The Big Thaw Returns Tacoma to Work
After two weeks of deep snow and arctic cold, Tacoma's building trades are finally getting back to business.
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.
Five thousand men who have been idle in Tacoma during the last two weeks will return to their labors Monday morning in the building trades. The cold weather and the deep snow that has prevailed for the last two weeks has completely stopped all outside work. All building was discontinued; all laying of sidewalks, all concrete work, brick laying, constructive plumbing, plastering, lathing, shingling, tinroofing and similar labors were absolutely cut short and everybody went on a vacation. With the melting of the snow the men are getting ready to resume operations. Contractors today are ordering their men to get ready for business and an era of building activity is expected to commence now that will beat anything ever seen in Tacoma.
“an era of building activity is expected to commence now that will beat anything ever seen in Tacoma.”
This reflects the extreme sensitivity of Pacific Northwest construction to weather events—a reality that hasn't changed despite over a century of technological advancement. The massive scale of the temporary layoff highlights how dependent the city was on the seasonal building boom.
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