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 Forklift Masts Tacoma - Tacoma (population around 198,400) is a port city located on Puget Sound in Washington State. It serves as the county seat of Pierce County. Tacoma is 51 km southwest of Seattle and 50 km northeast of Olympia City, the state capital of Washington. Tacoma is the third largest city in the state and the business activity center for the South Sound area.
The city of Tacoma got its name from nearby Mount Tahoma, presently referred to as Mount Rainier, which lies approximately 93 km southeast. As the site of the Northern Pacific Railroad's western terminus in the late 19th century, the city of Tacoma was nicknamed the "City of Destiny." The city was chosen as the terminus because of its proximity to Commencement Bay, a deep-water harbor. The idea was to connect the railroad together with the shipping vessels utilizing the bay. At present the huge Port of Tacoma is among the busiest centers of international trade on the Pacific Coastline. Currently, it is the 6th biggest shipping port in North America. The container port activities offer a huge number of jobs for the residents of the area.
Commencement Bay was originally the home of the Nisqually and Puyallup tribes. European-Americans were drawn to the region due to the vast resources of lumber located here. The very first saw mill was established in 1852, and many mills were constructed throughout the latter half of the century.
The local economy of Tacoma has numerous high-tech companies. Other major economy sectors in the city consist of: financial services, manufacturing, agriculture and forest products, healthcare and professional services Tacoma businesses provide radio frequency and automated fingerprints identification, Internet and computer services as well as satellite imaging. The area is a key producer of flower bulbs. Tourism is also essential to the economy. The presence of the Fort Lewis Army Post and the McChord US Air Force Base has a major impact on the area.
Tacoma participates with Orting, Puyallup and Sumner in hosting the annual Daffodil Parade in the month of April. The city's farmers' market is held each and every Thursday throughout the summertime in the Theatre District. Smaller farmers markets are held along Sixth Avenue and within South Tacoma. Fort Nisqually is a tourist spot where tourists can watch historical reenactments. Mount Rainier National Park is less than 2 hours away.
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