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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1862 | 2 |
| 1863 | 1 |
| 1877 | 1 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1880 | 2 |
| 1882 | 1 |
| 1883 | 5 |
| 1884 | 10 |
| 1886 | 1 |
| 1887 | 3 |
| 1888 | 19 |
| 1889 | 6 |
| 1891 | 6 |
| 1892 | 27 |
| 1893 | 41 |
| 1894 | 18 |
| 1895 | 15 |
| 1897 | 3 |
| 1898 | 14 |
| 1899 | 3 |
| 1900 | 90 |
| 1902 | 1 |
| 1903 | 35 |
| 1904 | 5 |
| 1905 | 2 |
| 1909 | 6 |
| 1910 | 2 |
| 1914 | 4 |
| 1916 | 4 |
| 1917 | 1 |
| 1923 | 7 |
| 1924 | 2 |
| 1925 | 1 |
127 stories
- Vigilante Mob Lynches Two Prisoners at Whitman County Jail
A masked party of fifty men broke into the courthouse to extract and hang a convicted assailant and a murder defendant, while a jury slept just feet away.
- A Mob Hanged Two Men at the Courthouse. Then the State Argued Over the Bill.
After Hill and Parker were lynched in Colfax, Attorney General W. C. Jones ruled that the county need not pay for a coroner's inquest—and said the real hunt for the mob belonged to a grand jury.
- Vigilante Fury Follows Oakesdale Arson
After a suspicious fire destroys a row of businesses, Oakesdale residents threaten to lynch a Chinese resident previously evicted from the property.
- The Ghost of a Mob in Colfax
Decades after a violent public lynching left a permanent stain on the community, the citizens of Colfax still wake to find ominous reminders scrawled on the sidewalk.
- The Town of Oakesdale Is Reduced to Smoldering Ruins
A three-story hotel blaze consumes the city's business district in just two hours, leaving merchants devastated and the community reeling.
- The Night Colfax Burned
A Chinese cook's kerosene mishap destroys the heart of a small Washington town, exposing the dangers of inadequate civic infrastructure.
- The Tragic End of the Steamboat Annie Faxon
A boiler explosion on the Snake River kills eight passengers and crew, leaving only wreckage in its wake.
- Student Uprising at Washington State Agricultural College
A campus protest following the removal of a college president erupts into violence against school leadership.
- Palouse Settlers Win Decisive Victory Over Railroad Interests
A landmark federal decision voids railroad claims to 'lieu lands,' prompting town-wide celebrations and jubilation among homesteaders.
- The Sheriff’s Bold Stand Against Mob Rule
A newly minted newspaper editor-sheriff argues that local complicity, not just law enforcement failures, fuels vigilante violence in Washington.
- Tekoa Business District Destroyed by Incendiary Fire
A fire suspected to be arson wiped out the central business district of Tekoa, resulting in thousands of dollars of damage.
- The Great Grain Blockade of 1890
While the Palouse region produced record-breaking wheat yields, a lack of rail infrastructure caused a catastrophic 'grain blockade' that paralyzed the local economy.
- Violence in the Opium Dens of Colfax
A brutal feud between laborers in a remote Eastern Washington opium joint ends in a horrific shooting and a manhunt.
- The Scandal at Washington Agricultural College
Regents face accusations of corruption and kickbacks regarding construction contracts for the new state college.
- The Town That Had Two Sets of Politicians
After a court ruling legalized Oakesdale's incorporation, the town suddenly found itself with two competing governments and a Populist council at odds with its own citizens.
- The Mob is Not a Court of Law
An editorial reflection on the recent lynching of Bill at Colfax, arguing that a community’s failure to maintain a just legal system does not justify vigilante violence.
- The Local Press and the Mob
A critique of Washington newspapers that refused to take a hard moral stand against lynch law.
- When the Local Paper Cheers the Mob
A governor's push to prosecute the Colfax vigilantes draws a shocking defense from Whitman County newspapers—and a sharp rebuke from The Olympian.
- Cheaper to Ship Wheat to Liverpool Than to Seattle: An Inland Empire Farmer's Case Against the Railroads
A Whitman County grower tells the Post-Intelligencer that Palouse wheat can be raised for about 30 cents a bushel — and sent 16,000 miles to England for less than the railroad charges to haul it 400 miles to the Sound.
- The Tragedy of the McDonald Family
A destitute family in Colfax is dismantled by the courts after years of poverty, illness, and local infamy.
- The Governor Condemns the Colfax Lynching Mob
Governor McGraw orders an investigation into the extrajudicial murder of two men in Whitman County, declaring that mob violence is no substitute for the courts.
- Secret of the Palouse River
A grisly discovery of blood-stained shirts and Spanish documents suggests a cold case murder.
- A Family Found in Desperate Straits
A sick, destitute family in Oakesdale is discovered in squalid conditions by a community member.
- The Town Under Lockdown
A scarlet fever outbreak in Palouse City triggers a desperate quarantine, shuttering churches and schools after three children die in three days.
- The Professor, the President, and the Champagne College Deal
A legislative investigation at Pullman exposes secret opposition, abandoned building plans, and site-selection hospitality that included brass bands and champagne.