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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 1 |
| 1861 | 1 |
| 1862 | 3 |
| 1863 | 3 |
| 1871 | 8 |
| 1872 | 110 |
| 1876 | 535 |
| 1877 | 378 |
| 1878 | 279 |
| 1879 | 15 |
| 1880 | 134 |
| 1882 | 98 |
| 1883 | 475 |
| 1884 | 283 |
| 1885 | 566 |
| 1886 | 353 |
| 1887 | 327 |
| 1888 | 314 |
| 1889 | 798 |
| 1890 | 11 |
| 1891 | 334 |
| 1892 | 1,285 |
| 1893 | 1,528 |
| 1894 | 1,190 |
| 1895 | 223 |
| 1896 | 2 |
| 1897 | 2 |
| 1898 | 2 |
| 1899 | 372 |
| 1900 | 6 |
| 1902 | 6 |
| 1903 | 115 |
| 1904 | 62 |
| 1905 | 2 |
| 1909 | 29 |
| 1910 | 7 |
| 1912 | 1 |
| 1914 | 5 |
| 1915 | 4 |
| 1916 | 22 |
| 1917 | 7 |
| 1923 | 9 |
| 1924 | 9 |
| 1925 | 2 |
279 stories
- 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.
- 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 Deadly Gift Sent to the Melodeon
A scorned woman in Seattle finds herself the target of a sophisticated homemade bomb disguised as a gift.
- 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 Great Seattle Railroad Swindle
How corporate speculators and land rings bypassed honest stockholders and plundered the future of the city's waterfront.
- The City That Almost Wasn't: How Seattle Lost Its Railroad Bet
When the Northern Pacific Railroad bypassed Seattle in favor of Tacoma, local investors faced a choice: watch their city wither or build their own line.
- The Waterfront Conflict: Escalating Violence on Yesler's Wharf
Tensions boil over as displaced workers and local youth clash in a series of violent altercations on the Seattle waterfront.
- 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 Terminus Bait: How the Northern Pacific Played Seattle
In 1878, Washington residents saw through the railroad's broken promises and the cynical 'town lot' real estate schemes that kept the city waiting for a line.
- The Great Incorporation Panic of 1878
When a legal technicality threatened to render Seattle’s entire municipal government illegitimate, a frantic scramble to re-incorporate revealed the fragile foundations of early frontier law.
- The Fight for Seattle’s Rail Future
In 1878, a local leader rallied Seattle to demand federal land reform and a railroad connection, decrying the influence of corporate interests over the prosperity of the Territory.
- The Unincorporated City of Seattle
In 1877, a legal crisis regarding Seattle's city charter left the municipal government in limbo, struggling to prove its own legitimacy while 'disaffected individuals' looked to take advantage of the chaos.
- The Unlikely Heroism of 'Old Yesler'
Derided as a 'hog' and a 'dog-in-the-manger' for years, Henry Yesler silences his critics with a massive financial commitment to Seattle’s future.
- The Politics of Poverty: Seattle’s 1878 Voter Suppression Fight
A century and a half ago, local officials tried to implement a 'poll tax' to restrict voting rights, sparking a fierce debate over whether a citizen’s right to participate in democracy could be tied to their financial status.
- The Rising Tides of Industry
An 1873 editorial reflects on the fragility of Pacific Coast harbors, warning that unchecked mining waste and silt are creating an uncertain future for maritime commerce.
- The Ghost of Washington Street
A retired detective recalls a haunting murder investigation in 1870s Seattle, where a father’s vengeance and a daughter’s grief ended in the deep waters of the bay.
- The Tragic End of a Seattle Logger
After years of success followed by a swift decline in fortune, a once-prosperous logger faces the ruin of his livelihood and his mental health.
- 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.
- Seattle’s First Brush with the Future
When an agent from Portland brought a pair of telephones to town, residents gathered at Yesler’s Hall to hear voices and music traveling eight miles through thin air.
- The New England Hotel's Ban
A local hotel owner strikes a blow against Chinese labor, signaling a rising tide of xenophobic economic policy in the Pacific Northwest.
- The Great Moss Panic of 1878
Seattle's early city council once declared war on rooftop greenery to prevent the city from burning down.
- The Human Spider of Occidental Square
A sailor scaled a 135-foot flagpole in downtown Seattle to keep the city’s Fourth of July celebrations on schedule.
- The Sisters' Sanctuary on Fifth Street
In 1878, the Sisters of Charity opened Seattle’s first formal hospital, establishing a legacy of public health and care for the city’s 'afflicted and homeless.'
- The Black Pall Over Washington’s Future
A proposed decade-long extension for the Northern Pacific Railroad threatens to monopolize the territory's vast timber and mineral wealth while stifling independent settlement.
- 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.