PRAIRIE LINE TRAIL Interpretive Plan CITY OF TACOMA ARTIFACTS CONSULTING, INC. 2016 Funding for this project was provided by Washington State 2015-2017 Heritage Capital Projects Fund through the Washington State Historical Society Published 2016 Cover image: 1922 view of area surrounding Union Station, looking southwest. Courtesy Tacoma Public Library, Boland Collection, 168860pu. Chapter 1 cover image: Looking in a northerly direction along the Prairie Line, showing crossings at S. 19th and Commerce Streets. June 1928. Courtesy Interstate Commerce Commission. Chapter 2 cover image: Ca. 1979 view of an enclosed bridge over Commerce Street and rails, taken by Stephen Cysewski. Courtesy Tacoma Public Library, 35648. Chapter 3 cover image: Ca. 1979 image looking south along the Prairie Line, with former Snoqualmie Falls Power Co. Transfer House (250 S. 19th St.) at right. Photo taken by Stephen Cysewski. Courtesy Tacoma Public Library, 34936. Chapter 4 cover image: Ca. 1885 image of the Hatch Mill, the first lumber plant in New Tacoma when its sawmill operations began on January 17, 1877. Courtesy Tacoma Public Library, PATERSON-01. Chapter 5 cover image: Contemporary detail view of extant Prairie Line rails and ties. Courtesy Artifacts Consulting, Inc. Chapter 6 cover image: Ca. 1889 view of the Half Moon Yards, where the railroad connected with maritime shipping. Courtesy Washington State Historical Society, 2015.0.91. Appendices cover image: 1939 view of Pacific Ave and 17th St./Jefferson Ave/Hood St. intersection, looking north. Hotel Savoy at right. Courtesy Tacoma Public Library, 7581. All contemporary photographs used in this report were taken by Artifacts Consulting, Inc. in June 2016 unless otherwise noted. The authors of this report wish to express their deepest appreciation to everyone who supported the ACKNOWLEDGMENTS preparation of this report, particularly key partners with the Prairie Line Trail: the City of Tacoma, Puyallup Tribe of Nations, University of Washington Tacoma, Foss Waterway Seaport, Tacoma Art Museum, Washington State History Museum, Museum of Glass, Downtown on the Go, Tacoma Historical Society, Tacoma Children’s Museum, Tacoma Public Library, 7 Seas Brewing, Asia Pacific Cultural Center, and the Friends of the Prairie Line Trail. In addition to these partner organizations, the following entities and individuals were invaluable in offering their wisdom and insight: City of Tacoma staff, specifically: • Elliott Barnett, Planner • Lauren Hoogkamer, Historic Preservation Coordinator • Reuben McKnight, Historic Preservation Officer • Amy McBride, Arts Administrator • Rebecca Solverson, Public Art Specialist • Alaria Sacco, Historic Preservation Intern • Don Sjoboen, GIS Analyst • Nancy Grabinski-Young, Economic Development Supervisor • Richard Price, Senior Real Estate Officer Numerous stakeholders, particularly the members of the Prairie Line Trail Interpretive Committee: • Ben Mauk, University of Washington Tacoma • Beth Bestrom, Tacoma Historical Society • Bonnie Wright, (former) Museum of Glass • Brandon Reynon, Puyallup Tribe of Indians • Chuck Morrison, Pacific Northwest Railroad Archive • Dave Beals, Washington State History Museum • Debbie Lenk, Museum of Glass • Diane Wiatr, Community member, WSDOT Statewide Active Transportation Coordinator • Elizabeth Emerson, Museum of Glass • Faaluaina Pritchard, Asia Pacific Cultural Center 3 • Fred Parkinson, Friends of the Prairie Line Trail • Jean Fisher, Tacoma Public Library • Jennifer Kubista, Tacoma Children’s Museum • Jordan Hoover, Civitas • Julie LaRue, Tacoma Historical Society • Kathleen Brown, Tacoma Children’s Museum • Kelsey Robinson, Tacoma Children’s Museum • Kristina Walker, Downtown on the Go • Lisa Hoffman, University of Washington Tacoma • Mike Runion, 7 Seas Brewing • Milt Tremblay, University of Washington Tacoma • Molly Wilmoth, Washington State History Museum • Nicole Barandon, Puyallup Tribe of Indians • Norm Gollub, Foss Waterway Seaport • Patrick Andrews, Railroad interest • Samantha Kelly, Tacoma Art Museum • Susan Warner, Museum of Glass • Tanya Andrews, Tacoma Children’s Museum • Wes Wenhardt, Foss Waterway Seaport We’d also like to thank the following individuals for meeting with our project team and sharing their expertise and insight: Danica Sterud-Miller, Puyallup Tribe of Indians member and professor at the University of Washington Tacoma, and Deb Freedman, Tacoma Historical Society. Project team members consisted of Artifacts Consulting, Inc. staff. Katie Chase Pratt, partner, PROJECT TEAM served as project lead, coordinating with City of Tacoma staff, participating in the stakeholder meetings, conducting research, writing report sections, and producing the report. Spencer Howard, managing partner, prepared maps for the report in Geographic Information Systems (GIS) ESRI software. Mary Thompson, partner, researched and wrote the planning component of the report. Susan Johnson, associate, assembled the reference archive. Michael Sullivan, partner, participat- ed in stakeholder meetings. Artifacts used Niki Stojnic, freelance writer/editor, to edit all text for proper grammar and general readability. 