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.
Refine1 on
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1877 | 2 |
| 1882 | 2 |
| 1883 | 110 |
| 1884 | 44 |
| 1885 | 1 |
| 1886 | 1 |
| 1887 | 6 |
| 1888 | 2 |
| 1889 | 24 |
| 1890 | 5 |
| 1891 | 12 |
| 1892 | 57 |
| 1893 | 40 |
| 1894 | 41 |
| 1895 | 35 |
| 1897 | 5 |
| 1898 | 12 |
| 1899 | 5 |
| 1900 | 4 |
| 1902 | 19 |
| 1903 | 77 |
| 1904 | 16 |
| 1905 | 3 |
| 1907 | 3 |
| 1908 | 16 |
| 1909 | 33 |
| 1910 | 16 |
| 1911 | 1 |
| 1912 | 3 |
| 1914 | 5 |
| 1915 | 2 |
| 1916 | 13 |
| 1917 | 8 |
| 1922 | 1 |
| 1923 | 9 |
| 1924 | 6 |
| 1925 | 1 |
640 stories
- The Tin-Can Alarm Clock Prank That Sent a Spokane Sleeper Racing Downtown at 1:30 A.M.
A prominent citizen rigged a string-and-tin-can wake-up call with the night watchman. Local pranksters pulled the string first—and he dressed and ran for a train that wasn't leaving.
- A Stage for the Falls: The Push for Spokane's First Great Opera House
With touring companies expected on the Northern Pacific, local boosters propose a 1,000-seat frame hall—and a joint-stock company to build it for $6,000.
- A Bridge to Span the Spokane
Citizens fund a new crossing at Post Street, promising a vital link between the city's shores and a grand view of the falls.
- Drawing the Lines of a New City
A called council meeting in September 1883 redrew Spokane Falls’s boundaries, split it into four wards, and argued over who would elect the city’s officers.
- A 100-Acre Bet on North Spokane
An Eastern investor buys a tract north of the river for $12,500 and plans to plat it into lots and build houses—classic Spokane booster speculation.
- A Miner's Pockets Full of Gold Nuggets — and a Placer Strike 40 Miles From Town
A Spokane Falls businessman bound for the Cœur d'Alene mines never got there, but came back with nuggets and gold-crusted quartz from a richer claim far nearer home.
- Trail Wars: Spokane Fights for the Road to the Coeur d'Alene Gold
As prospectors rush the new Coeur d'Alene diggings, Spokane boosters battle a Portland paper over which trail is passable — and who gets to outfit the stampede.
- Spokane Merchants Meet to Carve a Wagon Road to the Big Bend
An enthusiastic crowd in Cannon's Hall backs a road from Spokane Falls to Okanogan, and two men set out through a snowstorm to find the route.
- Spokane Falls Organizes to Build Its First Public Library
A handful of citizens meet in Cannon's Hall to launch a free reading room and library — a public institution open to all, funded by subscription, and aimed at the thousands who will make the town their home.
- A Silver Strike North of the Falls Promises a Fortune
Four men from Tacoma and Spokane incorporate the Spokane Mining and Smelting Company on a claim in the Colville country, with assays running nearly $60 a ton.
- The Man Who Survived Thirteen Doctors
A patient's wry, furious account of his bout with spinal meningitis — and the horse-doctor who killed a servant girl with a morphine syringe — skewers the medical profession of his day.
- The Hotel That Was 'Out in the Woods' Now Can't Keep Up
Fifteen months after skeptics predicted the Sprague House would fail for being too far from town, its proprietor is adding fifty rooms to meet the rush.
- The Rush That Wouldn't Quit
Pack trains, wholesale houses and a flood of strangers: Spokane Falls cashes in on the Coeur d'Alene mining boom.
- The Horse That Stayed Out All Night: A Spokane Humane Case
Farmer C.G. Windsor claims his horse was neglected after being left at the Arlington Stables and driven to a club, but the law sees it differently.
- The White Doe of the Cascades: A Rare Albino Captured in the Wilds
A peculiar white deer, killed north of Cascade Valley and brought to Spokane for exhibition, offers a glimpse into the region's untamed wildlife.
- The Squeaky Delegate from Everett
A state labor convention in Spokane comes to a screeching halt when a delegate's artificial limb runs dry.
- The State Moves to Regulate Morticians
Washington joins the national movement to license embalmers, citing public health risks on the railways.
- Street Robbery in Spokane
Two young boys ambushed a woman near a streetcar stop, snatching her purse in the dark.
- The Cowboy Who Out-Judged the College Experts
A herdsman’s personal gamble on a prize-winning steer proves that instinct outshines institutional caution in the competitive world of livestock breeding.
- The Unopened Wealth of Eastern Washington
University of Washington researchers argue that the state’s massive kaolin and feldspar deposits could transform Spokane into a ceramic powerhouse.
- Honoring the Forgotten Pathfinder of the Columbia
After decades in an unmarked pauper's grave, the explorer who first traced the Columbia River to the sea finally receives his due.
- The Fading Power of the People's Party
A skeptical report on the state convention of the Populists in Spokane, suggesting the once-mighty movement is now a mere shell.
- Temperance Literature by Mail
The Anti-Saloon League pivots to direct mail for those obtaining liquor permits in Eastern Washington.
- Spokane Debuts its Grand Ice Palace
An ambitious new entertainment complex opens its doors at Sinto and Cannon, promising a massive skating area for the public.
- The Bullfighter Who Captured Spokane's Socialites
A Spanish bullfighter finds himself besieged by the social elite and abandons his profession for the attention of local women.