Old Tacoma

Images of America: Washington

by Caroline Gallacci

In 1865, Job Carr paddled a canoe to his new homestead on a small harbor that would become Old Tacoma. The area's notorious reputation--as "The Wildest Port North of San Francisco's Barbary Coast"--haunted it for decades after the tall-masted schooners, sailors, brothels, and saloons were gone. Situated on the deepwater shoreline of Commencement Bay to ship timber from the vast tracts surrounding it, "Old Tacoma" was bypassed by the Northern Pacific terminus in favor of "New Tacoma" a few miles away. Settled by waves of Scandinavian and Croatian immigrants to work the mills and purse seiners, Old Tacoma became an isolated community. Though industry, shipbuilding, and timber mills gave way to commerce and recreation, the community of Old Tacoma still retains the unique flavor of its colorful past.

Genres: Nonfiction

128 pages, Paperback

First published May 17, 2006

Reviews

[Annette Reynolds · Rating 4 out of 5]

I always enjoy these "Images of America" books and have tried to collect each one for each city/town I've lived in. This one's well researched with some great photos. My only complaint is I think the author should have added a map for reference. If you've never seen one of these books, I highly recommend them. Published by Arcadia, their website lists every single book published. Quite a treasure-trove for the historian, the researcher, or the curious.