Frederickson Directory Shelf Map
Frederickson is unincorporated, so no stand-alone municipal series was found. Its city directory trail runs through Tacoma, Puyallup, Parkland, Spanaway, and countywide volumes. The best volume depends on the date and the wording used for the address. A modern Frederickson label may not appear in an older book, while a rural route or nearby postal name may. The verified collections below are starting points, not proof that every Frederickson household appears in every listed year.
| Directory collection | Verified span | Repository | How to consult it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tacoma city directories | Back to 1885; annual gaps require checking | Tacoma Public Library Northwest Room | Closed-stack, noncirculating research; appointment recommended |
| R.L. Polk Puyallup regional directories | Cataloged 1953-1973; broader holdings from 1882 to 1990 with gaps | Washington State Library | Catalog-only or limited appointment access |
| Tacoma and Tacoma Suburban series | Tacoma 1882-2013 with gaps; suburban 1958-2001 with gaps | Washington State Library | Confirm volume and appointment before travel |
| Parkland and Spanaway Polk entries | Parkland 1915-1973 with gaps; Spanaway 1974-1984 with gaps | Washington State Library | Nearby context; inspect the actual page |
| Pierce County directories | 1882, 1884-85, 1887, 1915-16, 1996-2001 | Washington State Library | Countywide rural-name leads |
Published runs have gaps, and their geographic headings changed. The Puyallup catalog title explicitly includes Graham, North Puyallup, Orting, and Sumner, but that wording does not promise Frederickson coverage. Tacoma Suburban, Parkland, Spanaway, and county directories may prove more useful for some addresses. Record the title, publisher, year, page, and repository for each hit so another researcher can retrace it.
Frederickson's Regional Directory Trail
A Frederickson search is a geography problem as much as a name search. County records treat the place as an unincorporated community, the Census Bureau uses a census-designated place, and old publishers organized pages around towns, routes, and sales territories. Search the same surname under Tacoma, Puyallup, Spanaway, Parkland, Summit-Waller, and Clover Creek when the date and address make those labels plausible.
The Washington State Library catalog record for Polk’s Puyallup series is a useful example of how regional coverage is described. It identifies the publisher and included communities, yet the actual volume still must be checked for the target road or person.
The catalog screen locates the series; it is not a scanned resident entry. Save the catalog identifier, then ask whether the chosen year has alphabetical, street-order, rural-route, or telephone sections.
Frederickson Research at Northwest Room
The Northwest Room is the deepest verified regional desk for old directory volumes. It is on the second floor of the Carnegie Building at 1102 Tacoma Avenue South in Tacoma. The noncirculating, closed-stack collection also includes maps, newspapers, manuscripts, photographs, a Buildings Index, and the Tacoma-Pierce County obituary index. An appointment is recommended. Researchers may contact nwr@tacomalibrary.org or 253-280-2814 and should give a person, address, date range, and likely place label.
The Northwest Room collection page explains its local-history services and contact route.
The screen points to far more than directory books. A name found in one year can be tested against an obituary, newspaper notice, map, or Buildings Index citation held by the same desk.
Bring pencils, paper, a phone or camera, and a USB drive. Personal-reference photography is allowed under room rules, but personal scanners, pens, and food are not. Microform prints and non-cardholder copies are listed at $0.20 per page. Remote textual scans are $0.25 per page for as many as 100 pages, while high-resolution photographs are $10 per image. Confirm current services before relying on those rates.
Frederickson's Nearby Library Network
Pierce County Library System has no branch named Frederickson. Nearby Parkland/Spanaway, South Hill, and Summit branches form the practical access network for computers, printing, scanning, and library databases. Parkland/Spanaway also lists microfilm readers and a law library. Some genealogy tools require a library card or use inside a branch, so check the access note before making the trip.
The Pierce County Library genealogy gateway lists Ancestry Library, HeritageQuest, HeritageHub, and obituary help.
These databases add census schedules, obituaries, and compiled records to a directory result. Note whether access was remote, in-branch, an index, or an image, because each form supports a different claim.
