Beriah Brown
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- Apr 25, 1872The Rowdy Election of 1872: When Seattle Politics Was a Bare-Knuckle BrawlA stormy Republican County Convention in 1872 exposes the messy, insider-heavy machinery behind early Seattle's local government.Seattle, WA
- Jun 13, 1872The Governor and the Ghost DemocratsWhen Territorial Governor Elisha Ferry was accused of lying to win a seat at a convention, his refusal to name thirty phantom 'Democrats' sparked a fierce political scandal in Seattle.Olympia, WA
- Aug 29, 1872The Tax Collector’s Secret: How Seattle Officials Hid Debts to Profit from AdvertisingA local newspaper exposes a scheme where the School District collector withheld tax information, forcing taxpayers to pay exorbitant advertising fees to clear liens they didn't know existed.Seattle, WA
- Sep 5, 1872The Paper War: How Seattle’s ‘Public Thieves’ Exposed a Corrupt RingIn 1872, the *Puguet Sound Dispatch* accused local officials and the rival *Intelligencer* of extorting taxpayers through inflated advertising rates for tax sales, framing it as a 'Tammany ring' stealing from the public.Seattle, WA
- Mar 2, 1876The Workingman's Protest Against Seattle's 'Class Tax'An early Seattle citizen takes to the press to challenge a municipal licensing ordinance, arguing it unfairly shifts the tax burden from the wealthy onto the backs of laborers.Seattle, WA
- Mar 30, 1876The 'Virtuous Spasm' of 1876: Seattle’s Early Critique of Political GreedAn editorial from the Puget Sound Dispatch captures the simmering public outrage over a government scandal in Washington Territory, drawing parallels between national corruption and the mismanagement of local university land grants.Seattle, WA
- Apr 6, 1876The Renters and the Landless: Seattle’s Early Conflict over PropertyAn 1876 editorial from the Pacific Tribune calls out wealthy landowners for reaping the benefits of city growth created by the labor of the landless.Seattle, WA
- Apr 13, 1876The Seattle Lottery Scandal of 1876A local editor confesses his regret for backing a 'legal' lottery that turned the city into an open gambling hell.Pioneer Square, Seattle, WA
- May 18, 1876The Bitter Newspaper Feud of 1876A public, vitriolic war of words between two Seattle editors reveals the cutthroat nature of early Pacific Northwest journalism.Seattle, WA
- May 18, 1876The 'Fanatical Old Ass': A Local Political Feud in 1876A fiery editorial from the Seattle Daily Tribune attacks the federal appointment of General Robert H. Milroy to a territorial post, painting him as a moralizing carpetbagger who failed to earn the respect of his own neighbors.Seattle, WA
- Jun 16, 1877The Great Political Tickling: How Daniel Bugley Outwitted Seattle’s Beriah BrownA fiery editorial in the *Snohomish Sun* exposes a political alliance between two rival editors, accusing them of using religious fervor as a cover for partisan maneuvering.Seattle, WA
- Nov 3, 1877The Fight Against Washington’s Land BaronsAn 1877 editorial warns that unchecked land speculation in the Washington Territory is turning away settlers and creating a class of 'land fiends' who gobble up public resources.Seattle, WA
- Dec 15, 1877Walla Walla Debates County Bonds for RailroadAn 1877 debate over public bond issues for the Seattle and Walla Walla Railroad reveals a city hungry for connectivity and skeptical of the 'blood money' demands of big capital.James Street, Seattle, WA
- Jan 12, 1878The Seattle-Tacoma Rivalry Began with Petty InsultsWhile Tacoma boosters once mocked Seattle’s 'niggardly' natural gifts, the Dispatch fired back with a masterclass in civic trash-talk.Seattle, WA
- Jan 19, 1878The Disgraceful Scrawl of Territorial LawA scathing editorial from the Weekly Dispatch reveals that the Territorial Legislature's laws were so poorly drafted, blotted, and grammatically mangled that the editor suggests burning them to avoid litigation.James Street, Seattle, WA
- Feb 2, 1878Homesteading on the Edge of the ForestAn 1878 dispatch from a settler near Lake Washington offers advice to 'respectable' newcomers looking to carve a life out of the untamed timberland.Bellevue, WA
- Feb 9, 1878The Wild West of Washington JournalismWhen the courts declared they had no power to punish libel, Seattle editors went to war with their pens—and their reputations.James Street, Seattle, WA
- Feb 16, 1878The Great Land Ring of the Northern PacificSettlers of Washington Territory take on a powerful railroad corporation accused of hoarding public land for private profit.Tacoma, WA
