Tacoma Honors the Cruiser Named for Her
A festive night at the theater sees a community-funded silver service gifted to the officers of the cruiser Tacoma.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
A large and enthusiastic audience gathered in the Tacoma theater last night to witness the presentation of the silver service to the cruiser Tacoma. The gifts reposed on a table covered with the Stars and Stripes and occupying the front and center of the stage. Back of this table were the officers of the cruiser. While the audience was assembling the orchestra played a number of patriotic selections. As Mayor Wright stepped out upon the stage to present the gifts he received a hearty greeting. To Commander Nicholson and his brother officers he directed a few remarks of welcome and then proceeded with the presentation of the gifts. He concluded his address saying: 'This silver set has been purchased by Tacoma people, and it now becomes a pleasant duty to say, in behalf of the citizens of Tacoma, it is yours. We hope that you will receive it in the same spirit in which it is given.' Commander Nicholson made a brief response, paying tribute to Ensign Monahan, a Washington boy who died attempting to save a friend in the face of the enemy. The committee in charge included prominent citizens like W. H. Harris, A. F. Albertson, and Mrs. Everett G. Griggs.
“This silver set has been purchased by Tacoma people, and it now becomes a pleasant duty to say, in behalf of the citizens of Tacoma, it is yours.”
This event highlights the intense civic pride once taken in the US Navy’s naming of ships after local cities, a tradition that served as a major point of boosterism. While the cruiser Tacoma is long gone, the social ritual of elite civic leaders gathering at the theater to pledge communal support remains a familiar, if evolved, aspect of local politics.
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