Northern Pacific Railroad track along Commencement Bay, Tacoma, Washington Territory, circa 1885. Mt. Tacoma (Rainier) and tideflats in background. The railroad tracks were built on fill dirt. The water-filled half-moon section would also be filled in to become the railroad yard, called appropriately the "half-moon yard." KING-008, G76.1-101 (Digital copy only. No print or negative available).
Wharf scene on Commencement Bay, terminus of the Northern Pacific Railroad, Tacoma, Washington Territory. Photograph was taken circa 1885. Masted ships are docked waiting to unload/load cargo.
View looking south of the Northern Pacific Railroad track along Commencement Bay, Tacoma, Washington Territory, circa 1885. Sidewheeler steamship North Pacific at dock. The Northern Pacific wharf lay below today's Stadium Way and would serve, according to historian Murray Morgan, as a "third world between Old Tacoma and New Tacoma." (Morgan: South on the Sound, p. 48-49) KING-001, TPL-018.
ca. 1920. Copy of Asahel Curtis print #51689 requested by the Washington State Historical Society on June 1, 1977. View of unidentified male and female along side of train. The couple are wearing railroad caps. The man is wearing a white shirt and striped tie under his somewhat soiled uniform.
ca. 1920. Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad, Engine #10254. Copy of Asahel Curtis print #52236 requested by the Washington State Historical Society on June 1, 1977. The electric powered train pauses on the tracks circa 1920. This is one of the 60,000 Asahel Curtis images in the Washington State Historical Society collection.
Railroad locomotives; Railroads; Railroad tracks; Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad Co.;
ca. 1920. Chicago, Milwaukee and St. Paul Railroad, Engine #10253. This is an Asahel Curtis print, #46216, which was requested copied by the Washington State Historical Society on April 1, 1977. Three men are standing next to the electric powered engine, spaced far apart, with the man in the foreground seemingly prepared to give the "go ahead" signal. Photographer Curtis documented industry in Washington State as well as historic events and geographic features. He was based in Seattle and worked there until his death in 1941. 60,000 of his images are held in trust by the Washington State Historical Society. (www.wshs.org/wshm/online-exhibits/curtis/exhibitb.htm)
Railroad locomotives; Railroad cars; Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad Co.; Railroads;
ca. 1920. Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad, Engine #10252. Copy of Asahel Curtis print #51601 requested by the Washington State Historical Society on April 1, 1977. The electric powered train may have been departing/arriving at the Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Tacoma location. The Washington State Historical Society has 60,000 Curtis images in its collection.
Railroad locomotives; Railroads; Chicago, Milwaukee & St. Paul Railroad Co.;
ca. 1926. Wenatchee Apple display in window at Great Northern Railroad ticket office, located at Transportation Row. (alternate address 112-18 So. 9th St.) Placards in the window offer the information that "over 15,000 car loads of apples are shipped annually over the Great Northern Railway" and that "National Apple Week" is "October 31 through November 7th." The sign board below the "Tickets" neon sign has pictures of Paramount stars Jack Holt and Billie Dove eating Wenatchee apples while in the Cascades filming "Ancient Highway." (filed with Argentum)
ca. 1926. Wenatchee Apple display in window at Great Northern Railroad ticket office, located in Transportation Row. (alternate address 112-18 So. 9th) Two unidentified men pose in the window along with the apples advertising National Apple Week, October 31 to November 6. (filed with Argentum)
ca. 1926. Northern Pacific Railway, No. 1. Railroad crossing with man by stop sign, "Stop RRX" painted on street, tall industrial stack belching smoke in background. (filed with Argentum)
