fire Engine Company of Seneca Falls, New York, and Tacoma had the first paid fire department. The 2nd Annual Report of the Tacoma Paid Fire Department, for the fiscal year ending May 31, 1891, listed a complete inventory of both employees and equipment for each fire station. Besides the Silsby steam fire engine and American Fire Apparatus hose wagon, 2 sliding poles, 6 rubber coats, 4 horse blankets, 6 spittoons, and one crowbar were among those listed. Running expenses for the fiscal year totaled $7,341.36 including $336.10 for oats, $8.05 for carrots and the largest expenditure, $5887.76 for salaries. Rosters were also listed, including the men's ages, nationality and former occupations. (2nd Annual Report, Tacoma Paid Fire Department, p. 24-25; 100 Years of Firefighting in the City of Destiny Tacoma, Washington, p. 17-18)

Tacoma Fire Department (Tacoma); Fire stations--Tacoma--1890-1900; Fire engines & equipment--Tacoma; Fire fighters--Tacoma--1890-1900; Horses--Tacoma;

ca. 1890. This portrait, taken around 1890, is of the Foss boathouse, the first boathouse in Tacoma. The 16 x 30 structure was built by Andrew Foss to house his growing family. His industrious wife, Thea, began the family business here. The Foss family had arrived from Norway in 1889. While Andrew took what work he could find, Thea used the family fortune, $5, to buy a used rowboat and Foss Tug and Launch Co. was begun. At this time in 1890, the boathouse was located on the City Waterway (where Consumers Central Heating Co. and the City's Steam Plant would build in the 1920s.) The photograph was taken about three months before the birth of Henry Foss. Standing at the top of the landing are Andrew and Thea Foss and their daughter Lillian D. Foss. John Edmond is in the first boat on the water. In the second boat are Wedell Foss and Arthur Foss, only small children but already helping their parents out. The remaining folks are customers who rented the boats for five to ten cents a day. There was no Eleventh Street bridge at this time and in the back of the boathouse on the hill can be seen the old city jail at 12th and A St. (TNT 3/25/1922, pg. 14) G14.1-001; TPL-960

Foss Launch & Tug Co. (Tacoma); Foss, Andrew; Foss, Thea; Foss, Andrew--Family; Rowboats; Boathouses--Tacoma--1890-1900;

ca. 1890. Seattle warehouse district. Railroad cars loaded with lumber and other materials. Wooden plank roadway. Supply wagons.

ca. 1890. Pacific Avenue in Tacoma looking north from about South 12th Street, circa 1890. The Grand Central Hotel, 1211 Pacific Ave. is at the far right. Parked outside the hotel is the Davis & McMartin laundry wagon; their steam laundry was located at 943-45 "C" St. On the far left side of Pacific Ave. were the Tacoma Bazaar and the Nolan & Hotchkiss grocery. Two sets of streetcar tracks run down the center of the street while horse-drawn wagons pass on the edges. Photo from "Northern Pacific Railroad Scenery" with photos by F. Jay Haynes (F. Jay Haynes Collection)

Commercial streets--Tacoma--1890-1900; Business districts--Tacoma--1890-1900; Grand Central Hotel (Tacoma); Carts & wagons--Tacoma--1890-1900;

ca. 1890. View of Tacoma from Commencement Bay, circa 1890. The Tacoma Hotel dominates the skyline. The pilings in the foreground are probably the supports for the old Northern Pacific tracks that crossed the tideflats into Tacoma. Photo from "Northern Pacific Railroad Scenery" with photos by F. Jay Haynes (F. Jay Haynes Collection)

Commencement Bay (Wash.); Tacoma Hotel (Tacoma); Hotels--Tacoma--1890-1900; Pilings (Civil engineering)--Tacoma;

ca. 1890. The Tacoma Hotel as it looked circa 1890, before any of the numberous additions had been added to the structure of the building. Tacoma was justly proud of this elegant structure with its beautiful views of Commencement Bay. It had opened in August of 1884. Photo from "Northern Pacific Railroad Scenery" with photos by F. Jay Haynes (F. Jay Haynes Collection)

Tacoma Hotel (Tacoma); Hotels--Tacoma--1890-1900;

ca. 1890. John N. Conna, wealthy real estate agent and head of first Black family in Tacoma. John Newington Conna had accomplished much in his 85 years before his death in Alaska in 1921. Born of a mixed marriage in San Augustine, Texas in 1836, Mr. Conna fought in the Civil War as part of the famed 1st Louisiana Native Guards before migrating north to Hartford, Connecticut and then west to Kansas City, Kansas. In 1883 Mr. Conna journeyed to the "City of Destiny," Tacoma, and became a leading seller of real estate. The father of 14 children, he was married to Mary (Davis) Conna. Mr. and Mrs. Conna would donate to the City of Tacoma some 40 acres of land as a Christmas gift in 1889. He held numerous offices including president of the John Brown Republican Club and president of the Washington State Protective League. He was, in a sense, the titular leader of Tacoma's black community and highly influential in the city's black social and political activities. Mr. Conna was also an attorney authorized to practice before the Treasury Department; Conna family lore suggests that he was also an attorney for railroad magnate James J. Hill. John Conna was appointed as Asst. Sergeant At Arms for the Senate in 1889, Washington's first Territorial Legislature. He was the first black political appointee in the history of Washington Territory. Mr. Conna was also a delegate to the 1896 National Republican Convention. At the age of 64 and not ready for retirement, Mr. Conna traveled to Alaska on the S.S. Seattle with Federal Judge and close friend, James Wickersham. Mr. Conna, like thousands of others, had been attracted by the huge gold rush and opportunities in Alaska. Mrs. Conna and family remained behind while Mr. Conna set up his own real estate, mines and mining property company a few years later. John Conna, age 85, stricken with diabetes, a heart condition, and the loss of a leg, died on October 21, 1921. He is buried in Fairbanks. (Tacoma Morning Globe Annual Review, 1-1-1891; www.historylink.org) (Additional information provided by Douglas Q. Barnett, grandson of John N. Conna)

Conna, John N.; African Americans--Tacoma--1890-1900; Pioneers--Tacoma; Real estate development--Tacoma;

ca. 1890. Charles Barstow Wright, 1822 - 1898, a builder of the Northern Pacific Railroad and of the city of Tacoma, Washington. He also founded Annie Wright Seminary, then a private school for girls, donated land which became Wright Park, donated time and money to build the old St. Luke's Episcopal Church, and started the first gas and water systems in Tacoma. Charles Wright Academy is named in his honor. (Image donated by Vic Kucera)

Wright, Charles Barstow, 1822-1898;

ca. 1890. The Arlington Hotel was an impressive sight on Pacific Avenue for forty years before its demolition in 1930. Built by Jim Dorsey with architectural plans by C. Langlois in 1889, the hotel was first listed as 2023 Pacific Avenue before its address was later changed to 1955 Pacific Avenue. The 3+ story structure was built primarily of wood and contained multiple windows. A sample room was installed for the benefit of traveling salesmen to show their wares. Imported and domestic wines, liquors and cigars were available for purchase. Some of the hotel's staff, including the bartender in long apron, and the hotel watchdog, posed at the front entrance in this circa 1890 photograph. (copy of original) Bi-Centennial Project # 75346-2; BU-11870

Arlington Hotel (Tacoma); Hotels--Tacoma--1890-1900;