100 YEARS AGO TODAY
March 4, 1913
The United States Congress is asked by the state Senate, in a memorial passed this morning, to construct 18 miles of road through the Rainier National Park, connecting Pierce and Yakima counties. The road would run past the base of six glaciers and would traverse what road experts declare to be the most scenic route in America.
50 YEARS AGO TODAY
March 4, 1963
“Cannibalism” in Tacoma? Yes! At 1235 S. Sprague Ave. It’s not man-eat-man here. But it is “bus-eat-bus.” At this address Tacoma Transit Deptartment stores, services and repairs its fleet of 93 buses, eight of which are more than 22 years old, and the remaining buses more than 14 years old, with the exception of two new buses purchased last spring. Parts can no longer be purchased for the old buses. So one bus has to be “cannibalized” to salvage parts to keep another old vehicle moving. But this can not be kept up indefinitely. The Citizens’ Committee for Tacoma’s Future Development has endorsed Proposition 4 coming up for vote March 12, earmarking $351,000 for 13 new buses and $10,000 for a diesel fuel tank, totalling $361,000.
25 YEARS AGO TODAY
March 4, 1988
Tacoma Urban League President Tom Dixon promised a positive message, but the best he could say about the state of black Tacoma was that progress in economic opportunities and education advancement remained “shallow.” While blacks nationally have advanced in fields including sports, medicine and law, Dixon told the Tacoma Sunrise Rotary recently that in Tacoma the picture is grim. Black unemployment in Tacoma for persons 25 and older is 25 percent, when persons who have stopped looking for work are included, according to the Urban League’s unofficial tally. For those under 25, unemployment is 50 percent, Dixon said.
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