A collection of illustrations featuring different historic & iconic buildings in the city of Tacoma, Washington.
Constructed in 1983 for 44 million [about 106 million today], it's the largest wooden structure in Washington State and one of the largest in the world. It took 1.6 million board feet of lumber to construct - most of it coming from downed trees when Mount Saint Helens erupted in 1980.
Commissioned by the railroads and designed by the architectural firm Reed & Stem, it was completed in 1911 with a footprint spanning more than 49,000 square feet-over 50% larger than Seattle’s Union Station.
TAM’s original location was an old bank building constructed in the 1920s. When they started outgrowing that space, they built a new 50,000 square foot building designed by architect Antoine Predock in 2003. In 2014 TAM expanded its floor space with the donation of over 295 works by the Haub Family. In 2016, TAM expanded another 7,390 square feet with the donation of the Rebecca and Jack Benaroya collection.
The building was initially built in 1891 for the Railway Company with the idea of becoming a luxurious hotel, but financial strains and a massive fire halted construction for many years. Then in 1904, the Tacoma School District purchased the building and transformed it into a fully functioning high school.