Organization

Congress

Named in 25 stories. Back to all names

Jul 15, 1859A Majority of 108 from Seventy VotersThe territorial election returns smelled of the ballot box: Whatcom County, with barely eighty voters, reported a majority of 108 for Stevens.Bellingham, WA
Aug 2, 1862The Relocation of the Customs HouseCitizens of Port Townsend are reeling after reports that the Custom-House is being moved to satisfy political land speculators.Port Townsend, WA
May 16, 1872The Death of the American ShipyardIn an 1873 speech, Congressman Alexander Mitchell argued that excessive taxation and protectionist tariffs were systematically destroying the American shipping industry, forcing once-prosperous shipbuilders into obsolescence.Seattle, WA
Jul 17, 1876The Struggle for the Swinomish SloughWhile Washington Territory languished without federal infrastructure support, local steamboat operators were left to navigate a dangerous, shifting channel entirely on their own dime.Mount Vernon, WA
Nov 11, 1876The Great Coal Tariff DebateAn 1876 editorial argues for high protectionist tariffs on coal to shield Puget Sound mining wages from foreign competition and low-wage labor.Seattle, WA
Dec 8, 1876The President's Vision for a Settler-Colonial ExpansionIn his final annual message, President Ulysses S. Grant reflects on the centennial of the republic, the management of the post-war South, and a failed dream of annexing Santo Domingo to solve the 'Negro question.'Seattle, WA
Apr 5, 1877The Land Grab That Built Seattle: How Indian Reserves Held Back the CityIn 1877, local editors railed against federal land policies that reserved vast tracts of fertile Washington Territory for Native American use, arguing these 'monopolies' stifled white settlement and speculation.Seattle, WA
Dec 29, 1879The Unsung Pioneers of the Skagit RiverWhen federal funds for regional infrastructure failed to materialize, a group of Seattle loggers took matters into their own hands to open the Skagit River to navigation.Skagit River, Mount Vernon, WA
Apr 27, 1882The Senator’s Crusade for Public EducationAn 1882 Congressional proposal sought to use whiskey tax revenue to fund the nation's public schools, promising tens of thousands of dollars to Washington Territory.Seattle, WA
May 16, 1882The Roller Rink's Strict RulesAn 1881 Seattle rink owner moves to sanitize the reputation of his roller skating establishment.Seattle, WA
Aug 18, 1883The Homestead Scam That Turned Public Land Into a Speculator’s PrizeAn 1883 exposé from Walla Walla describes how doctors, lawyers and merchants faked frontier residency to grab government land—and why the law made perjury easy.Walla Walla, WA
Mar 27, 1884The Fight to Break the Northern Pacific MonopolyA fiery editorial argues that Congress must reclaim millions of acres of 'unearned' land granted to the Northern Pacific Railroad to save the future of Washington Territory.Seattle, WA
Jun 4, 1884Northern Pacific's Land Claims Took Two-Thirds of WashingtonA scathing critique of how the Northern Pacific Railroad manipulated maps and political influence to hoard millions in timber, coal, and agricultural lands.Seattle, WA
Jun 21, 1885The U.S. Navy’s Floating Picnic BasketWhile Washington territory officials argued over naval procurement, one local paper questioned why the government was spending a fortune on a useless 'dispatch boat' better suited for parties than maritime defense.Seattle, WA
Oct 15, 1886Washington Territory's 1886 Statehood BillDelegate Voorhees presents the case for Washington Territory's admission into the Union, emphasizing the constitutional safeguards proposed in his latest bill.Seattle, WA
Jan 5, 1889The Grassroots Call for StatehoodBefore Washington was a state, its residents organized informal, spirited conventions to demand entry into the Union.Ellensburg, WA
Jan 16, 1889The Ghost Legislature: How Congress Strangled Washington's VoiceIn January 1893, the territorial assembly convened only to immediately adjourn because Washington had no federal funding for its own government. A local editorial decries this as a farce that leaves citizens paying taxes without representation.Seattle, WA
Feb 21, 1889The Name That Wasn't: How Washington State Got Its Name BackIn February 1889, Congress nearly erased Seattle's home state from the map, replacing it with 'Tacoma' in a final admission bill. A last-minute correction saved the territory's identity just before statehood.Seattle, WA
May 12, 1889The Salmon War: A 19th-Century Plea for Equitable FishingA sea captain argues that restrictive fishing regulations are designed to benefit luxury fur traders at the expense of the working class’s food supply.Seattle, WA
Sep 30, 1889The Fight for Washington’s Capital CityA Seattle writer argues that moving the seat of government east of the Cascades would cripple maritime commerce.Olympia, WA
Jan 1, 1895Seattle's Audacious Bid for a Fresh-Water HarborIn 1890, boosters promised that a ship canal from Lake Washington to Puget Sound would cut docking costs, defeat wood-boring teredo worms, and hand Seattle the world's cheapest harbor.Seattle, WA
Jan 13, 1895The Federal Jobs That Came With Life TenureA new civil-service order gives Puget Sound customs officers—from deputies to private secretaries—protection that even a change of administration may not break.Port Townsend, WA
Jan 29, 1895The House Would Rather Not Buy the RailroadsOlympia lawmakers mock a memorial urging Congress to foreclose on the Pacific railroads, then vote 67-55 to let the matter drop.Olympia, WA
Jun 15, 1899The City That Forgot Its Own Port: Seattle’s Fight for Military LogisticsIn 1903, local officials and business leaders railed against the War Department’s decision to route troops bound for the Philippines through San Francisco instead of Puget Sound, arguing that geography and economic destiny were being ignored by distant bureaucrats.Seattle, WA
Apr 9, 1909Beauty Trends and Economic BetrayalA critique of how the public's obsession with celebrity fashion distracts from the economic harm of the Payne-Aldrich Tariff.Tacoma, WA