Research the archive
Narrow 27,002 newspaper stories by words, years, place, newspaper and subject. See when and where they ran, then download what you find.
Put a phrase in quotes ("rent strike") or leave a word out with a minus (strike -baseball). Old scans misspell names, so when little is found, near-spellings are offered.
Refine2 on
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1888 | 34 |
| 1889 | 65 |
| 1891 | 31 |
| 1892 | 246 |
| 1893 | 259 |
| 1894 | 239 |
| 1895 | 182 |
1,056 stories
- Fisticuffs in the Judge's Chambers: Two Attorneys Settle a Newspaper Quarrel
A hot-tempered Tacoma lawyer, angered by a story in the Post-Intelligencer, storms Judge Fogg's office to confront a Seattle attorney — and gets his head tucked under his rival's arm for the trouble.
- A Drunken Saloon Quarrel Ends in Gunfire at Wilkeson
John Rolog shot fellow miner Mike Metro in the neck at Sam Evans' saloon, then fled to the hills before a posse brought him back to a makeshift cell in a boxcar.
- The Girl Who Would Not Say Who Took Her
Reported kidnapped from her Seattle home, Katie Hackworth reappeared at a Tacoma children's home, telling reporters a mysterious woman had taken her from school.
- The Missing Ledger: Tacoma Grocery's Books Vanish Before Receivership
A court examiner presses Charles E. Hale about account books that disappeared just before a receiver took over the Tacoma Grocery Company.
- The Land Agent's Ledger: A Tacoma Suicide, $15,000 in Policies, and a Northern Pacific Audit
After Paul Schulze's death, New York Life agents move to pay his policies while railroad officials quietly examine the books of their late land agent.
- Caught in the Shaft: A Tacoma Oiler's Death Nobody Saw
Fred Smith went to work at three in the morning at the St. Paul Tacoma Lumber mill. Two and a half hours later his workmates noticed he was missing — and found him beside the shaft he had been oiling.
- Two Fires Before Dawn, and One Engine to Cover Both
Turner Hall burned to the ground at 2:50 a.m., and while the department was still out, a row of four cottages went up at Twenty-fourth and M.
- Tacoma’s Mayor Fires Public Works President After a Heated Exchange
David L. Demorest tells Mayor Orr he wants nothing more to do with his administration; by evening the mayor has a letter ready declaring him out of a job.
- Tacoma's Public Works Commissioner Refuses to Vacate His Seat
David D. Dement says his term has not ended and will hold office until a successor is appointed, setting up a municipal power struggle with Mayor Orr.
- A Sealed Letter and a Fired Public Works Commissioner
Tacoma's mayor wants H. B. Mullen on the board of public works. The Populists want a week. And a hidden letter accuses the city attorney of mixing politics with a water-plant contract.
- The Day Tacoma Ran on Two Wheels
Hundreds of cyclists filled the roads, women riders multiplied, and local wheelmen organized for municipal rules—while every bicycle in town sold out.
- The Vanishing of Seth Catlin
Seth Catlin, 18, of Tacoma, disappeared while camping in the foothills of Mount Rainier. His horse was found tied to a tree, his canoe missing, and the river is being dragged for his body.
- Tacoma Sealed Its Waterfront Deal With a Telegram
The city council approved a tide-land plat after railroad and land-company officials promised rights-of-way and waterways—over dissenters who wanted more than long-distance assurances.
- A Bribe Offer on the Witness Stand
A Tacoma gambling inquiry turned stranger when the police chief mentioned an attempted payoff—then declined to name names before Friday.
- An Acre of Mine Fell In. His Estate Wants $20,000.
Thomas Anderson died in a December 1894 cave-in at the Carbon Hill mine. In Tacoma, his administrator alleges the company was negligent and seeks $20,000.
- The Seattle Customs Sting
A doctor from the local Chinese community finds himself at the center of a tense arrest after undercover officers sniffed out smuggled opium on his person during a rail transit to Tacoma.
- The 'Tramp' and the Steamer Ticket
A traveler, left penniless on the docks of Tacoma, finds an unexpected reprieve through a local act of charity.
- The Divorce That Shook Tacoma: A Wife’s Flight to San Francisco
In a rare public airing of domestic betrayal, Judge Allman grants Frank Lunkley a divorce from Mary after evidence revealed she had eloped with a Seattle man.
- The Discovery in the Post-Hole
While digging for a fence on the Puyallup Reservation, an unexpected find pulls a prehistoric giant from the earth.
- The Mysterious Vanishing Snow of Mount Rainier
A Wallula newspaper reports a strange, massive slide that left a mile-wide track across the face of the mountain.
- The Porpoise and the Cow: A Nautical Disaster in Tacoma
A schooner, a one-eyed cow, and a cargo-hoisting gone horribly wrong—a day on the Tacoma waterfront that ended in broken bunks and a damp bovine.
- Camp Life at American Lake
Washington's National Guard settles into training at Camp Murray, though soldiers protest substandard conditions and poor transportation.
- The Sad State of McNeil Island
A former inmate calls for books to replace the monotony of prison life.
- Tragedy on the Puyallup Reservation
A married member of the Puyallup tribe found dead following Fourth of July celebrations.
- Tacoma Baseball Club Sued for Back Pay
Players from the disbanded Tacoma team attach the club’s property to recover unpaid salaries.