Point Defiance Park
This 17 mile side trip leads out through downtown Tacoma to the picturesque Point Defiance Park, passing through several of Tacoma’s major historic districts
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The section of the Prairie Line that cuts diagonally through Tacoma’s south downtown warehouse district is more than just a former rail corridor. The Prairie Line represents the significant moment when the Northern Pacific Railroad completed its transcontinental line, which brought numerous people and goods to the City of Destiny. The Prairie Line continues to provide a means of transportation through the city now as the Prairie Line Trail—a newly...
Learn more about Prairie LineDowntown Tacoma is the financial and commercial center of the city. The variety and quality of the collection of buildings attest to the prominence of the city overlooking Commencement Bay
Learn more about Downtown TacomaPoints of Interest
Perkins Building
Tacoma Building
US Post Office
National Bank of Tacoma
Washington Building
Pythian Temple
Built in 1929 for the Port of Tacoma by the Coastline Shipbuilding Company of Tacoma. She is the only fireboat in U.S. history to protect a major port by herself or more than half a century.
Learn more about Fireboat No. 1A concrete box girder bridge built in 1941 by S.R. Gray. The Winnifred Street Bridge crosses a deep chasm through which the Burlington Northern Railroad passes and is believed to be the third structure to span that difficult crossing. The structure is the second oldest box girder bridge built in Washington State. (The Purdy Bridge is the oldest box girder bridge in the state.) The W. H. Witt Company designed...
Learn more about Winnifred Street BridgeThe point was named by Cmdr. Charles Wilkes, who stated that "This narrow pass was intended by nature for the defense of Puget Sound." The name he selected reflects this idea. While Hudson's Bay Company maintained posts and operations in this area, they referred to it as Point Ryan. The Tacoma city park at Point Defiance with its zoo, old growth forests and gardens is one of the premier public...
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