The Fight for Tacoma’s Political Independence
Democratic candidates rally in the Fifth Ward against the 'one-man' rule and corporate influence in municipal governance.
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At a Democratic meeting at the Horace Mann school in the Fifth Ward, speakers argued that Tacoma’s path to becoming the premier city of the Northwest required breaking free from the influence of a 'one-man town.' Candidates including George P. Wright and speakers like K. L. Hiberly and Frank B. Cole criticized incumbent Mayor Campbell, specifically challenging his claims regarding streetcar transfers. Speakers alleged that transfers were a result of a corporate merger rather than mayoral intervention, and questioned the moral platform of an administration supported by the Globe Hotel, the Phoenix Theater, and the Board of Trade saloon. The rally emphasized the need for a 'business administration' that prioritized the city’s electric and water funds over political patronage.
“Tacoma would grow to its rightful position as the first city of Puget Sound as soon as she ceased to be a 'one man town'.”
Early 20th-century rhetoric regarding 'one-man towns' and the influence of business syndicates mirrors the recurring modern anxieties in Tacoma about corporate influence and the outsized role of real estate developers in shaping municipal policy.
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