United States Land Office
Named in 9 stories. Back to all names
- Nov 3, 1877The Struggle for a Snohomish HomesteadA legal notice reveals the bureaucratic hurdles pioneers faced to prove their claim to the Snohomish river valley.Snohomish, WA
- Jul 7, 1883Spokane Wins the Land OfficeAfter a desperate struggle against rival towns, Spokane Falls secures the U.S. Land Office, cementing its status as the region's rising metropolis.Spokane, WA
- Sep 13, 1883The Great Seattle Land Office FireA devastating blaze sweeps through downtown, destroying irreplaceable public records and a local church.Main Street, Seattle, WA
- Jul 27, 1888The Unlucky Prospector and the Peril of 'Dynamite Mania'While Seattle’s elite returned from an Alaskan excursion, a local laborer named 'Jim' Ward found himself embroiled in a bizarre dispute over mining claims, accusations of sabotage, and a reputation for blowing things up.Seattle, WA
- Aug 4, 1888The Unchecked Power of a Federal OfficialA federal official at the Seattle land office, known for his hot temper and suspicious treatment of settlers, escapes a serious perjury investigation with only a slap on the wrist.Front Street, Seattle, WA
- Apr 24, 1889The Skagit Land Rush: A Morning of Chaos and ClevernessWhen the federal land office in Seattle opened to accept claims for the Upper Skagit river, a line of hundreds descended into a power struggle defined by military-style organization, gender politics, and shifting rules.Columbia Street, Seattle, WA
- Oct 25, 1889Who Owns the Waterfront?A government land office ruling denies the use of Valentine scrip on Tacoma's harbor front, setting a major precedent for municipal control.Tacoma, WA
- Nov 14, 1891The Brick Blocks That Told Olympia It Had ArrivedIn 1891, three pressed-brick buildings rose along Olympia’s business streets—and boosters read them as proof the wooden capital was becoming a real city.Olympia, WA
- May 15, 1903The Legal Trap of Unsurveyed LandA legal clarification reveals that heirs of homesteaders on unsurveyed land in Washington may lose their claims entirely upon the settler's death.Seattle, WA