ca. 1955. Tacoma Boat Building Co. on the Sitcum Waterway. The photograph is labelled 9-1-1955, but has a series number that belongs in 1956. The two buildings with the curved roofs are the dry docks for Tacoma Boat Building. Several large vessels being worked on rest in the water beside the boat company. Large log booms float there also. To the left lies the Henry D. Gee Co. grain storage building, with the C. M. ST. P. & P. terminals below. Below Tacoma Boats is the Milwaukee Boom Co. What appear to be railroad tracks run between Tacoma Boat and Henry Gee.

Boat & ship industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Tacoma Boat Building Co., Inc. (Tacoma); Henry D. Gee Co. (Tacoma);

The sea trials of the "Sea Babe" for Kazulin-Cole Shipbuilding Corp. Kazulin-Cole was located at 2002 Marine View Drive. The craft was designed and built by Mike Kazulin. A man in a captain's hat waves from the deck of the "Sea Babe." Built for Leroy Powell of South Bend, the boat was registered out of Raymond, WA. The "Sea Babe" was a sports fishing boat and could hold up to ten fishermen. It was outfitted with an auto pilot, depth indicator and ship to shore radio. (TNT 6/17/1956, pg. B-2)

Boat & ship industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Kazulin-Cole Shipbuilding Corp. (Tacoma); Ship trials--Tacoma--1950-1960; Fishing boats--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Douglas Fir Plywood Association, 20th annual meeting. The Plywood and Veneer safety award is being presented to Williard Burrell of Weyerhauser by A.P. Stinchfield. Weyerhauser Timber's branch in Springfield Oregon was being presented the 1955 award for its low incidence of accidents. The trophy resembling a roller perched on a block of wood is the Carleton L. Smith Memorial Safety Award.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Weyerhaeuser Timber Co. (Springfield, Ore.); Burrell, Williard; Stinchfield, A.P.; Awards;

Pulp manufacturing machinery at R.W. Paper Co. in Longview, Wa. Photograph ordered by Malcolm McGhie. A roller rolls through a vast vat of pulp on the lower level. Other vats are empty. Above, on the 2nd level, are located pipes and controls for filling the vats. When the pulp mixture arrives at the paper machine, its water content is very high. The water is removed and the resulting sheet moves on to the drying section of the machine.

R. W. Paper Co. (Longview); Paper industry--Longview--1950-1960;

Retail lumber dealers meeting; photographs ordered by the Douglas Fir Plywood Association. A group of men in coats and ties stand or sit in front of a newly constructed home listening to another man speak. These are possibly lumber dealers discussing new home markets for their wares.

Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

Built on eight and a half acres of the Hylebos waterway, the Washington Co-operative Farmers Association's new feed mill was one of the finest and most modern units in the country. Trucks were able to have feed directly loaded from the warehouses via metallic hoses. The Co-op also used at least four railroad lines to transport their product throughout the country. Kenworth trucks would be able to haul eggs long distance as well. View of Washington Co-operative Farmers Association feed mill, grain elevator and warehouses in this February, 1953, photograph. Photograph ordered by Dale Smith, Washington Co-operative Farmers Assn.

Washington Cooperative Farmers Association (Tacoma); Grain elevators--Tacoma; Shipping--Tacoma--1950-1960; Railroad freight cars--Tacoma--1950-1960; Trucks--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington had its headquarters in Tacoma. Despite its name, Pennsalt did not produce table salt but instead was a basic manufacturer of chemicals from salt. It, along with Hooker Electrochemical, supplied caustic soda and chlorine to the Pacific Northwest's pulp and paper industry. View of some of the machinery used by Pennsalt in their Tideflats plant; these are believed to be rotary converters used to convert AC power to direct current. Photograph ordered by Edwin Cliffe, supt. of Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington. (Additional information provided by a reader)

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Machinery;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington had long been established in Tacoma; it was to celebrate its 25th anniversary locally in 1954. It started with a 40 acre tract of land on the Hylebos Waterway and has steadily expanded, adding new buildings and machinery, to fill the needs of the pulp and paper industry. View of machinery in Pennsalt plant; this may be a large burner. Photograph ordered by Edwin Cliffe.