4 PRAIRIE LINE TRAIL Interpretive Plan TABLE OF CONTENTS Acknowledgments 3 Project Team 4 Executive Summary 7 Prairie Line Trail 9 History 19 Brief Prairie Line Rail Corridor History 19 Current Interpretive Status 39 What is Interpretation? 39 Potential Audience 44 Interpretive Collections 46 Visitor Orientation 48 Associated Interpretive Facilities 49 Interpretive Direction 51 Overall Interpretive Strategy 51 Interpretive Themes 53 Interpretive Approaches 67 5 Recommendations 79 Curation Strategy 79 Avenues for Future Research 79 Buildings Along the PLT 80 Funding Strategy 80 References 83 Bibliography 83 Reference Archive 86 Appendices A-1 Appendix A: Prairie Line Trail Interpretive Committee Meeting Agendas and Minutes A-2 Appendix B: Community Survey Questions and Responses A-11 Appendix C: Public Art Framework for Tacoma's Prairie Line Trail A-15 Appendix D: Final Design, Prairie Line Trail A-29 Appendix E: Prairie Line Trail Reference Archive A-45 Appendix F: Prairie Line Trail Reference Archive A-46 Appendix E: Prairie Line Rail Corridor | Historic Assessment Report A-81 6 PRAIRIE LINE TRAIL Interpretive Plan EXECUTIVE The section of the Prairie Line that cuts diagonally through Tacoma’s south downtown warehouse district is more than just a former rail corridor. The Prairie Line represents the significant moment SUMMARY when the Northern Pacific Railroad completed its transcontinental line, which brought numerous people and goods to the City of Destiny. The Prairie Line continues to provide a means of trans- portation through the city now as the Prairie Line Trail—a newly created signature public space with history intertwining with public art and green spaces. The Prairie Line Trail (PLT) follows the former rail corridor right-of-way for the Prairie Line section of the Northern Pacific Railroad, which roughly parallels South Hood Street. The southern end of the PLT begins just south of the intersection of South Hood Street and South 25th Street and extends north towards South 11th Street. The PLT runs through an incredibly vibrant por- 1 tion of Tacoma’s south downtown, which attracts residents, students, and visitors and includes the Union Depot-Warehouse Historic District—a historic district listed on both the Tacoma Register of Historic Places (TRHP) and National Register of Historic Places (NRHP)—and the University of Washington Tacoma campus. The PLT runs west of bustling Pacific Avenue, with its lineup of restaurants, shops, museums, and Sound Transit’s Link light rail, before crossing the busy street at South 17th Street. Nearby museums include the Washington State History Museum, the Tacoma Art Museum, Foss Waterway Seaport, the Children’s Museum, and the Museum of Glass. The Foss Waterway, with its industry and marine activity, lies just east of Pacific Avenue. The neighborhood revitalization continues as a few long-standing vacant buildings, particularly the Jet Building and the former Nisqually Power Station, have new owners and host new uses. The PLT and subsequent interpretation will only add to the vitality of this already energetic area of the city and provide visitors with an opportunity for engagement. This interpretive plan outlines potential interpretive approaches, including visual art and displays, tours, and educational pro- grams. This document is meant to be dynamic and encourage continued conversations about the trail’s significance and how that significance can be conveyed to the public. This plan is the result of a collaboration between many organizations and individuals and provides a framework for the City of Tacoma to begin interpretive projects for the trail. The plan is divid- ed into five chapters: Executive Summary, Background History, Current Interpretive Status, Interpretive Direction, and Bibliography. CHAPTER 1 | EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 7 Legend Prairie Line corridor boundaries Study area: City of Tacoma owned parcels Base 2012 aerial courtesy of the City of Tacoma Overall UWT owned parcels (not in study area) ® Map 1.1 Prairie Line Trail Overview Overview map showing the full extent of the Prairie Line Trail (PLT) with the city-owned sections highlighted in yellow and the UWT section in green. 8 PRAIRIE LINE TRAIL Interpretive Plan The Executive Summary contains an introduction to the plan and its purpose. It outlines the pro- cess followed to develop the plan and the involvement