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 |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 7 |
| 1858 | 4 |
| 1859 | 7 |
| 1861 | 14 |
| 1862 | 21 |
| 1863 | 2 |
| 1864 | 2 |
| 1865 | 1 |
| 1871 | 1 |
| 1872 | 14 |
| 1876 | 59 |
| 1877 | 55 |
| 1878 | 40 |
| 1879 | 6 |
| 1880 | 10 |
| 1882 | 10 |
| 1883 | 70 |
| 1884 | 55 |
| 1885 | 90 |
| 1886 | 63 |
| 1887 | 66 |
| 1888 | 52 |
| 1889 | 132 |
| 1890 | 20 |
| 1891 | 82 |
| 1892 | 331 |
| 1893 | 365 |
| 1894 | 274 |
| 1895 | 198 |
| 1896 | 1 |
| 1897 | 4 |
| 1898 | 10 |
| 1899 | 42 |
| 1900 | 13 |
| 1902 | 1 |
| 1903 | 137 |
| 1904 | 124 |
| 1905 | 6 |
| 1907 | 10 |
| 1908 | 25 |
| 1909 | 139 |
| 1910 | 29 |
| 1911 | 11 |
| 1912 | 11 |
| 1914 | 18 |
| 1915 | 17 |
| 1916 | 46 |
| 1917 | 20 |
| 1918 | 6 |
| 1919 | 1 |
| 1922 | 1 |
| 1923 | 12 |
| 1924 | 19 |
| 1925 | 6 |
| 1928 | 3 |
| 1929 | 3 |
40 stories matching attempt
- The Midnight Attack on a Chinatown Cigar Stand
A deliberate arson attempt threatens to ignite the heart of downtown Seattle after rags soaked in coal oil are discovered burning against a Chinese-owned business.
- Sabotage on the Coal Line
A dangerous attempt to derail a coal train near Seattle highlights the intense tensions surrounding the city's burgeoning industrial infrastructure.
- The Governor and the Libel Suit: A Battle for Political Character
When Governor Elisha P. Ferry sued the 'Democratic Press' for accusing him of selling pardons, he ignited a fierce debate about the limits of press freedom and the nature of public character.
- The Great Cherry Street Escape
A band of savvy business owners nearly outfoxed their creditors by packing up shop in the middle of the night.
- The Troubled Piano Man of Seattle
After shooting himself in a drinking saloon, a local piano player insists on his right to die, highlighting the brutal intersections of addiction, mental health, and the public gaze in 1878 Seattle.
- The Tragedy of the Straddled Log
A valuable horse owned by Schwabacher Bros. & Co. is found dead in the woods after a bizarre and fatal encounter with a fallen tree.
- The Perils of the Lumber Truck
A young boy narrowly escapes a gruesome fate after a tumble on Seattle's busy waterfront.
- A Desperate Hour at Front and Main
A young man, weary of the 'burden of life,' is rescued from a suicide attempt in the heart of downtown Seattle.
- A Desperate Escape on the Duwamish River
A woman seeking work in Seattle narrowly avoids a violent attack after being lured into the wilderness by a false job offer.
- The Perils of the Seattle Coal Incline
Two railroad workers are severely injured within 24 hours while attempting to board moving coal cars in a grim, repetitive industrial accident.
- The Exclusionary Pledge of La Conner
A frontier town in the Swinomish Flats organizes a formal, collective boycott against Chinese residents, highlighting the intense racial tensions of the 1870s Pacific Northwest.
- The 1878 Fight to Ban Corporate Land Hoarding
As Washington prepares for statehood, delegates debate a radical proposal to break up concentrated land ownership and prevent corporate monopolies.
- The Butter Sculptor of Snohomish
How a farmer's wife from the Arkansas wilderness used humble tools to carve her way into the art world.
- The Great Telegraph Trail Escape
After fleeing the King County jail, two prisoners find that their path to freedom in Mukilteo was blocked by the unforgiving woods and an unexpected encounter with a local resident.
- The Harassment of Mrs. Robinson
A vulnerable woman in Seattle is subjected to a months-long campaign of targeted abuse, culminating in an arson attempt that nearly burned down a local hotel.
- The Brutal Assault on a Young Chambermaid
A playful attempt to clean a hotel floor escalated into a vicious act of anti-Chinese violence in the heart of downtown Seattle.
- The Great Northern Pacific Railroad Robbery
In 1878, Seattle citizens packed a town hall to condemn the Northern Pacific Railroad, alleging that corporate greed and land fraud were strangling the territory's economic future.
- The 1878 Patent for Long-Distance Kissing
A satirical inventor in Snohomish introduces a bizarre 'kisograph' machine to keep lovers connected across thousands of miles.
- The Newspaper Feud of 1876
A local editor’s blistering public breakdown of an auditor who dared to write letters to the editor.
- The Great Jailbreak of 1878
Five inmates, including a man held for attempted murder, escaped a Seattle jail using a key hand-crafted over six weeks.
- The Unlikely Hero of the Fire Escape
When a local doctor patented a new fire escape in 1878, he had to prove it could survive the ultimate test: a 'timid' gentleman from the New England Hotel climbing down from a third-story window.
- The Widow’s Last Ledger
On her deathbed, a thrifty farm wife attempts one final audit of the neighborhood’s debts, only to find her husband’s memory suddenly failing when it comes to money she owes others.
- The Wild West of Washington Journalism
When the courts declared they had no power to punish libel, Seattle editors went to war with their pens—and their reputations.
- The Fight for Seattle’s Railroad Future
In 1878, Seattle’s civic leaders battled Northern Pacific rail monopolies to secure the city's future as the region's commercial engine.
- The Unintended Leap in Snohomish
A local restaurant owner’s attempt to mimic the athletic feats of his neighbors ends in a public, pants-splitting embarrassment.