Seven-year-old Owen Dickson, with his dog, Coachie, is working on a picture tracing in this photograph taken at McKinley Playfield in August of 1936. Owen was taking part in a summer crafts program jointly sponsored by the Metropolitan Parks and the WPA Recreation Department. Children were taught drawing, handicrafts and other hobbies. (T. Times 08-19-1936 p.1).

Parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; McKinley Playfield (Tacoma); Dogs; Handicraft--Tacoma--1930-1940; Arts & crafts; Dickson, Owen;

Dorothy Hill, 12, and her sister Jean, 10, display their Indian bead loom work. The older girl holds a bracelet that she has made, while the younger girl works on the loom. The girls are participating in a summer craft program at McKinley Playfield sponsored by Metropolitan Parks and the WPA Recreation Dept. (T. Times 8/19/1936, pg. 1)

Parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; McKinley Playfield (Tacoma); Dogs; Handicraft--Tacoma--1930-1940; Arts & crafts; Hill, Dorothy; Hill, Jean;

Surrounded by an enthusiastic group of boys and girls, Jack Svendsen was one of the artists who took part in Tacoma's city wide art and handicraft program sponsored by the Metropolitan Park Board and the WPA Recreation Department during the summer of 1936. Mr. Svendsen, a Norwegian born architect and artist, was teaching the young people at McKinley Park how to make silhouette cut-outs. (T. Times 8/19/1936, pg. 1- see newspaper article for childrens' names.)

Parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; McKinley Playfield (Tacoma); Dogs; Handicraft--Tacoma--1930-1940; Arts & crafts; Svendson, Jack;

Warren G. Bille, aquarist, inspected the arrangement of the tanks which he had prepared for the greatly expanded Point Defiance Aquarium which opened its doors on Sunday, April 25, 1937 for the first time that year. The aquarium had tripled in size during the winter, making it one of the most attractive and complete on the Pacific Coast. Crowds estimated at 2,000 visited the enlarged aquarium that Sunday, part of the 20,000 visitors to Point Defiance Park. The guests turned out to view the samples of local salt water creatures on display. Bille had included at least one example of most native salt water varieties. The aquarium now boasted 40 three foot tanks and 8 seven foot tanks. The latter housed the larger fish- salmon, cod, perch and trout, as well as the popular Oscar the Octopus, who was now so large that he could span the entire 7 foot tank. It was during the 1937 season that the aquarium first discovered that their star attraction "Oscar" was a she, not a he. (T.Times 4/23/1937, pg. 4; T.Times 4-26-37, p. 1-article)

Parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Aquariums; Aquatic animals; Starfishes--Tacoma; Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Bille, Warren G.;

People gathered on the rocky beach at Point Defiance Park. Numerous boats on Puget Sound are visible in the background. (T. Times).

Parks--Tacoma; Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Beaches--Tacoma; Boats--Tacoma;

A trio of girls show off a completed basket. The girls learned basket weaving in a craft program at McKinley Playfield. The activity was part of a city wide program sponsored in Tacoma parks and playfields by the Metropolitan Park Board and the WPA Recreation Department. The girl in the center has been tentatively identified as Ruth Field. (T. Times 8/19/1936, pg. 1) TPL-9234

Parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; McKinley Playfield (Tacoma); Handicraft--Tacoma--1930-1940; Arts & crafts;

Point Defiance Park Zoo. Mr. Cook, animal keeper, and two unidentified women with joey, a young kangaroo. (T.Times).

Parks--Tacoma; Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Kangaroos; Zoo keepers--Tacoma;

Point Defiance Park Zoo. Mr. Cook, animal keeper, and an unidentified man, possibly George Jones, with tortoise. (T.Times).

Parks--Tacoma; Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Turtles; Zoo keepers--Tacoma;

Unusually warm temperatures and clear skies on Sunday, July 11, 1937 turned out record crowds at Tacoma's swimming holes. An unidentified park service lifeguard was photographed teaching youngsters to swim at the new Point Defiance Park salt water beach. The beach was formally named Owen Beach in 1959 to honor Floyd Owen, a 47-year park district employee. (T. Times 7-12-1937, pg. 1).

Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Children playing in water--Tacoma--1930-1940; Children swimming--Tacoma;

ca. 1937. Pt. Defiance zoo; woman holding exotic bird to show to group of children. The bird is most likely a golden pheasant. The children seemed to have mixed emotions about the exotic bird.

Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Peacocks; Zoos--Tacoma--1930-1940; Zoo animals;

On July 13, 1937, volunteers Howard Bjorklund and "Happy" Logue, with high-powered rifles, tracked a missing grizzly bear through ferns and underbrush in the woods by Point Defiance Park. The two-year-old, 600 pound bear arrived in Tacoma from Yellowstone National Park on July 5th. It had apparently escaped from its cage at the zoo early Tuesday morning, July 13th. The gate to the cage was padlocked and there were no signs of tampering with the cage or gate. Park officials, fearing panic among nearby residents, did not immediately announce the bear's disappearance. Bear tracks were found about one mile from the park's entrance but the bear was never found. (T. Times 7/14/1937, p. 8-article only).

Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Zoos--Tacoma--1930-1940; Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Grizzly bears; Bjorklund, Howard; Rifles; Hunting--Tacoma;

ca. 1937. Zoo keeper George R. Jones poses with Jocko, a spider monkey from the wilds of South America, at the Point Defiance Zoo. Jocko is an excellent mimic and is sure to delight guests this summer at the zoo. (T. Times 4/13/1937, pg. 1)

Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Zoos--Tacoma--1930-1940; Zoo animals; Monkeys; Jones, George R.; Zoo keepers--Tacoma--1930-1940;

ca. 1937. Pt. Defiance zoo; woman holding exotic bird to show to group of children. The bird is most likely a peacock. The children seemed to have mixed emotions about the exotic bird.

Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Peacocks; Zoos--Tacoma--1930-1940; Zoo animals;

ca. 1937. Zoo keeper George Jones poses with "Jocko" at the Point Defiance Zoo. Jocko is a spider monkey originally from South America. He chatters away and imitates behavior, such as washing his face & hands. He is sure to be a favorite with zoo goers this summer. (T.Times 4/13/1937, pg. 1)

Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Zoos--Tacoma--1930-1940; Zoo animals; Monkeys; Jones, George R.; Zoo keepers--Tacoma--1930-1940;

ca. 1937. Zoo Keeper George Jones feeding Point Defiance Zoo's new attraction, "Jocko" the spider monkey. (T. Times 4/13/1937, pg. 1)

Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Zoos--Tacoma--1930-1940; Zoo animals; Monkeys; Jones, George R.; Zoo keepers--Tacoma--1930-1940;

Point Defiance Zoo. Mr. Cook, the animal keeper, with a tortoise.

Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Zoos--Tacoma--1930-1940; Zoo animals; Turtles; Zoo keepers--Tacoma--1930-1940; Point Defiance Park (Tacoma);

One of the new exhibits at the Point Defiance Zoo in 1937 was a pair of black wolves kept with a lone coyote. The trio are shown here in a screened in cage being viewed by zoo goers. The Richards photographer, shooting for the Tacoma Times, was allowed by Zoo keeper George Jones to go into the cage to shoot the year old animals, obtained from the Seattle zoo on a swap. His only advice was that the wolves were friendly as long as their ears were up. The coyote was a native of this region, while the black wolves no longer inhabited their ranges in Montana and Wyoming but could be found in remote areas of Canada and Alaska. (T. Times 4/16/1937, pg. 4)

Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Zoos--Tacoma--1930-1940; Zoo animals; Wolves;

Not wanting to cause a panic, the management of the Point Defiance Park zoo did not immediately notify the public when a 600 pound grizzly bear escaped from his cage in July of 1937. Several men including Park Superintendent Sherman Ingels (in suit) and an unidentified police office inspected the bear's cage, but were unable to determine how he had managed to escape. The two year old grizzly was last seen by an unidentified woman near the park's riding stables. He succeeded in evading capture, and was never seen again. A second grizzly bear escaped in 1938; that one was recaptured. (T.Times 7/14/1937, p 8)

Point Defiance Zoo (Tacoma); Zoos--Tacoma; Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Ingels, Sherman; Grizzly bears;

Gilbert McLean, tree surgeon, and Doris Cook, a nurse at Tacoma General Hospital, examining a wind damaged tree in Wright Park. The tree has been sealed and braced with iron rods. McLean, one of the few skilled practitioners of arboriculture in Tacoma, is employed by the Metropolitan Parks District to take care of its ailing trees. He was hired shortly after the disastrous windstorm of October 21, 1934 which destroyed 34 trees in Wright Park alone. McLean has now nursed 12 of them back to health. He is also responsible, along with Superintendent Sherman Ingels, for scientifically labelling the 1200 trees in the Wright Park Arboretum. In his spare time, he also prunes, sprays and trims the trees. (T. Times 11/6/1935, pg. 8)

Wright Park (Tacoma); Parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; Trees--Tacoma; McLean, Gilbert; Cook, Doris;

Cold weather kept an icy grip on Tacoma in early January of 1937. Temperatures hovered around 15 degrees in town for several days, freezing the water in Wright Park's swan pond. By the time these nine youngsters had laced up their skates for a little night skating the temperatures had already climbed to about 32 degrees and snow was in the forecast. From left to right: Burrell Bresemann, Will LaPoint, Ray Hall, Don Heselwood, Shirley Quinn, Johanna Pitzl, Jack Alvord, Ed Carlin and Bob Taylor (standing). Although a teenager had nearly drowned when he fell through the ice at the swan pond several days earlier, ice skaters were using the pond again in apparent safety. (T.Times, 1/9/1937, p. 1; T.Times 1-7-37, p. 1-article on cold weather).