ca. 1926. The Northern Pacific Railway yard at "D" St., Tacoma, circa 1926. Two men were posed in front of the roundhouse office locker room, left. The two boxes with stacks on opposite sides of the tracks were "blow-down boxes." The Hostlers or the Engineers would pull the steam locomotives up to the boxes, lining up the blow down pipe at the bottom of the boiler and would release a strong jet of steam to clean out any debris in the boiler. The boxes served to protect anyone nearby, the steam being directed into the box and up the chimney to vent where it could not scald anyone. The coaling tower is in the background. Photograph is labelled "NO. 2." (WSHS) (identifying information supplied by a former railroad employee) image NO. 1 scanned as A1867 image 1
ca. 1926. Northern Pacific Railway Yard at "D" St., Tacoma, circa 1926. Photograph is labelled "NO. 3." A bridge and a factory can be seen in the distance. The roundhouse office locker room can be partially seen on the left. The boxes with stacks next to the tracks left are "blow-down boxes." The engineer would pull the locomotive up next to the boxes, so that the blow down pipe of the steam engine lined up with the box and release a strong jet of steam to clean out any debris in the boiler. The steam would be directed into the box and out the chimney, preventing anyone being scalded. (WSHS) (information provided by a former Northern Pacific employee) Image #1 scanned as A1867 image 1)
ca. 1927. Man walking along street at railroad crossing. Bridge in the background, Tacoma city skyline also. Storage tank at right. Photograph is labelled "NO. 2." (WSHS)
ca. 1927. A view along railroad tracks. Logs loaded on a railroad car are seen on the left and an automobile traveling along a road that intersects with the railroad tracks is seen on the right. (WSHS)
ca. 1927. Man walking beside railroad tracks. A car on the tracks is transporting logs. The skyline of Tacoma can be seen on the hillside behind. (WSHS)
ca. 1937. Interior of railroad boxcar filled with boxes of Staley's Breakfast Syrup and Cream Corn Starch. For Pacific Fruit and Produce Company, circa 1937. Man at rear of boxcar was not identified.
All Aboard, as 280 local Shriners prepare to board a sixteen car special train on June 4, 1938 enroute to the 1938 Imperial Council Session to be held June 6-9 in Los Angeles. Several Shriners stand on the observation platform of the train at Union Station. The sign on the railroad car reads: "Afifi Shrine, Golden Jubilee Special, 1888 - 1938, Tacoma, Wash." They will be joined by fraternal brothers from Southwest and Central Washington. (T. Times 6/3/1938, pg. 2)
Railroad locomotives--Tacoma; Railroads--Tacoma; Fraternal organizations--Tacoma; Ancient Arabic Order of Nobles of the Mystic Shrine (Tacoma); Union Station (Tacoma); Railroad travel--Tacoma--1930-1940;
Harry Clark, 65, who lived at 3823 E. J St. is shown sitting at the throttle of a Northern Pacific locomotive in this photograph from December 1938. Mr. Clark had just retired after working for over 48 years as a railroad engineer and "truckman." A truckman repaired broken parts on locomotives. His many years as an engineer made him an excellent engine repairman. (T. Times, 12/28/38, p.5)
Group picture at the Northern Pacific Railroad roundhouse. Roundhouse employees standing on or in front of train engine w/A.A. Huston, Roundhouse Foreman
In August of 1940 the Northern Pacific Railway Shops softball team went up against the team from Johnson Paint for the Pierce County softball championship. Before a crowd of 1,100 fans at Sumner High field the NP team put up a valiant effort against the "Painters", the defending county champions. Ultimately they gave up three runs in the bottom of the eighth inning and lost 6 to 4. Johnson Paint went on to play in the state championship series where they lost in the final game against Dunn Lumber, to take 2nd place. (T. Times)
Workers at Northern Pacific Railroad's South Tacoma shops during Wendell Willkie's visit. Mr. Willkie was the Republican candidate for President in 1940. (T. Times)
In the beginning, everything was business as usual on Tuesday morning, July 1, 1941. The flat cars on the Belt Line were dumping a load of logs at the Cascade Log Co. pond on E. 11th Street. The logs usually roll into the water as the cars travel on the tilted track. On this day, however, one of the cars came loose from the wheel base and attempted to follow the logs into the water. A crew soon arrived to right and repair the car. (T.Times 7/1/1941 p.1)
