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Tacoma,
Washington,
known as the “City of Destiny”, is the bustling seat of Pierce
County. The third largest city in Washington
State, Tacoma sits on the shores of Commencement
Bay off Puget
Sound. This deep-water port
city acts as one of the busiest commercial ports in the world.
To the east of Tacoma looms majestic Mt.
Rainier, providing a scenic beauty to this lively
metropolis.
Incorporated in 1884, Tacoma’s strategic location made it
the ideal choice as the western end of the transcontinental Northern
Pacific Railroad. Today, Interstate
5 links Tacoma and Seattle
to its north, as well as Portland,
Oregon to
the south. The Seattle-Tacoma
International Airport lies between these two fine cities.
The Washington
State Ferry also serves Tacoma.
Census 2000 recorded Tacoma’s population as 193,556.
Residents here enjoy more than one hundred parks
scattered through the forty-nine square miles of the city. Point
Defiance Park remains one of the largest urban parks in
the nation. Included within its 702 acres is the Point
Defiance Zoo and Aquarium. Titlow
Beach holds the reputation of being one of the best
scuba-diving areas in Washington.
Tacoma serves as the educational and cultural center of Pierce
County, Washington. The University
of Washington, the Tacoma
Community College and the University
of Puget Sound are three of the fifteen institutes of
higher learning found here. Cultural delights include the Tacoma
Opera, the city’s Symphony
Orchestra and the Broadway
Center for the Performing Arts. More than twenty art
galleries and museums grace Tacoma’s downtown region. The Washington
State History Museum hosts the largest collection of
Indian and pioneer artifacts on the west coast. The Museum
of Glass offers splendid exhibits and ongoing educational
series in the fine art of glass working.
From its beginnings as a lumber town and port city, Tacoma
emerges today as an international tourist destination and
convention center. The Greater
Tacoma Convention and Trade Center is Washington’s
second largest meeting facility. Built with stunning
glass-wall architecture, it displays Tacoma’s breathtaking
views. Astute city leaders invested 100 million dollars in a
municipally owned telecommunications service, linking Tacoma
residents and businesses into the global economy. Now known as
“America’s Number One Wired City”, Tacoma attracts an
influx of high-tech corporations seeking to relocate.
Tacoma,
Washington lies surrounded by the maritime beauty of Puget
Sound and the magnificence of Mt. Rainier. Guided by
far-seeing leaders and progressive thinkers, this city full of
great potential will live up to the motto, "City of
Destiny".
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