Wright Park (Tacoma); Children--Tacoma--1930-1940; Ice skating--Tacoma--1930-1940; Bresemann, Burrell; LaPoint, Will; Hall, Ray; Heselwood, Don; Quinn, Shirley; Pitzl, Johanna; Alvord, Jack; Carlin, Ed; Taylor, Bob;

In November of 1935, Gilbert McLean, tree surgeon, and Doris Cook, a nurse at Tacoma General Hospital, compare surgical methods while examining a wind damaged tree in Wright Park. McLean, an arboriculturist with the Metropolitan Park District, worked from 1928- 1932 with the Davey Tree Expert Co. He has treated the damaged tree's cavities with the "Davey System." First, he carefully cleaned the wood around the wound. Then he packed the hole with cement to keep the water out and coated the filling with emulsified asphalt as a preservative. Miss Cook stated that thankfully cement and asphalt were never used in the operating room at TG. (T. Times 11/6/1935, pg. 8)

Wright Park (Tacoma); Parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; Trees--Tacoma; McLean, Gilbert; Cook, Doris;

ca. 1926. Athletic Park, ca. 1926, with its covered stands where fans could watch games in comfort. The Park, located on Sprague Ave. between 14th & 15th St., opened in 1907 and had a capacity of 4500 fans. Its playing field was composed of natural grass, not artificial surfaces. Metro Parks acquired the site in 1953 and renamed it Peck Field. (WSHS)

Athletic Park (Tacoma); Baseball--1920-1930; Athletic fields--Tacoma--1920-1930;

Unidentified baseball team, circa 1926, posed in front of the stands of Athletic Park. The man to the right is wearing a uniform, knee high boots, and an insignia with the letters "KC" on his sleeve. Their shirts have the letters S, V. (WSHS)

Athletic Park (Tacoma); Baseball--1920-1930; Athletic fields--Tacoma--1920-1930; Baseball players--1920-1930;

Entrance gate at Home of Peace Cemetery, a Jewish cemetery located at 5421 Steilacoom Blvd. SW. The cemetary began in 1890 when the First Hebrew Benevolent Society was formed and the land for the cemetary was purchased. Photograph ordered by Western Iron & Wire Works. (WSHS)

Home of Peace Cemetary (Lakewood); Cemeteries--Lakewood;

Exterior of Tacoma Mausoleum addition by Silas E.Nelsen, Architect, circa 1926. This was the third addition to the Mausoleum, which is located in Oakwood Cemetery. It was completed in 1926 at a cost of $80,000. The building is constructed of concrete with pressed brick facing on the exterior and finished in Alaskan marble on the interior. It has colored glass skylights and a cantilever porch with a twelve foot overhang, all of concrete. In 1926, it was advertised as containing 2,784 crypts, with a single crypt costing $150-400 and family compartments at $1800-2500 including perpetual care. The Mausoleum is on the City Registry of historic places. (TDL 3/21/1926, pg. E-10; TNT 5/1/1926, pg. 2-advertisement) (filed with Argentum)

Morgues & mortuaries--Tacoma--1920-1930; Tacoma Mausoleum (Tacoma); Silas E. Nelsen Architects (Tacoma);

ca. 1933. Cars are parked everywhere on the grass as their owners enjoy the rides at Funland, circa 1933. Funland was an amusement park located at Point Defiance Park and operated by the Point Defiance Amusement Co. The carnival rides can be seen in the background, as well as several low buildings.

Funland (Tacoma); Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Amusement parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; Amusement rides--Tacoma--1930-1940; Automobiles--Tacoma--1930-1940;

ca. 1933. View of parked cars at Funland, located at Point Defiance Park, circa 1933. The carnival type rides that have drawn the crowds can be seen in the background.

Funland (Tacoma); Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Amusement parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; Amusement rides--Tacoma--1930-1940; Automobiles--Tacoma--1930-1940;

ca. 1933. Funland at Point Defiance Park, circa 1933. People wait in line to ride the miniature train ride. The small locomotive is followed a long train of cars filled with people. A shed-type building with curved roof can be seen with a sign reading "Dodgem." This is most likely the location of the Bumper Car ride. This was one of the most popular weekend destinations for Tacomans, as can be seen from the crowds.

Funland (Tacoma); Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Amusement parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; Amusement rides--Tacoma--1930-1940; Bumper cars; Crowds;

ca. 1933. Crowds gather at Funland, an amusement park, located at Point Defiance and operated by the Point Defiance Amusement Co. One of the most crowded areas of Pt. Defiance Park on a weekend day in 1933 would be Funland, as families purchased tickets to experience the carnival rides. Spectators in the front are viewing the action on a circular track. While in the back is the tall steel structure spinning the Swing ride. Tall light standards each support two distinctive lights and bulb lights are strung between the standards for extra evening illumination.

Funland (Tacoma); Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Amusement parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; Amusement rides--Tacoma--1930-1940; Crowds;

ca. 1933. Parked cars cover the grounds around Funland as crowds descend on a weekend day to ride the carnival type rides. Funland was an amusement park with rides located at Point Defiance Park. A low building is in the middle of the photograph with the swing ride, the oval track and the facade for the bumper car ride beyond. TPL-8321

Funland (Tacoma); Point Defiance Park (Tacoma); Amusement parks--Tacoma--1930-1940; Amusement rides--Tacoma--1930-1940; Automobiles--Tacoma--1930-1940;