Laundry Workers Take Over Spanaway Park
1,300 Tacoma laundry workers and their families gathered for an annual picnic despite the rainy weather, competing in races and dancing into the evening.
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A little rain did not dampen the ardor nor spoil the fun of the 1,300 people who went to Spanaway Park yesterday, where the Tacoma laundry workers held their third annual picnic. The baseball game in the morning between the Cascade Laundry and the Tacoma Laundry teams proved as enjoyable as a professional game and resulted in a victory for the former by a score of 23 to 8. During the afternoon, athletic games brought the crowd to the baseball field again. Winners included Winifred Wise, Elizabeth Matthews, Tommie West, Margaret Hawes, B. I. Folnier, and Mrs. Kate Hacked, who defeated her opponents in the fat women's race. V. Zirbel took the old men's race, and J. Woods won the donkey race. Dancing was the principal diversion at night, and a prize cakewalk and waltz added zest to the entertainment. It was a happy but weary crowd that came home at a late hour, having enjoyed the most successful picnic the Laundry Drivers' Association of Tacoma has ever given.
“It was a happy but weary crowd that came home at a late hour last night, having enjoyed the most successful picnic that the Laundry Drivers' association of Tacoma has ever given.”
Early 20th-century labor organizing often relied on social cohesion through company or trade-wide picnics, turning city parks into hubs for civic solidarity. Spanaway Park remains a staple for large community gatherings in the Tacoma area today, preserving its role as a space for public assembly.
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