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THE TACOMIC
A Tacomic Look at Tacoma Hotel Totem Pole
World's Tallest Collection of Rotting Historical Curiosities!
posted May 28, 2013
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It was a dark and stormy night, Post Defiance (pdef) releases this article calling for the toppling of Tacoma's 100 year old fake totem pole... as the TNT begins reporting the story, so called columnists calcify into a position of pole preservation. We've all seen the roadside, Never-never land fiberglass figure collection sold off piece by piece via conspiracy and I imagine the roadside, 100 year old fake totem will be sold off in much the same conspiratorial way... which IS the natural, life-cycle tradition of roadside faked totem poles in other cultures. EVEN SO, Let's stack all our rotting historical curiosities atop each other! I imagine the end result would be way taller than the Space Needle. TAKE THAT SEATTLE!
Previously on The Tacomic...

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![]() by NineInchNachos on 5/28/2013 @ 12:33am | world's tallest tacomic!
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![]() by NineInchNachos on 5/28/2013 @ 12:42am | world's tallest chalk totem! www.flickr.com/photos/tacoma-inventor/28... worlds tallest totem in chalk! www.flickr.com/photos/tacoma-inventor/26... |
![]() by Jesse on 5/28/2013 @ 8:05am | Good thing you didn't have to add on the Luzon, Frost Park Fountain, Elks Temple, MM Bridge, Old Town Dock, various other fountains around town, and the state of downtown shopping <----- all things rotten when I moved here in 2006. |
![]() by cisserosmiley on 5/28/2013 @ 8:07am | We might as well stack them atop the Tacoma dome too. Why won't the YES on Tacoma dome people have another election. |
![]() by NineInchNachos on 5/28/2013 @ 8:10am | yeah somebody on fb mentioned the dock. It's not all terrible! look at the 11th street bridge (MMB)! why not give Tallest Totem to the Tacoma Art Museum? Would fit nicely with new culturally inappropriate cowboy&indian art wing. They could chainsaw the Totem into parking lot bumpers ! |
![]() by JesseHillFan on 5/28/2013 @ 8:19am | A full scale version of this placed in Tacoma would out do the Space Needle and probably attract far more visitors too. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Enterprise_(NC...) Link doesn't quite go there but you get the idea. |
![]() by Mofo from the Hood on 5/28/2013 @ 9:11am | Once again The Conspiracy is trying to confuse and destabilize Tacoman's. The Totem Pole Crisis is a totally manufactured and exaggerated nano-problem. Should the naturally decaying pole simply be ground into sawdust? The Conspiracy created a media diversion in order to bolster and justify its real intent: The procurement of historically significant beauty bark for the absurd Pacific Avenue rain gardens. |
![]() by NineInchNachos on 5/28/2013 @ 10:07am | lol
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![]() by cisserosmiley on 5/28/2013 @ 10:20am | Totem TAGRO |
![]() by Erik on 5/28/2013 @ 11:45am | Save Tacoma's Historical Totem Pole: www.facebook.com/SaveTacomasFiremansPark... And Old City Hall! ....and fix other broken landmarks and buildings in Tacoma. Far better than to have an art show about them after they are razed. Why not a rally and art event to save them? |
![]() by NineInchNachos on 5/28/2013 @ 3:20pm | fb win! "Michael Sean Sullivan That is f**king hilarious!" |
![]() by NineInchNachos on 5/28/2013 @ 9:10pm | flashback! comics.feedtacoma.com/tacomic/6-12-07-ar...
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![]() by NineInchNachos on 5/30/2013 @ 4:12pm | brand update! How do you like the new Tacomic Skin?
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![]() by NineInchNachos on 5/30/2013 @ 8:12pm | maybe ? ziggityzoom.com/activity/totem-pole-recy...
