By Spencer Bowman, Northwest Room Librarian
This is the second installment in our series showcasing the newly digitized moving images recently added to the Northwest Room's online database, ORCA. The digitization of these videos was made possible by the generous support of the City of Tacoma through a City of Tacoma Heritage Grant. To read part one, click here.
The Northwest Room is excited to announce the release of the second batch of digitized videos in the Audio and Moving Image Collection on ORCA. This new batch includes 16mm films produced by the City of Tacoma, Richards Studios, Anderson Underwater Photo Inc., St. Regis Paper Company, among others. This latest addition brings a wealth of historical and cultural content, offering a unique glimpse into the past. While there is a lot more to explore for yourself in the collection, we wanted to highlight a few of our favorite new additions, which include:
The Daffodil Parade footage from 1959, 1960, and 1962 showcases the amazing flower floats, school bands, military marchers, and other merry makers as they head down Pacific Avenue, all in vibrant color!
The Tacoma City Bond footage highlights improvements to Tacoma, such as streetlight and traffic signage installations. It's especially fascinating to see the driving footage down Tacoma Avenue in the 1950s.
Get a glimpse into the industrial and environmental processes that shaped the paper industry in our region two videos produced by the Saint Regis Paper Company. "Water, The Plain Wonder (1978)", and "A Tacoma Report: The Secondary Water Treatment Plant at St. Regis".
1969 Western Washington Fair footage: The two reels capture the excitement of rides, livestock showcases, and various exhibits. It also highlights the sense of community as people gather to celebrate the region. (Reel 1, Reel 2)
One of the few films we had upload that included sound was a documentary on the port titled Port of Tacoma shot in 1974. We reached out to Rod Koon, author of a history on the port titled Port of Tacoma (currently on order for the library), to get his impressions of this film.
"It contains very valuable footage depicting how various cargoes were handled at the Port by the longshore workforce—particularly logs and crude rubber. The segment on LASH ships is also classic—that was a technology that was used often in port facilities that had very limited water depth. I don’t think those ships called at the Port for too long. The information and footage about Kaiser, Hooker, St. Regis, Tacoma Beltline (now Tacoma Rail) the new grain terminal, and others are also gems, because you get a true inside look at various operations, workers, technology, etc.
I would say this is “must-see” viewing for anyone who wants to get glimpses of the Port of Tacoma’s development over the years—and especially what Port operations looked like in the early ‘70s. In addition to covering the historical development of the Port of Tacoma, the film is a very valuable 'snapshot' of the Port of Tacoma and the industrial Tide flats in the early ‘70s. It’s amazing how much has changed (and how much hasn’t) over the last 50-plus years."
Stay tuned for the final installment of "Analog Archive to Digital Delight" —coming soon!
We invite you to watch and share these films with others! If you have any questions, please reach out to us. nwr@tacomalibrary.org or (253) 280-2814.
