100 YEARS AGO TODAY
December 25, 1912
Greeted with a cheery Elk smile at the entrance, and saluted with pats on the backs and kindly helps to the wonderfully decorated auditorium, 150 youngsters with tousled heads or prim braids were the guests of the B.P.O.E at the annual Christmas tree of the lodge this morning. The Tacoma Elks showed themselves among the most selfish people in the city, for they not only enjoyed their Christmases at their homes or the homes of their brothers, but they also enjoyed it in the assembly room, jammed to the doors with the children and their almost invariably frail mothers.
50 YEARS AGO TODAY
December 25, 1962
Christmas Eve bandits, in four daring robberies, three in the United States and one in British Columbia, made away with more than $350,000 last night. Two banks, a Brink’s armored truck and a department store were the victims. In Des Plaines, Ill., detectives were examining tire tracks and footprints in soft earth this morning seeking clues in the bold hijacking of the Brinks armored truck. Sheriff Richard Ogilvie estimated the truck was robbed of $100,000. Three hooded gunmen were involved. In Burnaby, B.C., two bandits held up the branch of the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce and escaped with more than $100,000.
25 YEARS AGO TODAY
December 25, 1987
Despite the seemingly omnipresent clouds in Western Washington, the City of Tacoma has embarked on a study to see if homeowners can cut heating costs by tapping the sun’s energy. With help from a Portland-based consultant, the city is looking at ways homeowners can use solar energy to light and warm their homes. The city has received about $15,000 in grants from the Washington State Energy Office and may chip in $3,000 more to pay for the study.
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