Read a Frederickson Directory Entry
No scanned Frederickson entry was available for verification, so do not assume that a given field appears in every volume. Photograph the title page and abbreviation key first. Then capture the page number and exact alphabetical entry. A directory may shorten a first name, use an initial, compress a rural route, or file a business and household differently. Those marks need the key from that same year, not a rule borrowed from another publisher.
| Identity | Surname, given name, initials, and any household or business marker actually printed |
|---|---|
| Place wording | Street, house number, rural route, direction, and nearby town exactly as set in type |
| Telephone | Number only when present in the inspected volume |
| Page context | Neighboring alphabetical entries, street-order heading, and page number |
| Source identity | Volume title, publisher, year, repository, catalog identifier, and image status |
- Criss-cross directory
- A section arranged by street and house number rather than by surname, when a volume includes one.
- Householder index
- An address-based list of the household name selected by the publisher; it is not a full census of occupants.
- Abbreviation key
- The volume’s own legend for shortened words and symbols. Copy it before interpreting an entry.
A printed name at an address is a dated clue. It does not by itself prove legal ownership or current occupancy. Compare it with the next available volume, a census schedule, a deed or parcel record, and a newspaper or obituary source tied to the same period.
Frederickson City Directories in Reverse
Later directories sometimes contain a reverse or criss-cross section, but its presence and scope must be verified volume by volume. Begin with the exact street notation from a known entry. Look for directional suffixes, rural-route forms, and house-number changes. If an address section exists, read nearby entries too. They may reveal how the publisher ordered a road or where a numbering break occurred.
The county addressing grid traces to Ordinance 84-152, which makes old route and number questions especially important in Frederickson. A current parcel map cannot prove that the same number was used decades ago. Preserve the old form beside the modern form, and ask county staff whether later addressing records cross-reference that street. For modern by-address research, the Frederickson street directory workflow starts with the county parcel rather than an old book.
Frederickson Directory Time Markers
Collection dates help choose a shelf, but they do not create continuous coverage. The timeline marks verified reference points that can guide a request.
| 1882 | Early Tacoma, Puyallup, and Pierce County holdings appear in State Library year lists. |
|---|---|
| 1885 | Northwest Room describes Tacoma city directories reaching back to this year. |
| 1915-1916 | Countywide, Puyallup, and Parkland holdings offer a useful regional overlap. |
| 1953-1973 | The cataloged Polk Puyallup run names several nearby communities. |
| 1958 onward | Tacoma Suburban holdings add a suburban series, with gaps. |
| July 1, 2025 | State Library public access closed, leaving limited Thursday appointment access listed for 1-4 p.m. |
The last date is an access change, not a collection end date. Contact the State Library to confirm the current appointment process and the exact volume before travel.
Frederickson Names Beyond Directories
When a city directory skips a year or place, use sources that answer a different question. The Pierce County Historical Association offers a Newspaper Inventory, Family History Index, and Plat Map Inventory. The Pierce County Historical Documents Survey points to repositories holding photographs, maps, surveys, government records, clippings, diaries, oral histories, and architecture files. Washington State Digital Archives provides collection-specific historical indexes, including Pierce County marriage material.
Federal census schedules provide a household snapshot. Public decennial schedules currently run through 1950 under the National Archives’ 72-year rule. Search the historic township, precinct, or enumeration district as well as a modern place label. Obituaries may add relatives or former addresses, while probate and marriage indexes can distinguish people with the same name. Cemetery and church records require repository checks because no Frederickson municipal interment database was found.
Trace Frederickson Families by Directory
A sound family-history search treats each directory as a dated publication, not a live resident roll. Start with the year closest to a known event. Search every reasonable spelling and place label, then move one available volume at a time. Pair the annual or irregular directory trail with census years, land records, newspapers, and vital indexes. This helps tell a real move from a typo, a changed street number, or two people who share a name.
- Choose a verified Tacoma, Puyallup, suburban, Parkland, Spanaway, or county volume near the target date.
- Copy the exact name, address wording, page, year, and key symbols. Save close alphabetical matches.
- Move to the prior and next available years. Note each address change, omission, and return.
- Check the reverse section if it exists, then compare the matching public census decade through 1950.
- Test the trail with a parcel or deed reference, obituary, newspaper, marriage index, map, or probate file.
A disappearance has several possible causes: a move, death, publication gap, changed spelling, household consolidation, or removal from the publisher’s territory. State only what the record shows. If two independent sources agree on the name, place, and date, label the match as stronger while still preserving any conflict.
For naturalization-era work, State Archives and FamilySearch offer Pierce County routes, and National Archives descriptions cover territorial and federal Tacoma indexes. Early records may use a township, precinct, post office, or neighboring town rather than Frederickson. Keep the original location wording in the research log.