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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1888 | 6 |
| 1889 | 41 |
| 1891 | 42 |
| 1892 | 32 |
| 1893 | 108 |
| 1894 | 18 |
| 1895 | 112 |
359 stories
- Washington's 1889 Convention Settles Prohibition, Corporations
Delegates in Olympia rush to finalize state constitutional provisions, including contentious debates over railroad commissions and alien land ownership.
- The Hard-Fought Birth of Washington's Constitution
Exhausted delegates in Olympia spend a grueling day debating the future of school lands, property rights, and the framework for a new state government.
- The Shadow of the Railroad: Tide Lands and Public Trust
As Washington state's constitutional convention drags on, delegates engage in a fierce legislative showdown over the fate of public tide lands, pitted against powerful rail and improvement corporations.
- The Trial of Judge Hoyt
Facing a barrage of 'partisan slander' in the race for state office, Judge John P. Hoyt fights back against claims he acted as a railroad puppet and denied due process to labor protesters.
- The Senatorial Duel: A Tale of Two Cities and One Beltway Seat
As the Washington legislature prepares to convene in 1891, the race for the U.S. Senate descends into a fierce local rivalry between established incumbent Watson C. Squire of Seattle and the ambitious newcomer Judge William H. Calkins of Tacoma.
- The Wheat Blockade
A political standoff at the state capital reveals the struggle between Eastern Washington farmers and the railroad monopolies.
- The Political Bazaar of 1891: How the Calkins Faction Tried to Buy the Senate
In a frantic scramble to seize power, legislative 'strikers' in Olympia flooded the capital with promises of patronage and political favors, mirroring the high-stakes, behind-the-scenes maneuvering that still defines state politics.
- The Three-Way Split: How Bitter Feuds Carved Eastern Washington
In January 1891, the state legislature dissolved Lincoln County into three new entities—Grant, Big Bend, and remaining Lincoln—to settle a decades-long battle over county seats that once involved armed men holding courthouse keys.
- The Man Who Exposed the Bribe: Metcalfe’s Stand Against Olympia’s ‘Boodle’ Gang
In a rare display of moral courage in Washington's early political history, Representative Metcalfe turned a bribe into evidence, sparking a war with corruptionists that the paper defends as necessary for good government.
- The Disappearing Witness in the Senatorial Bribery Scandal
As the state legislature remains deadlocked in a bribery probe, a mysterious figure named Atwood vanishes after allegedly attempting to buy votes.
- The Senatorial Bribery Scandal Rocking Olympia
A state judge admits to soliciting votes for the Senate through promises of state institution locations, casting a shadow over the political corruption of the 1891 legislative session.
- The Great Railway Debate
Legislators in Olympia grapple with the Farmers' Alliance, railroad monopolies, and the fight for equitable shipping rates as tension mounts between East and West Washington.
- The Phantom Bribe: A Legislative Ghost Hunt in Olympia
A state representative demands an investigation into a 'phantom' briber, while the legislature becomes deadlocked by scandal and partisan maneuvering.
- The Sting at the State Capital
A political whistleblower braves public scorn to expose the bribery and influence-peddling that turned the Washington State legislature into a 'reeking cesspool.'
- The Great Railway Freight Revolt
In a 1891 legislative showdown, Washington lawmakers slashed freight rates by 25 percent to combat railroad monopolies, sparking a fierce debate over state versus corporate control.
- The Shadowy Trade of the Sound
A Canadian steamer allegedly lands contraband laborers and opium near Olympia, revealing a thriving underground network of smuggling that has turned the city into a Puget Sound rendezvous.
- The Ship Canal Double-Cross at the Democratic Convention
Seattle's delegates went to Olympia ready to die on the canal plank. Their own campaign manager had already sold them out.
- The Great School Land Scandal
A scathing state report reveals that county commissioners are exploiting their power to fix land prices, effectively buying state-owned school lands for themselves.
- The Senatorial Tug-of-War
As the legislature gathers in Olympia, Northern Pacific lobbyists and political hopefuls fight for control over Senator John B. Allen’s seat.
- The Political Pressure Cooker in Olympia
Constituents turn on a Snohomish representative for 'faithlessness' in the ongoing deadlock over Washington's U.S. Senate seat.
- The Senatorial Deadlock
A bitter, weeks-long political war at the state capital reaches a boiling point as George Turner accuses Governor McGraw of leaking a private negotiation.
- Spokane Delegation Breaks for John B. Allen
A legislative stalemate over the election of John B. Allen reveals fractures in the Spokane delegation and a bitter feud between political factions.
- The Corporate Shadow Over the Statehouse
A political correspondent reveals how powerful railroad interests are manipulating the deadlocked senatorial contest in Olympia to stall anti-corporate legislation.
- The Strange Mystery of Eugene Semple's 'Sack'
As the senatorial deadlock in Olympia stretches on, an ex-governor arrives with rumors of a $1,000 slush fund to buy his way into office.
- The Olympia Deadlock
Legislative chaos in Olympia as the Senate remains paralyzed by a months-long standoff over the election of a U.S. Senator.