Archives West Finding Aid

The Puyallup tribe lived in the Puyallup Valley for thousands of years before white settlers started to populate the area. The tribe was forced to sign treaties and was pushed off their lands during the Indian War of 1855-1856. The valley then repopulated with white settlers, and from 1870-1890 was one of the worlds foremost hop growing regions. Labor came mostly from native peoples coming off the reservations in Puget Sound and down from British Columbia. The hop growing era ended in 1891-1892 when hop lice ruined the crops.

Tacoma consolidated as a city in 1884 after the transcontinental railroad link was established. The Northern Pacific Railroad built their headquarters on Pacific Street in Tacoma, and the city grew up around the street car connections. The population went from just over 1000 people in 1880 to over 36,000 in 1890. Though inhibited by the Panic of 1893, Tacoma continued to grow, especially after the Supreme Court broke Northern Pacific's monopoly on rail service in 1904. The Great Northern Railway, Union Pacific Railroad and Milwaukee Road build transcontinental connections to Commencement Bay, supporting the construction of Union Station in 1912. The sale of Puyallup tribal lands made way for white settlers, and the city continued to experience a huge period of growth through the early 1900s and 1910s.

The Ringling Brothers Circus was formed as a wagon circus in 1884, and switched to trains in 1890. Around the turn of the century, a train would have more than 80 cars and hundreds of staff and performers. The circus came through Washington in August of 1903. They scheduled stops in Walla Walla on August 13th, Colfax on the 14th, Spokane on the 15th, Whatcom on the 17th, Everett on the 18th, Seattle on the 19th and 20th, Tacoma on the 21st, and Centralia on the 22nd. They held parades including over 12 elephants, dozens of horses, camels, and various other animals. The main events would include performances with the animals, athletic and acrobatic events, skits, and music.