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1. They Climbed Rainier First—and Slept in a Sulphur-Scented Ice Cave

   In 1870, Hazard Stevens and P. B. Van Trump reached Mount Rainier's summit after a brutal 10½-hour climb, then spent a freezing night beside volcanic steam vents.

   Jan 6, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerMount Rainier, Pierce CountyStrange But True

2. Sixteen Seattleites Climb Rainier, With Carrier Pigeons and a Night on the Crater

   Two members of a Seattle climbing party return from Mount Rainier after the rest push on to the summit, where they plan to camp amid volcanic steam and signal the city with bonfires.

   Jul 21, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerMount Rainier, Pierce CountyStrange But True

3. The Tragedy of a Lonely Death in Electron

   A construction foreman died after a fall, mistaken for a drunk by the very men he had gone to check on.

   May 16, 1904The Tacoma TimesElectron, Pierce CountyWork & Pay · Disasters

4. A Night Spent in the Steam Vents of Mount Rainier

   An early mountaineer recounts a harrowing, freezing night spent huddled inside a steam-carved cavern near the summit.

   Sep 25, 1886Seattle Daily Post-IntelligencerMount Rainier, Ashford, Pierce CountyStrange But True

5. The Cabbies' Ghost

   Tacoma’s hackmen hold a desperate parade to break a jinxed night on Pacific Avenue.

   Jan 8, 1904The Tacoma TimesPacific Avenue, Tacoma, Pierce CountyStrange But True

6. The Night They Slept in Rainier's Ice Caves

   A Seattle climbing party returns from Mount Rainier after a storm-bound night in the summit ice caves—and Tacoma greets them like a circus.

   Jul 25, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerMount Rainier, Pierce CountyStrange But True

7. One Punch in a Tacoma Saloon, and Three Days Later a Man Was Dead

   A Seattle commercial traveler needled a dog, then a bartender. He walked the streets with a fractured skull for three days before he finally asked for a hospital — and his last coherent claim was that he'd been sandbagged.

   Feb 17, 1909The Tacoma TimesTacoma, Pierce CountyTrue Crime · Nightlife

8. The Last Drop at Our Corner Saloon

   A local saloon proprietor turns the tables on two armed robbers by pulling his own gun during a late-night hold-up.

   Sep 16, 1904The Tacoma Times1926 Jefferson Ave, Tacoma, Pierce CountyTrue Crime

9. The Saturday Night Highwaymen

   A masked gang terrorized citizens on the edge of town, holding up two men at gunpoint in a single night.

   May 23, 1904The Tacoma TimesTacoma, Pierce CountyTrue Crime

10. A Christmas on the Ice King: The Climb That Saw Rainier Smoking

    In 1894, Major Ingraham led six men, seven homing pigeons, and a camera onto Mount Rainier’s glaciers. They came back with frostbite, a story of steam and smoke rising from the crater—and one pigeon missing.

    Jan 6, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerMount Rainier, Pierce CountyStrange But True

11. A Steam-Heated Night Inside Mount Rainier

    A local professor and two students discovered steam-filled caverns and potential new plant species while spending a harrowing night inside the crater of Mount Rainier.

    Aug 7, 1903The Evening StatesmanMount Rainier, Pierce CountyStrange But True

12. The Sad Case of Fred Bokien

    A father is arrested for taking his two young daughters on a late-night drinking spree through downtown saloons.

    Jan 20, 1909The Tacoma TimesTacoma, Pierce CountyNightlife

13. The Scandal of the Sandberg District

    City council members launch a blistering investigation into a protected 'vice syndicate' they allege is forcing hundreds of women into a restricted district.

    Feb 18, 1909The Tacoma TimesTacoma, Pierce CountyCity Hall · Nightlife

14. Late-Night Stabbing on Pacific Avenue

    A laborer is found dead in a pool of blood after a night of drinking, leading police to arrest a local porter on suspicion.

    Jul 9, 1904The Tacoma TimesPacific Avenue, Tacoma, Pierce CountyTrue Crime

15. Three Thousand Boosters Eat, Cheer, and Rebrand Tacoma

    One night in February 1909: 3,000 boosters packed the armory, picked a new city slogan — 'You'll Like Tacoma' — and got sermons on land, liquor, and who should own the tide flats.

    Feb 13, 1909The Tacoma TimesTacoma, Pierce CountyBoom & Bust · City Hall

16. The Judge Who Ejected His Own Lawyer: A Tacoma Courtroom Meltdown

    In a bizarre turn of events at the Thurston County Courthouse, Presiding Judge Laurence silenced defense counsel Bronston and refused to hear the prisoner's testimony, leaving John Halson to face burglary charges in silence.

    May 26, 1888The Seattle Post-IntelligencerTacoma, Pierce CountyCity Hall · True Crime

17. The Price of Progress at Point Defiance

    Property owners and the Northern Pacific railroad clash in court over the valuation of land seized for the new Point Defiance line.

    Jan 14, 1909The Tacoma TimesOld Town, Tacoma, Pierce CountyFollow the Money

18. The Man Who Wasn't There: Tacoma's Gripman Dies from a 'Minor' Car Accident

    Sylvester Farrell, a beloved streetcar worker and union member, succumbs to injuries sustained weeks earlier when a broken cable strand caused his car to jerk. His death highlights the hidden dangers of early 20th-century transit labor.

    Dec 25, 1903The Tacoma TimesTacoma, Pierce CountyWork & Pay · Disasters

19. Tragedy in Tacoma: The Sudden Collapse of a New Building

    A newly constructed building on Tacoma Avenue falls, leaving the community reeling and survivors in critical condition.

    May 15, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerTacoma Avenue, Tacoma, Pierce CountyDisasters

20. An Umbrella, A Locked Door, and a Young Girl's Ordeal

    A teenager finds herself an unwilling prisoner in a Pacific Avenue hotel room after a chance meeting on a streetcar leads to an alleged theft and coercion.

    Sep 13, 1904The Tacoma TimesPacific Avenue, Tacoma, Pierce CountyTrue Crime

21. A Logger's Final Despair

    After being robbed of his life savings in a Tacoma resort, a distraught logger takes his own life in a series of desperate acts.

    Mar 9, 1909The Tacoma TimesTacoma, Pierce CountyTrue Crime

22. Old Town Lumber Mill Reduced to Ash

    A massive blaze consumes the Puget Sound Lumber Company plant, highlighting the urgent need for a dedicated city fire-boat.

    Mar 18, 1909The Tacoma TimesOld Town, Tacoma, Pierce CountyCity Hall · Disasters

23. The Wild Streets of 1891 Tacoma

    Footpads, sandbaggers, and burglars turned a single winter night into a crime spree across the city’s downtown.

    Jan 4, 1891The Seattle Post-IntelligencerTacoma, Pierce CountyTrue Crime

24. The Railway Hotel Trap

    A scathing critique of a Northern Pacific Railroad ticket that forced passengers to stay at a specific Tacoma hotel to validate their travel.

    May 30, 1886Seattle Daily Post-IntelligencerTacoma, Pierce CountyFollow the Money

25. The Disappearing Pioneer

    A 99-year-old man, confused by his move to a new neighborhood, wanders the city streets all night.

    Apr 22, 1909The Tacoma TimesOld Town, Tacoma, Pierce CountyStrange But True

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