Events the papers followed
A fire, a land boom, a tax auction: 78 events the papers came back to over days or months, each told by its reports — 506 of them in all.
1860s
- March 23 – April 20, 1861Olympia Rallies for the Union
Olympia citizens and territorial legislators pass anti-secession resolutions, spring 1861.
1870s
- February 5 – April 25, 1872The Forgotten Wife at the Center of Seattle
1872 Dispatch reports tied a Seattle donation claim to Maynard's divorce and first wife.
- June 5 – June 26, 1876The $100,000 Gamble: Yesler’s Great Lottery
1876 lottery to fund a Cascade road, with a $100,000 sawmill as the prize.
- June 12 – June 22, 1876The First Hospital for the Working Man
Reports said Dr. G.A. Weed opened a Seattle hospital for injured loggers, mill workers.
- June 14 – July 3, 1876The Centennial Party That Put Seattle on the Map
Seattle's 1876 Fourth of July: six June notices, no report of the day itself.
- July 7 – July 20, 1876The Deserted Husband's Public Warning
Eight Daily Intelligencer items on a Seattle husband's notice denying his wife's debts
- July 12 – August 26, 1876The Free Real Estate Gamble of 1876
1876 Seattle reports describe free-land and buy-one-get-one homebuilding incentives.
- November 7 – November 20, 1876The Forgotten Sick of 1876
Nov. 1876 Seattle ads tout Dr. Weed’s hospital for people without homes.
- November 29 – December 29, 1876The 'Hulless' Oat Promise of 1876
Seattle reports in 1876 promoted a Duwamish “Hulless” oat with no reported harvest.
- November 30, 1876 – January 19, 1877The Original Seattle Starter Home
1876–77 Seattle classifieds: houses and lots near Second Street and the University.
- December 21, 1876 – January 24, 1877The Iron Arteries of Early Seattle
Intelligencer features on Seattle's iron trades; one cites Waddell & Miles' 50 stoves.
- December 29, 1876 – February 3, 1877The Struggle to Feed and House King County's Poor in 1876
King County advertised for sealed bids to house and doctor its indigent poor.
- February 9 – March 27, 1877The Great Mountain Road Debate of 1877
Seattle editors and Kittitas settlers debated a Snoqualmie Pass wagon road in 1877.
- April 12 – May 15, 1877The Checkerboard Trap: How the Northern Pacific Railroad Hoarded Washington’s Land
Seattle and Snohomish reports, April–May 1877, allege railroad land hoarding.
- August 4 – December 15, 1877The New Era of the Snohomish Hotel
Northern Star reports, Aug–Dec 1877, vary on hotel and proprietor names.
- September 1 – November 10, 1877The Toolmaker of Snohomish
Northern Star items describe a Snohomish blacksmith; one names H. Hanson.
- October 6 – November 24, 1877The Ghost Land Claim of Snohomish County
Six 1877 notices trace a vanished Snohomish homesteader's claim; no name given.
- November 17, 1877 – January 23, 1878The Price of a Debt: A Legal Battle in Snohomish
Snohomish legal notices, 1877–78, describe unpaid board, lodging, and goods debts.
- December 8, 1877 – February 2, 1878The Price of a Scandal in 1877 Seattle
Legal notices in 1877–78 Seattle show divorce filings, a summons, and property disputes.
- December 29, 1877 – January 12, 1878The Price of Early Seattle Prosperity
Sheriff’s notices and King County courthouse auctions, reported 1877–78.
- March 2 – August 31, 1878The Great Delinquency: Snohomish’s 1878 Tax Auction
One Snohomish tax list and many Seattle notices document 1878 forfeitures.
- March 6 – March 27, 1878The Forgotten Quest for Washington Statehood
In 1878, Gov. Ferry called an election to choose delegates to draft a state constitution.
- March 9 – March 23, 1878The 1878 Great Seattle Tax Auction
Puget Sound Dispatch covered Seattle's March 1878 auction of delinquent-tax properties.
- March 13 – May 29, 1878The Price of Survival: A Snohomish Debt Crisis
Snohomish legal notices describe a board bill, a court summons, and conflicting dates.
- May 1 – July 13, 1878The Snohomish Hotel: A Hub for Loggers and Travelers
Northern Star items name several Snohomish lodging houses promising board and liquor.
- July 6 – August 24, 1878The Pioneer’s Exit: A Snohomish Farmstead on the Market
Northern Star notices, 1878: Snohomish dairy ranch and mill site offered for sale.