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![]() by Erik on 5/31/2013 @ 4:02pm | Here my letter to the editor on the matter: TACOMA: Let’s preserve iconic totem pole Letter by Erik Bjornson, Tacoma on May 30, 2013 at 11:12 am | Tacoma’s totem pole sits dilapidated in Fireman’s Park for one simple reason: The city has failed to properly maintain it for decades. Built in 1903, the record-breaking totem pole welcomed President Teddy Roosevelt on May 22, 1903, and is an intricate part of Tacoma’s history.Unlike the Luzon Building, which was privately owned, the totem pole is owned by the citizens of Tacoma. They have a right to see that it preserved and maintained and not destroyed by neglect as has happened with an endless list of Tacoma buildings and landmarks.As former Washington State History Museum director David Nicandri has pointed out, the proposal to let the totem pole rot in the woods is completely misguided and in his words would be “stupid.” Given Nicandri’s nearly unparalleled knowledge of Tacoma’s history, we should take his analysis and dismay seriously.Technically, there are a dozen ways that the totem pole can be preserved and strengthened to last another 100 years in downtown Tacoma relatively cheaply. Here is a chance for Tacomans to demonstrate they value their history by preserving their iconic landmarks.Read more here: blog.thenewstribune.com/letters/2013/05/... |
![]() by Erik on 5/31/2013 @ 4:06pm | Perhaps more interesting, is the following exchange in the comments between Tribune reporter Lewis Kamb and Landmark Commissioner Daniel Lucus Rahe (a rich and in depth read): ______________
blog.thenewstribune.com/letters/2013/05/... |
![]() by Erik on 6/2/2013 @ 9:31am | It turns out that totem poles ARE in act maintained and repaired...outside the City of Destiny at least. Here are some easy steps for totem pole maintenance. Though, it might take some additional steps for the Fireman's Park pole now that it is in the condition it is. ______________ Totem Pole Maintenance ![]() Southeast Alaska is the land of totem poles. These iconic outdoor sculptures are powerful, valuable, and remarkably vulnerable. The Tongass National Forest, covering 80% of Southeast Alaska, is a temperate (cool) rainforest, with precipitation between 80 and 100 inches per year in most places where totem poles are made and displayed. (In comparison, Seattle’s annual precipitation is usually under 40”.) Imagine placing a wooden pole in the ground and exposing it to the weather for decades. Utility poles, which are heavily impregnated with preservative chemicals, typically last 25-50 years in much less aggressive conditions. Most totem poles are not treated with preservatives when they are erected. ![]() I’ve been involved in the maintenance of several totem poles, and in May 2010 had the great pleasure of working with Ron Sheetz, retired National Parks Service conservator who specializes in furniture and wooden objects. Ron has treated well over 50 totem poles in the past 20+ years, and is a wealth of useful information and experience. We agreed it might be useful to have basic totem pole maintenance instructions on the internet. Ron also wrote a Conserve-O-Gram for the National Parks Service a few years back called “Protecting Wood with Preservative and Water Repellents” available at www.nps.gov/museum/publications/conserve... SUMMARY: If you are responsible for the care of a totem pole in an outdoor environment, a maintenance/inspection schedule should be developed and carried out. Inspections should check for loose parts, damage, and signs of decay or insect infestation. Borates and water repellent should be periodically applied. Borates help protect against rot and insects, but are water soluble. Water repellent protects the pole and prevents the borates from washing out with the rain. The application of borates and water repellent should occur every 3 – 5 years, depending on when the water repellents have worn off (water no longer beads up on the surface of the wood.) If the totem will be moved it is recommended to contact the Native community to allow them the opportunity to comment and to be involved with the preservation process. Moisture management is key to preservation. Proper drainage around the base of the pole and lead or copper caps at the top help preserve the wood. Typically, if you set aside a week to do the work, that’s plenty of time and allows for vagrancies of weather. _____________ Tons more of the article to read below ellencarrlee.wordpress.com/2010/08/18/to... |
![]() by NineInchNachos on 6/3/2013 @ 7:51am | what fun links! many of those poles listed are around Juneau Alaska where I grew up!
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![]() by NineInchNachos on 8/11/2013 @ 10:36am | Legendary carver of tacoma's the welcome figure gives 2¢ on 100 year old tourist trap totem pole qwalsius.squarespace.com/home/2013/8/11/... |