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma); Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Machinery;

ca. 1953. General Mills-Sperry Division employees. For several years, the employees of General Mills, Inc.'s Sperry Division posed behind "C Day Parade" banners. Presumably, this was some sort of parade held annually; the "C" may have stood for "cereal." In 1953, 25 men were grouped behind the large banner apparently representing the Seattle-Tacoma District. Famous General Mills cereal brands were listed on the banner, including Cheerios, KIX, and Wheaties. All these brands are still in existence today.

Flour & meal industry--Tacoma; Grain industry--Tacoma; General Mills, Inc., Sperry Division (Tacoma); Banners--Tacoma;

A large group of spectators await the launching of the A.M.S. #96 on May 1, 1953. Television cameras capture the moment for posterity; it was the first launching televised in this area. Dignitaries on the platform, which would have included Mrs. Marvin H. Glunz, sponsor, and the attentive crowd listen to a naval speaker. This may have been Capt. Christian H. Duborg, who was listed as principal speaker of the event. The A.M.S. #96 was a 144-foot mindsweeper built by Tacoma Boat Building for the Navy. It was the fourth of five being constructed by the firm who had been awarded a Navy contract. (TNT 5-3-53, B-10)

Launchings--Tacoma--1950-1960; Government vessels--Tacoma--1950-1960; Tacoma Boat Building Co., Inc. (Tacoma);

ca. 1953. Exterior of St. Regis Paper Co. plant. A multi-colored smokestack is just one of many at the St. Regis Paper Co. plant in Jacksonville, Florida, in a 1953 photograph. St. Regis had plants in several states as well as in Canada and South America. The Jacksonville plant was one of the newest; it was a kraft paper and board mill, including pulp manufacturing facilities, constructed in 1952. It began production in January, 1953, and helped to increase national overall production of kraft paper and boards to 486,000 tons from the 1952 total of 351,000 tons. (1953 St. Regis Annual Report, p. 10)

St. Regis Paper Co. (Jacksonville, Fl.)--1950-1960; Paper industry--Jacksonville--1950-1960; Industrial facilities--Jacksonville--1950-1960; Smokestacks--Jacksonville;

Overhead view of interior of St. Regis plant. Two St. Regis Paper Co. employees appear dwarfed by massive machinery in a July 29, 1953, photograph. One man is standing behind a metallic stand of gauges, handles, and knobs which apparently control the large rolls from the paper machine. There are other instrument panels positioned nearby; they may have been made by the General Electric Co. Photograph ordered by the General Electric Co.

General Electric Co.; St. Regis Paper Co.; Machinery;

ca. 1953. A shirtless worker pushes a button that will perhaps move the heavy rolls of kraft paper while a co-worker watches carefully. This 1953 photograph was probably taken in the Jacksonville, Florida, St. Regis Paper Co. plant. Each roll was apparently marked with the type of product, place of production, customer code, size, roll #, and tonnage. Roll #3 weighed 2168 pounds and was listed as "asphalting kraft."

St. Regis Paper Co. (Jacksonville, Fl.)--1950-1960; Paper industry--Jacksonville--1950-1960; Industrial facilities--Jacksonville--1950-1960;

Employees at St. Regis Paper Co. nationwide had varied assignments. This man appears to be scrutinizing sheets of pulp or paper at one of the Florida locations, either Pensacola or Jacksonville in July, 1953. Photograph ordered by Beloit Iron Works, Beloit, Wisconsin.

