Martial Law Looms in Tacoma

Bayonettes. Clubs. "Riotous street fighting." National guard troops. Tear gas and nausea gas.

Believe it or not these are descriptors of the scene in downtown Tacoma 78 years ago in the summer of 1935.

Dan Rahe of Post Defiance takes us back to Depression Era Tacoma, and a summer filled with protests and the threat of martial law.

A machine gun installed on the 11th Street bridge. Tacoma described as, “on the brink of civil war.” It's a chapter of our city's history that's worth knowing.