- July 13 – August 24, 1878The Mukilteo Colony Pitch: A 19th Century Developer’s Dream
Northern Star notices promised Mukilteo colonists deep water and farm self-sufficiency.
- August 1 – August 31, 1878The Pioneer Dream for Sale on Whidbey Island
1878 reports: a 160-acre Snoqualmie River homestead for sale, citing weak lungs.
- August 10 – September 21, 1878The $242 Debt That Haunted the Frontier
Snohomish legal notices, 1878: a $242 debt, a $100 loan and a defaulted note.
- September 1 – October 19, 1878The Promised Land of Mukilteo
Northern Star pitches sold Mukilteo homesteads, marshland and industry in 1878.
- September 8 – October 12, 1878The Snohomish Hotel: A Hub of 1880s Hospitality
1878 Northern Star items call Cathcart’s Snohomish City hotel by two names.
- September 14 – October 12, 1878The Dream of the La Grande Marsh Colony
1878 newspaper items describe promoters selling Snohomish County marshland as a family colony.
1880s
- April 26 – May 10, 1880Abandoned at the Docks: The Crew of the Bark Northwest Sues for Wages
13 Northwest and 14 Tidal Wave sailors sued in Seattle for unpaid wages.
- January 11 – January 20, 1885The Sunday Saloon War: When Seattle’s Business Elite Fought for the Right to Rest
1885 Seattle reports conflict on Sunday saloon-closing dates and details.
- February 11 – March 21, 1885The Town Held Hostage by the Railroad
Post-Intelligencer, 1885: Northern Pacific bypassed Yakima City for company townsite.
- March 10 – March 20, 1885Federal Authorities Seize Fifty Pounds of Opium in Seattle
Reports differ on whether the opium came from an establishment or a house.
- June 2 – July 13, 1885The Trial of the City Marshal
Seattle's 1885 impeachment fight over saloon enforcement and mayoral authority.
- June 21 – August 25, 1885The Ghost of Lake Washington
Reports trace Lake Washington 'ghost' wails to a discarded patent-medicine bottle.
- June 28 – July 13, 1885The 1886 Municipal Election: A Fight Over 'Law and Order' vs. Business Interests
1885 Seattle reports detail 'Law and Order' vs. Business Men's election fight.
- July 14 – August 15, 1885The Great Land Grab Ends: Northern Pacific's Grip on Washington Territory Loosens
Seattle paper reports federal rulings against Northern Pacific land claims in 1885.
- July 19 – August 15, 1885The Great Soap Bust of South Seattle
Federal raid accounts conflict on South Seattle distillery vs. soap works.
- July 28 – August 23, 1885The Great Clam Bake of 1885
Seattle, 1885: papers describe a Port Blakely clam bake with conflicting details.
- October 4 – November 21, 1885The Mob at Yesler's Hall: Seattle's 1885 Campaign of Exclusion
Seattle paper's 1885 reports trace anti-Chinese rallies, a raid, and expulsions
- October 31 – November 18, 1885The Shadow of the Anti-Chinese Expulsions
1885 reports: Tacoma expels Chinese residents; Squak Valley acquittal.
- February 9 – February 12, 1886The Mob, The Military, and the Riot at the Seattle Wharf
Reports describe forced expulsion of Chinese residents and martial law in Seattle.
- May 7 – May 14, 1886The Great Jury Debate: When Washington Women Fought for the Bench
Reports tie a Senate suffrage debate to a later jury-rights dispute, with dates at odds.
- February 4 – February 6, 1887The Day Seattle Suffrage Died
Paper reports territorial Supreme Court voided women’s suffrage and jury service in 1887.
- June 6 – July 21, 1888The Front Street Fraud: How Seattle's Council Sold Its Soul for a Cable Car
Council rejection and corruption claims over a Front Street cable car franchise, 1888.
- June 19 – June 22, 1888The Boomtown That Expected to Replace Seattle
P-I reports Port Townsend boosters' rail-and-harbor claims, June 1888.
- June 21 – September 6, 1888The Boom on the Heights: How Seattle’s Real Estate Hype Reached for the Sky in 1888
Seattle's summer 1888 land boom used lot sales, cottage raffles, and rail promises.
- January 19 – February 21, 1889The Great Washington Delay: How Congress Stalled Statehood for a Political Game
Seattle reports trace statehood through omnibus bills, a decree proposal and a name swap.
- February 3 – March 20, 1889The Golden Rule of Payouts: How One Seattle Grocer Got Paid After the Jackson Street Fire
Seattle reports conflict on insurer and amount in a Jackson Street grocery fire payout.