- May 11, 1878The Newspaper Feud of 1876A local editor’s blistering public breakdown of an auditor who dared to write letters to the editor.James Street, Seattle, WA
- Jun 1, 1878The Great Seattle Printing ConspiracyWhen the Dispatch editor exposed a 'plunder' scheme by rival newspapers to inflate public printing costs, he revealed the messy, graft-filled reality of 1878 municipal administration.James Street, Seattle, WA
- Jul 6, 1878The Politics of Poverty: Seattle’s 1878 Voter Suppression FightA century and a half ago, local officials tried to implement a 'poll tax' to restrict voting rights, sparking a fierce debate over whether a citizen’s right to participate in democracy could be tied to their financial status.James Street, Seattle, WA
- Aug 17, 1878The Price of Printing: A 19th Century Fight Against 'Cheap John' ContractingAn editorial from the 1873 Seattle Dispatch excoriates the municipal habit of awarding city printing contracts to the lowest bidder, arguing it degrades the press and serves only the interests of 'ward demagogues.'Seattle, WA
- Aug 24, 1878The Newspaper War of 1878Before the digital age, Seattle's editors fought their battles in court and print, trading accusations of corruption and forgery.Seattle, WA
- Aug 31, 1878Seattle’s First Steam Fire EngineFacing a growing city's vulnerability, Seattle’s leadership authorized a massive expenditure in 1878 to modernize the local fire brigade.Seattle, WA
- Sep 7, 1878The Puppet Editor's Expensive BetrayalA cautionary tale of a local 'figurehead' editor who was used by power brokers to spread libel, only to be abandoned when the lawsuits started arriving.Seattle, WA
- Sep 14, 1878When Seattle Made Property Owners Pay for Street GradingAn 1878 ordinance reveals the early mechanics of Seattle’s urban development and the 'special assessment' taxes that forced property owners to pay for city street improvements.Washington Street, Seattle, WA
- Sep 21, 1878Burning Down the House: A Seattle Fire CrisisDecades before Seattle had a reliable municipal water system, a local editor recounts the tragedy of watching a home burn to the ground for want of a hydrant.Seattle, WA
- Feb 9, 1880The Business of Veterans' Benefits in 1880s SeattleAn advertisement for a local attorney reveals the complex bureaucracy of settling Civil War military land claims and homestead rights for pioneers in the Washington Territory.Seattle, WA
- Apr 19, 1880The Seattle Editor Who Fought a MobAfter being accused of being a 'blatant traitor' and a secret sympathizer of Lincoln’s assassin, Seattle publisher Beriah Brown strikes back at his political rival.Seattle, WA
- Apr 26, 1880The Forgotten Bid for a Puget Sound Navy YardDecades before the bustling military presence on the Sound, visionaries argued that a ship canal connecting Puget Sound to Lake Washington would provide the most natural navy yard in the world.Lake Washington, Seattle, WA
- Jul 12, 1880The Political Mess of 1880A biting, satirical critique of the factions coalescing around the Republican party's nominee, James A. Garfield.Seattle, WA
- Jul 26, 1880The Skagit River Navigation FeudSeattle editors slam federal engineers and local delegates for failing to properly fund or understand the realities of river navigation.Seattle, WA
- Jul 26, 1880The Great Table Etiquette DebateAn editorial scrap between the Intelligencer and the Post-Intelligencer over whether eating with a knife is a sign of 'vulgar' breeding.Seattle, WA
- Oct 4, 1880The Collapse of a Partisan PressThe editor of 'The Dispatch' announces the closure of the publication after a series of financial betrayals and political infighting.Seattle, WA
- May 23, 1884A Costly Court House ProposalA local property owner attempts to pressure King County into buying his bluff-top lot for an exorbitant price, despite the site's clear logistical flaws.7th Ave and 8th Ave, Seattle, WA
- Aug 6, 1885The Newspaper Feud That Defined Pioneer PoliticsWhen the 'Tacoma Ledger' accused a political rival of switching parties for personal gain, a blistering public retort revealed the cutthroat world of territorial power brokers.Seattle, WA
- Jun 26, 1888The Boy Who Couldn't Stop StealingA young Seattle serial runaway and horse thief, described as having the face of an 'innocent Sunday School' student, leaves a trail of abandoned farms and confused sheriffs across the White and Duwamish rivers.Lake Union, Seattle, WA
- Oct 23, 1892The Political Reputation of John H. McGrawVeteran leader Beriah Brown defends a future governor against allegations of ties to gambling dens.Yesler Avenue, Seattle, WA