TacomaLibrary_NW_History

On July 16, 1958, teenagers crowd the floor, rocking to the sounds of the Bluenotes at the Little J.E.M. Cafe on Highway 99. The Bluenotes, pioneers in the Northwest rock scene, had formed a garage band in 1956 while the musicians were still in middle school. Originators of the band can be seen, left to…

On July 12, 1962 an unidentified driver took three intrepid sportsmen for a spin in a German Amphicar - right into American Lake. Built in Germany from 1961-68, the Amphicar was the only civilian amphibious passenger automobile ever to be mass produced. All Amphicars were convertibles and there were just 3,878 built. The vehicle had…

On July 3rd,1942, Mayor Harry P. Cain called on the residents of Tacoma to do their patriotic duty on the 4th of July weekend by picking raspberries. Warm, sunny weather had brought the raspberries in the Puyallup Valley to their peak tragically early. They were falling off the vines, and the $75,000,000 berry industry was…

Tacoma bathing beauties posed for the camera during the Tacoma Yacht Club Bathing Girl Revue on July 4th, 1924. A new kind of girl was coming to the light in the twenties. A girl, who exercised, ate right and wasn't afraid to show off her bare arms and legs and bob her hair. Bathing suit…

One of the country's newest submarines, the S-27, visits Tacoma in July, 1926, along with several warships, skippered by Lt. Carlye Craig. The 219-foot long submarine carried a crew of four officers and 39 enlisted men. It was capable of reaching depths of 300 feet. 38 members of the Tacoma Engineers Club were lucky enough…

Girl Scouts practice their outdoor cooking skills, roasting hot dogs over a campfire on June 27, 1939 during Day Camp held at the Point Defiance CCC Camp.The "Kapers" chart hanging from the tree behind them is a Girl Scout tradition and lists the chores each girl is responsible for during camp. The Scouts were using…

Seattle boxer Al Hostak (right) -  the "Savage Slav" - and his manager Eddie Marino looked at the dilapidated stairs leading to the former location of Marino's Olympic Athletic Club, 917 Commerce St., on June 25, 1938. Eddie Marino had brought his boxer down to Tacoma to introduce him to his (Marino's) old friends and…

Keel laying ceremonies. In lieu of smashing a bottle of champagne, Japanese sake is gently poured over the keel of a new steel sampan being built at Martinolich Shipbuilding facilities on Alexander Ave. The family of Jack Shinsato, Honolulu owners, do the honors on June 19, 1971. The sampan will be 100-feet X 25-feet and…

In June of 1945 three unidentified women prepared to send Father's Day messages to servicemen from the special Post Yarns mailing center in Tacoma's Rhodes Department Store; an unidentified clerk working in the booth took their addressed messages. Rhodes joined with the Saturday Evening Post magazine in a special wartime Father's Day offer. The Saturday…