- February 10 – March 7, 1889The Great Statehood Jubilee: Washington Takes Its Seat at the Table
Reports conflict on whether Cleveland or Harrison signed statehood in 1889.
- February 20 – February 24, 1889The Judge’s Double Life: Seduction, Abortion, and the Cover-Up That Shook Tacoma
Papers report Sadie Brantner's accusations against Judge Wickersham; details conflict.
- February 27 – March 2, 1889The Brick Crisis: Why Seattle’s Boom Is Stalling Because of Empty Lots
Three 1889 Seattle editorials urged brick construction to stop capital flight.
- March 17 – March 20, 1889The Great Land Rush: Seattle’s West Side and Coney Island of the Northwest
1889 Seattle paper pitches $200 lots, excursion boats, and 10-cent lake trips.
- April 13 – April 27, 1889The Unceremonious Ousting of Seattle's Police Chief
Seattle council fired Police Chief J.C. Mitchell; he accused Mayor Moran of kickbacks.
- April 14 – July 4, 1889The Renton Addition: Seattle’s 1889 Speculative Gold Rush
Seattle reports trace Renton Addition land speculation and streetcar promotion in 1889.
- June 7 – July 12, 1889The Great Seattle Fire
June 1889 reports describe Seattle business district burned and brick rebuild underway.
- June 16 – July 5, 1889The Great Reconstruction: Seattle’s Call to Rebuild After the Fire
Post-Intelligencer editorials urge unity and sound leadership after Seattle’s 1889 fire.
- July 11 – August 22, 1889Constitutional Convention Debates Tide Land Ownership
Olympia delegates debated tide-land ownership; Seattle business and rail groups lobbied.
- July 16 – August 23, 1889Seattle Makes Its Case for Statehood
Seattle delegates pressed Olympia convention amid debates on courts, suffrage, lands.
- August 15 – September 20, 1889The Rapid Transformation of Pioneer Square
Three P-I items trace Seattle permits and dock traffic around the 1889 fire.
- August 18 – September 11, 1889Rising from the Ashes: How Seattle Met Its Great Fire
Seattle reports trace Toklas, Singerman & Co.'s rebuild plans after the 1889 fire.
- September 8 – September 19, 1889The Real Estate Boom of 1890
Seattle land advertisements, 1889: promoters sold lots using prominent names.
- September 24 – September 29, 1889The Speculative Birth of a Frontier Metropolis
Seattle papers in 1889 report promoters pitching Pasco as the coming “Gate City.”
1890s
- January 1 – January 10, 1891The Sloop Louisa and the Contraband of 1891
Sloop Louisa seized over alleged smuggling of Chinese laborers; reports differ on year.
- January 1 – January 18, 1891The Boom Town That Never Was
January 1891 Seattle paper reports pitched Utsalady as the coming metropolis.
- January 3 – January 16, 1891The Real Estate Scramble for Lake Washington
Papers report a scramble for lake land along the new Rainier Avenue electric line.
- January 3 – January 23, 1891Seattle's Great Annexation Election of 1891
Seattle's 1891 annexation and bond reports conflict on dates, totals, and outcome.
- January 18 – February 27, 1891The Invisible Laborers of 1891 Seattle
Three 1891 Seattle classified advertisements on unseen service labor.
- January 21 – January 30, 1891The $500 Vote: How a Spokane Judge’s Bribery Plot Exposed Seattle’s Political Rot
Reports dated 1891 describe a 1903 Olympia bribery scandal and Rep. Metcalfe’s sting.
- February 4 – March 19, 1892The City That Voted to Grow: Seattle's 1892 Infrastructure Bond Bonanza
Seattle bond reports cite $850,000, $1.2 million, and $865,000.
- May 11 – May 12, 1892The Roslyn Mine Disaster
Gas explosion at Northern Pacific Coal Co.'s Mine No. 2; one report counts 44 dead.
- April 29 – May 31, 1899The Great Welcome: Seattle Plans a 'Rousing' Ovation for Returning War Heroes
Seattle Star planning reports describe ovations and a Tacoma landing rivalry.
- May 12 – July 3, 1899The Forty-Year Stranglehold: Seattle’s Streetcar Franchise Fight
Seattle 1899: a 40-year streetcar franchise fight and a vote against municipal ownership.
1900s
- June 5 – June 10, 1903The High School Building Scandal
Walla Walla school board reported to admit $63,000 in unauthorized warrants.
- January 9 – January 11, 1904The Tragic Sinking of the Steamer Clallam
Steamer Clallam foundered in the Strait of Juan de Fuca; reports cite dozens dead.