It’s Thursday again! Here’s my weekly contribution to Three Things Thursday, the purpose of which is to “share three things from the previous week that made you smile or laugh or appreciate the awesome of your life.”
Tacoma Waterfront
My husband and I enjoy learning about the history of Tacoma. A few weeks ago we ate lunch at a restaurant on the waterfront and took advantage of the opportunity to observe how Tacoma has changed.
1. Horizontal Drawbridge
This is a horizontal drawbridge with “Port of Tacoma” stenciled on the end facing the street (not visible in this photo). The center of the bridge rises horizontally to let large boats pass underneath.
I had never seen this type of drawbridge until we took a cruise on the Columbia River that began in Portland, OR, almost 20 years ago. I thought all drawbridges split in the middle, with a section on each side that levered back to rise up. But we see quite a few of these horizontal bridges here in the Pacific Northwest.
I’ve heard that this drawbridge isn’t used any more. I’ve never see it raised.
2. Former Boat Building Company
Tacoma used to build many of the commercial fishing boats used on the West Coast. These two buildings are the remnants of a ship building company that has been closed for many years now.
Sending the boats built here off to their destinations probably required the raising of that horizontal drawbridge, which is located a bit off the left side of this photo.
3. Marina
People here in the Puget Sound area really love their boats, and this marina on the waterfront is therefore still active. This is the view just to the right of the boat building company in photo #2.
On the right side of this photo you see the famous Tacoma Dome, which I’ve written about here.
See you again next week!
Retreading for Retirement 