Old City Hall, Tacoma

Old City Hall reflects the area’s late 19th-century boom years, when civic leaders wanted a building that showed confidence and permanence. Completed in 1893 and designed by Edward A. Hatherton, with Colin McIntosh, it features Italian Renaissance Revival details, yellow Roman brick, terra-cotta trim, arched windows, and a tall clock tower. Local lore once claimed some bricks arrived as ship ballast, though records suggest they were intentionally shipped from San Francisco aboard the schooner Hayes.

The building was designed for both strength and visual impact, with thick lower masonry walls helping anchor it on the slope above the bay. Its clock tower also narrows subtly as it rises, creating the impression of extra height. Hugh Campbell Wallace later donated the Westminster chime-clock in memory of his daughter, Mildred; it was presented on Christmas Day 1904 and became fully operational in early 1905.

Beneath the grand exterior, Old City Hall also has a darker side. The basement once held city jail cells, including an unheated solitary cell remembered as “Siberia.” The building is also linked to “Gus,” a ghost said to move elevators, ring bells, shift objects, and play with lights. City offices began relocating in 1957 and had moved out by 1959, after which the building went through long periods of vacancy, decline, and preservation debate before later restoration efforts returned attention to its architectural and historic value.