Treasury Department
Named in 12 stories. Back to all names
- Sep 20, 1883The Open Secret of Puget Sound SmugglingA Treasury agent investigating the border dismisses reports of Chinese smuggling as 'exaggerated,' revealing the complicity of local lumbermen who view the law as a joke.Port Townsend, WA
- Apr 5, 1885The Battle for the Custom HouseSeattle property owners clash over where the city's new federal building should stand.Seattle, WA
- Aug 28, 1887The Struggle for a Seattle ShipyardAs railroad expansion swallows the waterfront, local mariners argue the city's future depends on building a floating dry dock to survive.Port Blakely, Seattle, WA
- Feb 2, 1889The Great Car Tax: How a Treasury Order Threatened Seattle’s Rail LifelineA new federal duty on foreign railroad cars threatens to strangle trade between the Pacific Northwest and the East, sparking fears of economic isolation for Washington Territory.Seattle, WA
- Sep 3, 1892Fifty Dollars for a Clean Bill of HealthA quarantine officer charged a sealing schooner $50 to steam over and inspect her — and shipping men say the fee was less public health than protection money.Seattle, WA
- Sep 24, 1892Canada’s Naturalization Papers Denied at the BorderFederal authorities reject the residency status of Chinese British subjects, sparking a test case for immigration restrictions.Port Townsend, WA
- Oct 18, 1892The Customs Feud That Fired on a Chilean BarkA Chilean vessel left Tacoma without clearance and was chased by a U.S. revenue cutter in Puget Sound—an international incident sparked by jealousy between Chile's local representatives.Port Townsend, WA
- Jan 7, 1894Border officials block Chinese merchant entryNew federal regulations trigger a strict enforcement crackdown on Chinese residents returning to Seattle.Seattle, WA
- Jul 20, 1894A Treasury Man Finds Seattle 'a Revelation'—and Vows to Crush Puget Sound SmugglingAssistant Secretary Charles S. Hamlin arrives by revenue cutter to inspect customs, promise more launches and officers, and warn opium and Chinese smuggling rings that the federal government is coming.Seattle, WA
- Jan 23, 1895A Customs Official, a Forged Check, and the Opium Hidden in Coal-Oil TinsEx-immigration inspector Thomas M. Fisher was arrested at Port Townsend for allegedly forging a Canadian officer's endorsement and pocketing a $350 opium-seizure reward.Port Townsend, WA
- Feb 1, 1895The Oath That Failed: A Chinese Registration Case CollapsesA Seattle federal commissioner rules that deputy collectors had no authority to administer the oath required by the Chinese registration laws—undercutting a perjury charge against Chin Un Chong.Seattle, WA
- Mar 20, 1899The Gold Rush That Wasn't: Copper River’s ‘Sickness’ and the Lie of the TrailA prospector returns from the Copper River country with a chilling warning: the gold is gone, the camps are sick, and the 'passage' to new fields is a myth.Port Townsend, WA