St. Regis Paper Co.; Paper industry; Beloit Iron Works (Beloit, WI);

Exterior view of St. Regis Paper Co. plant. This is possibly the Tacoma St. Regis plant in a photograph taken in early July, 1953. The Tacoma mill continued to supply the ever-growing pulp market with its bleached kraft pulp which had a well-deserved reputation for quality and strength. In addition, it shipped a limited quantity of unbleached kraft pulp. Photograph ordered by Johns-Manville Sales Corporation. (1953 St. Regis Annual Report, p. 11)

St. Regis Paper Co.; Paper industry; Industrial facilities; Johns-Manville Sales Corp.;

Exterior view of Florida St. Regis plant. The above photograph was probably taken at either the Jacksonville, Florida, or Pensacola St. Regis Paper Co. plant in July, 1953. Long, covered connected tunnels were possibly conveyors of chips or pulp. They were situated high above the ground on rails supported by towers. Piles of logs are glimpsed in the background. Photograph ordered by Link-Belt Co.

St. Regis Paper Co.; Paper industry; Link-Belt Co.;

A St. Regis Paper Co. employee carefully monitors the gauges on a Beloit Iron Works machine in the summer of 1953. Kraft paper is apparently being manufactured. This photograph was probably taken in one of St. Regis' southern plants, either Jacksonville or Pensacola, Florida. Photograph ordered by the Beloit Iron Works Co., Beloit, Wisconsin.

St. Regis Paper Co.; Paper industry; Machinery; Beloit Iron Works (Beloit, WI);

A long hose connected to a large storage tank has its opposite end disappear into a NYC railroad car in a June, 1953, photograph. It was taken at a St. Regis Paper Co. plant, possibly the Tacoma location. Photograph ordered by the Fuller Co., Mr. R.A. Hawk.

St. Regis Paper Co.; Storage tanks; Hoses; Railroad cars;

ca. 1953. Launching of naval ship #445, named the U.S.S. Force, the fourth of a series of nine 171 ft. minesweepers to be built by J.M. Martinac Shipbuilding. Mrs. Thomas D. Wilson, wife of the Commander of the Bremerton Group, Pacific Reserve Fleet, was sponsor, assisted by Judith K. Ross as flower girl. M.S. Erdahl served as the master of ceremonies and Rear Admiral Charles D. Wheelock, inspector general for the Navy's bureau of ships, was the principal speaker. Other Naval dignitaries included Rear Admiral H.E. Haven, Commandant of the Puget Sound Naval shipyard, Capt. Linton Herndon, supervisor of shipbuilding Seattle, and Comdr. Lawrence MacKinlay, resident supervisor of shipbuilding Tacoma. The launching was followed by a reception and dinner at the Winthrop Hotel. (TNT 6/21/1953, pg. B-2, 6/27/1953, pg. 1)

Launchings--Tacoma--1950-1960; Boat & ship industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; J.M. Martinac Shipbuilding Corp. (Tacoma); Ross, Judith K.;

A Diamond T truck with two storage tanks of Bulk Feed from Washington Co-op Farmers Association pulls up to Ken Bergman's Poultry Farm on May 13, 1953. The driver and customer, presumably Mr. Bergman, examine paperwork in preparation to fill large plywood bins full of chicken feed. The Washington Co-op Farmers Association had built a $1,000,000 feed mill at the Hylebos waterway in the late 1940's. Besides having convenient transport facilities to ship feed throughout the nation, the feed mill would also make delivery of bulk feed much easier to its local members. Photograph ordered by Tom Sias, Douglas Fir Plywood Association.

Washington Cooperative Farmers Association (Tacoma); Diamond T trucks; Chicken industry; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma);

Aerial view of American Smelting & Refining Co's (ASARCO) smokestack, smelter plant and surrounding area. The plant occupied a large area near Point Defiance with its own docks for shipping. The smokestack at 562 feet dominated the skyline for miles around. Thousands lined up in 1993 to say goodbye to this landmark when it was imploded.

American Smelting & Refining Co. (Tacoma); Smelters--Tacoma--1950-1960; Copper industry--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Columbia Breweries. Brew kettle being dismantled. The kettle was used for brewing beer. Ingredients were added on the upper level of the kettle- barley malt, hops and water. The brewery had two enormous copper kettles with a capacity of 330 barrels each and made an average of 6 brews each day. Two deep artesian wells on the property supplied the water, pumping 66,000 gallons per day. The company was known as Columbia Breweries from 1900-1949. It was purchased by Heidelberg Brewing Co. in 1949 but continued to do business as Columbia. On July 15, 1953, the brewery officially changed its name to Heidelberg Brewing Company. They sold in 1958 to Carling Brewing Co. of Canada and closed their doors in Tacoma in 1979, after 3/4 of a century of brewing.

Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Heidelberg Brewing Co. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Kettles;

St. Paul and Tacoma Lumber Company milled lumber used by 20th Century Construction Company in building DeLong School. View of wood beams in early construction phase.

Hooker Electrochemical Company. Railroad barge and tug "Mogul". Barge loaded with Hooker chemical tanks. Waterway in the foreground.

Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Hooker Electrochemical Co. (Tacoma); Barges; Shipping--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. Family Day; employees' picnic and open house. An unidentified group of employees stands in front of a display case set up for the open house. Wives, husbands and children of employees were invited on this day to tour the plant. A brief program was devoted to safety measures practiced at the plant. Lunch for 300 employees and their visitors was followed by a tour of the plant. The manufacturing facility opened on the Tideflats in June of 1929 as Tacoma Electro-Chemical Co. Despite its deceptive name, Pennsalt manufactured industrial chemicals, some of which were used in the manufacture of pulp and paper. (TNT 9/6/1953, pg. A-12)

Pennsylvania Salt Manufacturing Co. of Washington (Tacoma)--Employees; Chemical industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Factories--Tacoma--1950-1960;

Interiors of new DFPA office in Fuller building. Office workers at desk and counter, "Mr. Ritchie's" office in the background. The Douglas Fir Plywood Association began in 1938 when the original member mills banded together to promote and standardize their product. Under the able guidance of W.E. ("Diff") Difford, the handful of mills became an industry. By the forties, plywood boomed in housing and became the handiest building material ever devised. The Association later changed its name to the American Plywood Association, as more types of wood came to be used in the production of plywood. TPL-8396

Plywood; Douglas Fir Plywood Association (Tacoma); Lumber industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Offices--Tacoma--1950-1960; Office workers--Tacoma--1950-1960;

ca. 1953. Riegel Carolina Paper & Pulp Mill, Acme, N. Carolina. Ordered by General Electric. Industrial lights illuminate the plant in this nighttime portrait.

Riegel Carolina (Acme, N.C.); Mills--North Carolina--Acme; Factories--North Carolina--Acme; Paper industry--North Carolina--Acme; Industrial facilities--North Carolina--Acme;

Heidelberg Brewing Co., Sales Meeting. The company originated as Columbia Brewing Co. in 1900, begun by three men with a capitalization of $50,000. It was purchased in 1949 by Heidelberg Brewery Co. and remodeled and rebuilt. The company officially changed its name on July 15, 1953 to Heidelberg Brewing Co. Its famous labels "Alt Pilsener" and "Columbia Ale" were consumed throughout the Northwest. The company sold in 1958 to Carling Brewing Co. of Canada. Its doors closed in Tacoma in 1979, after 3/4 of a century of quenching the thirst of the Northwest.

Brewing industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Columbia Breweries, Inc. (Tacoma)--1950-1960; Sales personnel--Tacoma; Heidelberg Brewing Co. (Tacoma)--1950-1960--People;

Launching of the A.M.S. (motor minesweeper) #97 by Tacoma Boatbuilding. AMS #97 was the fifth and last minesweeper to be launched by the company. The four previous vessels were in various states of completion with the first to be delivered to the Navy in the fall. (TNT 9/27/1953, pg. C-12)

Launchings--Tacoma--1950-1960; Boat & ship industry--Tacoma--1950-1960; Government vessels--Tacoma--1950-1960; Tacoma Boat Building Co., Inc. (Tacoma);

A 55 foot truck from Elliott Bay Lumber Co. being loaded with a fork lift at Cavanaugh Lumber Co., wholesalers of lumber.

Building materials industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Lumber industry--Tacoma--1930-1940; Cavanaugh Lumber Co. (Tacoma); Trucks--Tacoma--1950-1960;