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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1871 | 8 |
| 1872 | 110 |
| 1876 | 122 |
| 1877 | 95 |
| 1878 | 216 |
| 1879 | 10 |
| 1880 | 62 |
623 stories
- The Gold Hunters of Seattle's Backwoods
Three Indigenous men bring fine shot gold to the Puget Sound Banking Company, sparking a rush of speculation about rich deposits in the mountains east of town.
- The Ring is Broken: Seattle’s Republicans Revolt Against the 'Corrupt' Delegate
In a stunning display of local defiance, prominent Seattle citizens and Republican leaders publicly repudiate Territorial Delegate George W. Gillette, accusing him of betrayal and corruption ahead of the 1873 election.
- The Editor, The Gambler, and The Incorruptible Judge
A fiery editorial from 1876 exposes a local feud between the press and the judiciary, revealing a landscape of 'dance houses,' gambling hells, and political bitterness.
- A Perilous Plunge Aboard the City of Panama
An elderly passenger’s fall through an unsecured hatchway exposes the dangerous negligence of a bustling Seattle steamship.
- Showdown at the Seattle Wharf
A hotel runner's refusal to retract words during a wharfside confrontation leads to a dramatic, failed assassination attempt in broad daylight.
- The Hurdy-Gurdy House on Main Street
A Seattle neighborhood erupts in a formal complaint against the raucous music and nightly disturbances of a Main Street 'hurdy-gurdy house.'
- The Struggle to Build the First King County Jail
After years of delay, the King County Commissioners finally moved to secure land for a permanent jail—using $3,500 in county warrants to purchase a lot between Jefferson and Mill Streets.
- The 'Virtuous Spasm' of 1876: Seattle’s Early Critique of Political Greed
An editorial from the Puget Sound Dispatch captures the simmering public outrage over a government scandal in Washington Territory, drawing parallels between national corruption and the mismanagement of local university land grants.
- The Struggle for Rails and Revenue in Pioneer Seattle
An editorial chastising local property holders for failing to invest in their own infrastructure, warning that without local buy-in, Seattle’s growth remains a hostage to outside capital.
- The Man Who Built a Road on His Own dime
While Seattle’s leaders debate and delay, a Walla Walla pioneer proves that private enterprise can conquer the wilderness where public funds fail.
- The Territorial Governor’s Malice: A False Rumor of Corruption Exposed
In June 1876, the *Puget Sound Dispatch* launches a fierce defense of Washington Territory Governor William H. Wallace against a malicious slander campaign claiming he was embezzling public funds.
- The Great Drift: Seattle’s First Regatta Ends in a Tie with the Wind
Fifteen boats battled light airs and navigational errors during the July 4th celebration on Puget Sound, proving that even in 1876, Seattle's weather was as unpredictable as its politics.
- The $350 Fine That Stopped a Ship: Smuggling and Sovereignty on the Strait
In July 1876, the schooner Superior was seized by U.S. authorities for entering Victoria without clearance, sparking a legal battle over customs laws and the volatile border between Washington Territory and British Columbia.
- The Graveyard That Vanished: Seattle’s Urban Sprawl Swallows the Dead
As new dwellings rise on Front Street and Stewart Square, the old burial ground is being paved over, erasing a physical link to the city's earliest days.
- The Lottery That Wasn't: A Commissioner's Moral Standoff in 1876 Seattle
While the county board approved a gambling license for Val Wildman to fund a road project, one commissioner filed a formal protest, declaring the legislature's authority void and refusing to legitimize vice.
- The Great Log Boom Break: 800,000 Feet of Timber Set Adrift
A catastrophic failure at Colman’s mill sent a massive raft of logs floating into Elliott Bay, threatening the territory's primary industry.
- The Battle for the Territory: Judson vs. Jacobs in the 1876 Election
As the nation grapples with the disputed presidential election of 1876, Washington Territory voters head to the polls to decide their own future, pitting Republican J.P. Judson against Democrat Judge Jacobs in a fierce contest for territorial supremacy.
- The Courthouse That Built Itself
As Seattle transitioned from a frontier lumber outpost into a formal city, the County Commissioners finally took the 'bull by the horns' to replace scattered offices with a grand civic monument.
- Down the Dark Drift: A Tour of Seattle’s Coal Mines
In December 1876, a reporter takes readers on an arduous journey from Lake Union to Newcastle to witness the grueling labor and industrial scale of Puget Sound's most vital industry.
- The Nine Men Who Refused to Work: Seattle’s First Labor Standoff
In December 1876, nine coal miners at the Seattle bunkers defied orders on the ship *War Hawk*, leading Commissioner Smith to commit them to jail until the vessel sailed.
- The First Census of a Boomtown: Seattle’s Population Swells to Nearly 4,000
A newly published directory reveals the explosive growth of the Pacific Northwest's frontier city, detailing a population surge driven by logging camps and coal mines, while highlighting the stark racial demographics of 1876.
- The Crew That Wouldn't Sail: A Mutiny on the War Hawk
Seattle's shipyard workers and legal system clash as the crew of the brig War Hawk refuses to depart, citing safety concerns, while the city watches a habeas corpus battle unfold.
- The Price of Secrecy in the Puyallup Coal Fields
When a contractor is jailed for contempt, the future of a key territorial infrastructure project hangs in the balance.
- The Whaler That Never Was: A Yankee Betrayal of Puget Sound
In 1877, a local newspaper exposed how Boston shipbuilders stole a lucrative contract from Seattle’s own yards, ignoring the region's superior timber and strategic advantage for whaling.
- The Stranger’s Fatal Fight at Benton
A bystander’s attempt to break up a tavern brawl in a small town near Seattle ends in a tragic, senseless death.