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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1888 | 330 |
| 1889 | 821 |
| 1891 | 345 |
| 1892 | 1,428 |
| 1893 | 1,737 |
| 1894 | 1,323 |
| 1895 | 1,115 |
7,099 stories
- Olympia’s Capitol Fight: Donate the Land or Lose the Statehouse
A late-night Senate debate over the new state capitol turned on eleven acres, a $150,000 land scheme and whether Olympia should pay to keep the building—before the bill passed to applause.
- The Bold Plan to Build the Lake Washington Canal
Facing gridlock in Congress, Seattle’s Chamber of Commerce pushed a local bill to authorize the county to construct the canal itself, aiming to transform the city into the 'first city on the Pacific coast.'
- Garfield County Town Devastated by Early Morning Blaze
A suspected act of arson leveled the business district of Pataha City, leaving residents to flee for their lives as a fierce wind carried the flames.
- Railroad Giant Declares Bankruptcy
The Northern Pacific Railroad has been placed into receivership, signaling a major shift in Northwest transit and land development.
- The Judge Who Refused to Break a Strike
While other courts rushed to silence workers, Judge Henry Caldwell of the U.S. Circuit Court set a radical precedent: railroad workers had the right to strike and the right to be heard.
- The Mayor's Right to Fight City Hall
A landmark Washington Supreme Court ruling affirmed a mayor's authority to hire private counsel when the city's own legal department refused to defend the city against an illegal bond ordinance.
- The Seizure of the Steamer Fairy
Federal authorities seize a vessel accused of smuggling eight Chinese laborers into Puget Sound.
- The $3 Million Scheme to Turn Seattle's Tide Flats into Dry Land
A private company plans to dredge the Duwamish and fill Elliott Bay's mudflats — paid not in cash but in land and liens — while St. Louis money waits to see the ground before it bets.
- Seattle Passed the Hat to Dig Its Canal
A six-week citizens' campaign filled the Lake Washington waterway subsidy with $1 donations, corporate checks and a Kirkland land pledge—then declared the work ready to begin.
- Seattle Republicans Make Case for Lake Washington Canal in 1892
Republican leaders rally in Seattle to advocate for the Lake Washington Canal, framing it as the city’s essential path to commercial supremacy over rival Tacoma.
- Railroads Clash in Court Over Seattle Waterfront Tracks
Great Northern's subsidiary sues to condemn a right-of-way through the industrial heart of Seattle's waterfront.
- Eight Dead, and the Steamboat Owners Owe Only $3,500
A federal judge in Seattle limits the Annie Faxon's liability after a Snake River boiler explosion, extending an old maritime rule to inland steamboats.
- James J. Hill’s Vision for a Trans-Pacific Flour Trade
The Great Northern president met with local merchants to discuss establishing a permanent steamship line between Seattle and Hong Kong.
- The Man in the Red Drawers
A distressed man wielding a saw causes a scene in the streets of South Seattle, highlighting the era's lack of support for those in mental crisis.
- Seattle Erupts: The Railroad That Tied the Territory to the Nation
A massive public celebration breaks out as news confirms the Seattle, Lake Shore and Eastern Railway will finally reach Spokane Falls, ending years of isolation.
- The Opium King’s Last Stand: A Seattle Showdown
As federal agents prepare to prosecute the city's most notorious vice figure, he stands defiant in his hotel room, claiming his trunks were rigged and vowing to clear his name before a New York jury.
- The Newcastle Standoff: Labor’s Last Stand in the Shadow of the Mines
As Seattle prepares for its Fourth of July celebrations, a violent labor dispute in nearby Newcastle threatens to shut down the region's timber industry. The Knights of Labor demand the reinstatement of fired worker Kelly Ramsey, while company officials and county authorities clash over jurisdiction, legality, and the very definition of union power.
- The Coal That Built Seattle: How a Strike at Newcastle Mine Shook the City's Economy
A bitter labor dispute between the Oregon Improvement Company and the Knights of Labor has shut down the Newcastle coal mine, halting shipments to Portland and driving up fuel prices across Puget Sound.
- The Million-Dollar Protest: Front Street Owners vs. The Cable Car
Pioneers and property magnates rallied against a proposed cable railway on Seattle’s main thoroughfare, arguing that the city council was ignoring the will of taxpayers in favor of outside capital.
- The Front Street Fraud: How Seattle's Council Sold Its Soul for a Cable Car
An editorial outcry accuses city officials of corruption in the approval of a lucrative franchise for a non-resident corporation, warning that the public interest is being sacrificed for private profit.
- The Great Seattle Streetcar Heist
A scathing editorial exposing the city council's plans to give away a lucrative cable car franchise on Front Street without public oversight or fair payment.
- The Opium Conspiracy: How Seattle’s Customs Chief Played Both Sides
A dramatic trial reveals a scheme where federal inspectors smuggled contraband across the border while pretending to seize it, exposing deep corruption in early 20th-century Pacific Northwest law enforcement.
- The Forgotten Souls of the County Poor Farm
A rare, unflinching account of the grim conditions inside Seattle’s makeshift county asylum, where the elderly and infirm were left to languish on hard wooden planks.
- The Horror in the Brush
Surveyors working in the woods of West Seattle discover a yellow trunk containing a gruesome, blood-stained discovery that suggests a dark crime.
- The Battle for the Seattle Streets
A fierce legal and corporate rivalry over cable car franchises threatens to tear up Seattle's downtown, while a mysterious entrepreneur promises to modernize the city with electric power.