Research the archive
Narrow 27,002 newspaper stories by words, years, place, newspaper and subject. See when and where they ran, then download what you find.
Put a phrase in quotes ("rent strike") or leave a word out with a minus (strike -baseball). Old scans misspell names, so when little is found, near-spellings are offered.
Refine2 on
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1889 | 4 |
| 1891 | 2 |
| 1892 | 13 |
| 1893 | 11 |
| 1894 | 10 |
| 1895 | 12 |
52 stories
- The Tragic Wreck of the Ferndale
Twenty men perished when the British iron bark Ferndale was driven onto the beach near Grays Harbor during the most violent storm ever recorded on the Washington coast.
- Mill Workers Resist Bank Seizure
When bankers attempted to seize a safe from a shuttered Aberdeen mill, furious workers threatened to 'lick any man' who tried to stop the operation.
- The Burning of Oakville
A deliberate act of arson leveled the Grays Harbor town of Oakville, sparking rumors of a wider conspiracy against the mill district.
- The Hero of the Ferndale Disaster
When the British bark Ferndale went down in a freezing storm off the Washington coast, one local woman braved the surf to save the lives of three sailors.
- The Scandal of a Prospective Governor
Democratic gubernatorial nominee Henry J. Snively faces accusations of swindling orphans and bigamy as he campaigns across Washington.
- The Heroine of North Beach
How Martha White, a solitary woman on the storm-lashed coast, braved mountain-high waves to pull dying sailors from the surf.
- The Mills Are Stealing a Third of Our Logs, Chehalis Loggers Charge
A letter from Elma to the editor accuses the harbor mill companies of short-scaling hand loggers into permanent debt — and calls for a combination to force a fair scale.
- The Mill That Almost Killed Everyone: A Miracle at the Cowlitz Sawmill
A massive pulley shattered and flew over a crowded mill floor in Grays Harbor. Miraculously, no one was killed—only one man injured—sparking relief in a region where industrial accidents were routine.
- The Iron Horse Reaches the Chehalis
After years of reliance on slow water routes, the residents of Montesano welcome the Northern Pacific Railroad, signaling a new era of connectivity for Grays Harbor.
- The Ghost Ship of Gray's Harbor
A schooner overdue by nine weeks is discovered wrecked on Peterson's Point, leaving no survivors from its five-man crew.
- The Gold Medal of the Sea
Martha White of Copalis receives a federal gold medal for her heroic rescue of three drowning men.
- Aberdeen’s Battle for a Waterfront Railroad
Citizens and city officials fight to break a private land monopoly blocking industrial rail access.
- The Town Bucket Brigade
When a major mill fire broke out in Montesano, the local water system failed, forcing the townspeople—including the women—to form a desperate bucket line to save the surrounding buildings.
- A Tragic Canoe Crossing on the Chehalis
A desperate attempt to save his children during a river crossing ends in a father's drowning.
- A Whaleboat Vanished in the Surf Off Grays Harbor
Lieut. Freeman H. Crosby and four seamen from the survey steamer McArthur were lost trying to land through the surf at Joe Creek, fifteen miles north of Grays Harbor.
- The Riverfront Battle in Hoquiam
Harbor commissioners prepare to hear grievances over the control of the Hoquiam riverfront, an ongoing dispute between private industry and public interest.
- Canoeing the Queets: Promise and Dispossession on the Olympic Peninsula
An 1892 travelogue celebrates homesteaders in the Queets River valley while arguing that Native hunters should be confined to the reservation.
- Thirty-Six Hours Rudderless: The J.C. Ford's Last Voyage
A lime cargo catches fire, a rudder snaps, and eight sailors are rescued off Grays Harbor moments before their ship goes down.
- A Mill Worker's Maiming at Cosmopolis
A new employee at a shingle mill is left permanently disabled after a horrific industrial accident on his first day.
- Aberdeen Bought Its Railroad With Town Lots, Timber and Days of Labor
At the Acme Opera House, mill owners and laborers alike pledged what they had—lots, ties, board and work—to persuade the Northern Pacific to extend its line into the young Grays Harbor town.
- Water Works Save Montesano from Ruin
A devastating fire tears through the business district, but the unfinished water system prevents the total loss of the town.
- The Settlers' War Against the Railroads
Aberdeen settlers demand protection as railroad companies skirt the law to clear-cut timberland.
- After the Fire in Montesano
Community members and a traveling circus rally to assist residents following a major downtown blaze.
- Five Men Lost in the Surf Near Ocosta
A fourteen-mile beach patrol finds no trace of Lieut. Crosby or four others believed drowned off the Washington coast.
- Aberdeen Throws a Party for Its First Northern Pacific Train
Twelve hundred people turned out as a new spur finally brought the Northern Pacific into Aberdeen, ending years of hauling and boosting a lumber town's hopes.