Pacific Northwest History: Tacoma History
Tacoma Public Library, Northwest Room
Tacoma Public Library Northwest Room
- Genealogy e-ResourcesSome of these resources must be accessed at a branch of the Tacoma Public Library
- WA NewspapersAvailable to Tacoma Public Library patrons. Dates of most papers from early 1990s to the present.
Tacoma Newspapers
There were a variety of newspapers in the early 20th century in Tacoma. In addition, the News Tribune changed its title several times. The list below gives you a list of those changes along with the appropriate dates so that you can more easily locate specific titles, especially those that might be referenced in a database such as the Tacoma Public Library's Building Index.
- Chronicling America: WashingtonIncludes the Tacoma Times, 1903-1918
- News Tribune (Tacoma)
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1918 to current
Also available on microfilm A3953 held in the microforms & newspapers collection. Includes Tacoma Daily Ledger (1883-1937) and Tacoma Daily News (1889-1918).
Some historic versions of Tacoma news are only available via microform.
- Tacoma Morning GlobeMicroform in Seattle. Contains Vol. 1, no. 218 (June 30, 1889)-v. 4, no. 125 (Feb. 23, 1892).
- Morning GlobeMicroform in Seattle. Began in 1888, continues as Tacoma Morning Globe.
- Morning News TribuneMicroform in Seattle. 1987-1993.
- Tacoma Evening NewsMicroform in Seattle. 189? - 1903
Tacoma Oral Histories
Tacoma Community History Projects
Since 1991, students enrolled in Dr. Michael Honey's “Doing Community History” class have been collecting oral histories of local residents and gathering historical research in Community History Projects.
Interviews are transcribed and edited for user accessibility, and the original audio interview is often included.
Japanese Language School Oral Histories
The Tacoma Japanese Language School Oral Histories is a selection of oral histories recorded by UW Tacoma faculty, Dr. Lisa Hoffman and Dr. Mary Hanneman, about Nihongo Gakko, Tacoma’s Japanese Language School. The school was opened on May 21, 1912, by the Tacoma Japanese Association at 411 S 15th Street and was a source of community and education for the Japanese and Japanese American community until 1942, when it was closed due to the incarceration and internment of Japanese and Japanese Americans by the US Government.