Copyright © 2020 by Wendy Waszut-Barrett
Thomas G. Moses traveled to Tacoma, Washington, in 1921 to paint scenery for the Tacoma Scottish Rite. That December he wrote, “Arrived in Tacoma at 1:25 P.M. the second day after a delightful ride through the mountains. Saw my old friend Blackwell and enjoyed the visit with him.”
Moses was referring to William Bush Blackwell (1837-1922), one of of the city’s earliest pioneers. At 84 yrs. old, Blackwell was secretary for the Tacoma Hotel Co. and living at 401 Broadway. He had never left really left the hospitality industry from his first arrival to the city in 1873. Blackwell’s investments in real estate were quite impressive. Over the years, Blackwell was integral in the establishment of Tacoma’s first modern hotel, first bank, first theater and first museum. On Nov. 2, 1880, Blackwell became a county commissioner and was integral in moving Pierce’s county seat to Tacoma.
Moses first met Blackwell back in 1889 when he was in town painting scenery for the new Tacoma Theatre. Blackwell was one of the directors for the enterprise. In his memoirs, Moses recorded, “Mr. Blackwell, President of the Tacoma National Bank, was also President of the Opera House Company, and he liked a wood scene that I painted so well, that he offered me $200.00 to paint a watercolor like it, which I did.” Years later Moses would add, “He still has it, and likes it as well now as he did twenty-nine years ago.”
Blackwell was originally from the east; born in Connecticut on September 10, 1837, to Enoch Blackwell and Sarah Bush. He came from a well-established and well-off east coast family. He was living in Syracuse, New York, when the Civil War broke out and enlisted in the military on October 30, 1862. Blackwell was a colonel of the 26th Regiment, New York State Militia. Amazingly, he left a collection of his papers that document his experiences from 1861 to 1863. They comprise the William B. Blackwell papers in the Special Collections at the University of Washington. Here is the link: http://archiveswest.orbiscascade.org/ark:/80444/xv44284/pdf
Blackwell, met and married Alice E. Bliven from New York (b. February 28, 1840). Similarly, his wife also left a fascinating account of the couple’s move to Tacoma in 1873, their opening of Blackwell’s Hotel, and early life in the city. In an eleven-page hand-written letter, she recalled their arrival aboard the first train from Kalama over the newly completed Northern Pacific line, as well as descriptions of the city and many early events. Her reminiscences were written for the Mary Ball Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution in 1913, is part of the Washington Women’s History Consortium. Here is the link: (https://wshs.contentdm.oclc.org/digital/collection/faids/id/5/rec/1).
The Blackwell’s contributions to the early growth of Tacoma is also detailed in Herbert Hunt’s book, “TACOMA, Its History and Its Builders. A Half Century of Activity.” It was published the same year that Alice passed away in 1916. Here is a link to the publication: https://archive.org/stream/tacomaitshistory01hunt/tacomaitshistory01hunt_djvu.txt
Moses’ meeting with Blackwell at the beginning of 1922 was shortly before the Tacoma pioneer passed away. Moses later wrote, “Our dear old friend Blackwell seemed to enjoy our visits. He rallied and felt good whenever I talked of Chicago; he was very weak and lived until September – he was 85 years of age.”
Blackwell passed away on October 4, 1922 and is buried at the Tacoma Cemetery. It is not surprising that Blackwell maintained close contact with the Chicago scenic artist over the years, as he maintained great respect for the arts. On October 28, 1893, citizens from across Pierce County gather ed together on the fourth floor of the new county courthouse in Tacoma to celebrate the opening of the Ferry Museum. Blackwell was one of five men who filed articles of incorporation on June 16, 1893 for the Ferry Museum of Art. It was a collaboration between the Tacoma Academy of Sciences, the Tacoma Art League, and the Washington State Historical Society, named after Clinton P. Ferry, who donated his collection of art and artifacts. The object and purpose of the museum “was to establish and maintain in Tacoma a museum of art; to collect relics of the early history of North America and elsewhere; and particularly of the state of Washington.” Here is a link for more information about the Ferry Museum: https://www.historylink.org/File/20680
To be continued…
