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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1882 | 3 |
| 1883 | 56 |
| 1884 | 25 |
| 1885 | 43 |
| 1886 | 26 |
| 1887 | 70 |
223 stories
- Sailors Sue the Ship Challenger Over Abuse at Sea
Eight sailors sue for wages and damages after allegedly being beaten with clubs and belaying pins during a voyage from Philadelphia to Tacoma.
- Forced Relocation at Puyallup
Government authorities move indigenous students to Oregon to hasten 'the civilizing process.'
- The Horror at Fort Steilacoom
A former minister exposes systemic abuse and torture at the territorial hospital for the insane.
- A Night of Terror in Tacoma
A massive blaze sweeps through a bustling downtown block, consuming businesses and revealing the precarity of the city's early fire defenses.
- The Northern Pacific Railroad's Coal Land Grab
Critics decry the President's support for the railroad’s expansion into coal lands against the public interest.
- The Fight Over the Puyallup Coal Road
A Senate debate exposes the Northern Pacific Railroad's attempt to secure land grants for a coal line under the guise of the Cascade branch.
- U.S. Marshal Transports Prisoners to McNeil Island
A roundup of prisoners sent to the federal penitentiary highlights the era's aggressive and exclusionary legal climate.
- A Murderer Pries His Way Out of the Steilacoom Asylum
Gianini, convicted of killing a Jewish peddler in Eastern Washington, removed a bar from his cell window and vanished; scouts were sent out in every direction.
- The Price of a 'Sharp Practice'
An early Tacoma settler recounts how a handshake deal for a town site—and his trust in corporate promises—cost him a half-million-dollar fortune.
- The Forgotten Pioneer Who Built Tacoma
Job Carr arrived in a wilderness with an ox team and a dream of a railroad terminal, only to die with a broken heart as the city he staked rose up to push him aside.
- Streetcar Chaos and the Case of the Two Dynamite Bombs
An evening confrontation on a Tacoma streetcar escalated into a brawl involving two armed men and a terrifying discovery of hidden explosives.
- The Brutal Execution of Chief Kanaskat
A vivid and harrowing account of the 1856 Puyallup conflict and the killing of the Klickitat leader.
- The Shadow Over the Puyallup Valley
A Seattle committee investigates allegations of land-grabbing by the Northern Pacific Railway, threatening the tenure of timber and land owners.
- The Tacoma Tragedy: A Father's Descent into Madness
Seattle mourns the Walters family, whose recent murder-suicide in Tacoma has shaken the community. The paper reflects on the fragility of sanity when grief and financial ruin collide.
- The Tragedy on Trestle No. 4
A father's desperate attempt to walk his children to safety during a heavy snowstorm ends in a devastating train accident on the outskirts of Tacoma.
- The City’s Legal Train Wreck
A ruling against Tacoma’s property tax scheme for street improvements threatens to bankrupt local progress, leaving the city in a legislative stalemate.
- The Rogue Marshal of Tacoma
Citizens formally impeach the City Marshal for cozying up to brothel owners and ignoring the law.
- The Fight for Puyallup: A Last-Minute Land Grab
Before leaving office, Interior Secretary Teller attempted to block land titles for the Puyallup people, favoring the expansion of a local corporation.
- The Tragedy on Meridian Street
A double murder-suicide in Tacoma marks a violent end for a couple married just three months.
- The Price of a Puyallup Valley Land War
A long-standing dispute over a donation land claim ends in a deadly shooting on a farm near Sumner.
- Fatal Forest Hazard Claims Life Near South Prairie
A falling tree at a railroad contractor's camp kills one worker and injures eight others, exposing the perilous conditions of logging near forest fires.
- The Shadow of the Anti-Chinese Movement in Puyallup
A local meeting of citizens and the Sheriff turns into a mass swearing-in of deputy sheriffs as anti-Chinese agitation reaches a fever pitch.
- The Great Land Grab: 1886 Democracy vs. The Northern Pacific
At the 1886 Democratic Territorial Convention in Tacoma, delegates launched a blistering critique against the Northern Pacific Railroad for failing its promises and seizing public lands meant for settlers.
- When the Law Stops the City
A judicial ruling in Tacoma paralyzes street improvements, sparking a bitter feud between city officials and property owners.
- The Pen Is Mightier Than the Pistol
A Tacoma newspaper editor survives a point-blank assassination attempt after writing a stinging column about a local rival's reputation.