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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1889 | 1 |
| 1891 | 5 |
| 1892 | 4 |
| 1893 | 6 |
| 1894 | 5 |
| 1895 | 10 |
31 stories
- The Great 1894 Flood Devastates the Pacific Northwest
As rivers finally begin to recede, towns from Conconully to Portland recount the total destruction of homes, bridges, and livelihoods in the wake of the historic spring freshet.
- The Columbia River in Upheaval
Unprecedented flooding devastates communities along the Columbia River, washing away homes, bridges, and livelihoods.
- The Lynch Law in Conconully
After settlers in Okanogan County took an Indigenous prisoner from jail to hang him, local officials scrambled to arm the white population, fearing a retaliatory uprising.
- The Lynching of a Teenager in Okanogan
A fifteen-year-old boy, accused of murder, was dragged from a jail cell by a masked mob and executed, igniting a cycle of violence in the Washington territory.
- Vigilante Justice in Okanogan County
A young indigenous man held in the Conconully jail is abducted and lynched by a masked mob, leaving behind a chilling report of frontier lawlessness.
- The Ghost of Conconully
The Okanogan county seat was reduced to smoldering ruins in just two hours, leaving only the courthouse and schoolhouse standing.
- The Town That Washed Away
A sudden deluge destroyed nearly the entire county seat of Okanogan County, leaving survivors homeless and struggling.
- The Lynching of an Innocent Youth in Conconully
An Okanogan boy was snatched from legal custody and murdered by a mob, despite having been granted bail by a court commissioner.
- A Frontier Town Washed Away in the Night
A catastrophic flood destroyed the business district of Conconully in Okanogan County, leaving residents destitute and the town in ruins after a suspected cloudburst.
- The Engineer Who Found Stevens Pass Drowned in the Columbia
C.F.B. Haskell, who carved the pass’s name on a tree for his boss, was caught in a whirlpool with W.A. Barton and Mrs. Powell. Wenatchee went into mourning.
- The Loomis Independence Day Killing
A confrontation between a miner and a member of Chief Moses' band leads to a fatal shooting during Fourth of July celebrations.
- The Forgotten Battle at the Mouth of the Okanogan
A newly unearthed cannonball recalls a bloody 19th-century massacre between Hudson’s Bay Company traders and local Indigenous tribes.
- A Gold Rush Camp Called Ives Booms at the Mouth of the Methow
A mining promoter describes a brand-new Okanogan County town of 400 souls, a five-stamp mill running night and day, and a valley filling with prospectors.
- A Tragic Spree at Nespelem
The nephew of Chief Moses, believed to be the heir to his influence, commits a fatal act of violence following a day of drinking.
- Three Drowned in the Columbia's Whirlpool
A Seattle official watched a small boat capsize near the mouth of the Methow, drowning two men and a woman in the roiling current.
- Virginia Bill’s Riverbed Gold Rush
An enterprising miner plans to use a steamer’s machinery to pull gold from the Okanogan River, boasting a massive payout before winter arrives.
- The Towns That Were Only on the Map
A federal engineer surveyed the Okanogan in 1895 and recommended improving the river. What he described was a mining country waiting for a boom that had already gone bust.
- A Boy’s Close Encounter on the Mountainside
A thirteen-year-old boy faced a black bear on a mountain path, leading to a harrowing struggle that left a young rescuer wounded but on the mend.
- Bethune’s Report Chronicles Washington’s Early Gold Discoveries
A state geologist’s 1891 report reveals the immense mineral promise of Washington, dreaming of a future where steel mills line the mountains and industrial progress transforms the rugged wilderness.
- A Sinking Buggy, a Borrowed Team, and a Reservation About to Open
In 1892 a newspaperman packed his wife and infant into a rickety buggy to cross the soon-to-open Colville Reservation, fording the Kettle River and leaning on Native families along the way.
- Tragedy on the Colville Reservation
A mother returns to find her child dead after leaving the baby unattended near a tree.
- A Surveyor's Delay, a Land Office Snarl, and Four Dead Men in Okanogan
Settlers near Loomis have waited years for their homesteads to be platted and put on the market while paperwork sat unfinished in Washington — and in the meantime, four men have been killed fighting over boundary lines nobody could settle.
- The Homesteader Who Outlasted a Mining Town
A long land fight at Loomis ends with Napoleon Sabourin keeping his homestead against Samuel Silverman's placer claims and the townsite of Loomiston.
- A Frontier Prospector Finds Her Own Vein
Mrs. W. Miller returns to Seattle from the mines of Okanogan County, credited by her husband for discovering a high-quality ore vein during their summer development work.
- Bringing Water to the Okanogan
A new twenty-mile irrigation ditch promises to transform arid lands into fertile ground for hops and fruit.