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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1859 | 1 |
| 1877 | 1 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1879 | 1 |
| 1883 | 2 |
| 1884 | 1 |
| 1886 | 1 |
| 1887 | 7 |
| 1888 | 3 |
| 1889 | 2 |
| 1891 | 2 |
| 1892 | 14 |
| 1893 | 9 |
| 1894 | 8 |
| 1895 | 9 |
| 1899 | 2 |
| 1903 | 4 |
| 1904 | 11 |
| 1909 | 20 |
99 stories matching develop
- The Puyallup Land Dispute: A Forgotten Fight for City Growth
In 1892, Representative John L. Wilson proposed liquidating the Puyallup Indian Reservation to spur the growth of Tacoma, highlighting the long-standing tension between tribal sovereignty and urban expansion.
- Brutality Uncovered at the Soldiers' Home
Following an investigation, the state board of control fires a hospital steward accused of subjecting elderly, vulnerable veterans to inhuman conditions.
- Tacoma’s Public Works Board Accused of Coercing City Employees
Depositions before the city council allege that public works bosses used their power to make employees campaign for the waterworks purchase—and that the board paid too much for sewer pipe.
- The Opium Ring Debauching Tacoma’s Messenger Boys
Detective Flannigan uncovers a ring of adults using opium and illicit lodging houses to exploit children in the messenger service.
- Railroad Seeks to Vacate Nine Waterfront Street Ends
Tacoma’s City Council faces a standoff as the Northern Pacific Railway moves to consolidate control over city streets and waterfront access.
- The City-Line Land Grab
A real estate developer attempts to use municipal law to exclude his own property from city taxes while reaping the benefits of inclusion.
- The Scandal that Wrecked Two Homes
A betrayal of friendship and marriage in Tacoma leads to a sudden disappearance and the ruin of two local families.
- Vast Coal Seams Found Beneath South Tacoma
Drilling for water reveals a significant, potentially commercial coal deposit within city limits.
- The Tacoma Water Swindle Scandal
Taxpayers demand an investigation into claims that city officials engaged in criminal fraud during the procurement of the municipal water system.
- Drunken Assailant Attempts Point-Blank Shooting on Pacific Avenue
An intoxicated man confronted an employee of the Richmond Paper Company, but the victim managed to deflect the weapon during the struggle.
- The War for Power in the Pacific Northwest
A Boston-backed syndicate attempts to monopolize water rights and electricity, sparking a high-stakes legal battle with independent producer Charles H. Baker.
- The Absurd Scheme to Build a Railway to the Top of Mount Rainier
When a coal mine failed, desperate land speculators proposed a preposterous tourist railroad to the summit of the mountain to boost property values.
- The Promised City on the Sound
Promoters in 1879 painted a utopian vision of New Tacoma, promising a perfectly planned metropolis designed for wealth and grandeur at the terminus of the Northern Pacific Railroad.
- A Newborn Found in a Basket Under a Tacoma Cemetery Bridge
A coroner's grim morning in 1895: an abandoned infant discovered in Oakland Cemetery, wrapped in a lady's undervest and calico, with no clue to its mother.
- The Price of a Transit Franchise
Tacoma’s City Council strikes a bargain for new railway depots in Old Town and the Narrows, bartering city streets for future development.
- The Imperial Building's Bitter Feud
A development project for an 'Imperial building' fractures as partners accuse one another of backroom sabotage.
- The Fight for Public Water Power
As corporations scramble to monopolize the nation's rivers, the Times argues that the government must intervene before water becomes a private commodity.
- The Miracle Toad of Tacoma
A small toad discovered buried beneath seventeen feet of hardpan sparks curiosity and scientific wonder.
- Tacoma’s Theaters Under Fire Safety Review
Building inspectors find local stages lacking modern fire protections, prompting calls for new safety ordinances.
- The Hop King's Defense
Ezra Meeker pushes back against public criticism, defending his company’s labor practices during the hard times of 1894.
- An Old Tacoma Church Crumbles
A historic Catholic building, moved to make way for development, is destroyed by a winter storm before it could be repurposed.
- The Soldiers' Home at Orting: A Haven for Veterans
A report on the successful founding, management, and low death rate at the new state-funded home for disabled soldiers.
- The Real Estate Titan Who Fell to Earth
Allen C. Mason, the man who built the Tacoma boom, sees his mortgage empire collapse under the weight of taxes and hard times.
- The Forgotten Fortune in the Chapin Mine
A Tacoma man claims he was cut out of a million-dollar mineral discovery that sparked a heated legal battle in the Washington Territory.
- Puyallup Leader Peter Stanup Reported Missing in Tacoma
The Puyallup leader vanished after a night of drinking and tension over reservation land, leaving his community in mourning and suspicion.