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 |
|---|---|
| 1858 | 3 |
| 1859 | 1 |
| 1860 | 1 |
| 1861 | 5 |
| 1862 | 2 |
| 1863 | 2 |
| 1864 | 7 |
| 1865 | 1 |
| 1871 | 1 |
| 1872 | 19 |
| 1876 | 193 |
| 1877 | 130 |
| 1878 | 71 |
| 1879 | 7 |
| 1880 | 23 |
| 1882 | 32 |
| 1883 | 186 |
| 1884 | 110 |
| 1885 | 162 |
| 1886 | 84 |
| 1887 | 113 |
| 1888 | 131 |
| 1889 | 386 |
| 1890 | 46 |
| 1891 | 259 |
| 1892 | 698 |
| 1893 | 647 |
| 1894 | 515 |
| 1895 | 482 |
| 1897 | 2 |
| 1898 | 21 |
| 1899 | 139 |
| 1900 | 6 |
| 1902 | 2 |
| 1903 | 245 |
| 1904 | 285 |
| 1905 | 15 |
| 1907 | 7 |
| 1908 | 40 |
| 1909 | 280 |
| 1910 | 29 |
| 1911 | 14 |
| 1912 | 6 |
| 1914 | 33 |
| 1915 | 18 |
| 1916 | 30 |
| 1917 | 22 |
| 1923 | 3 |
| 1924 | 3 |
| 1925 | 2 |
| 1929 | 2 |
131 stories matching street
- The Great Seattle Scrub-Down
Facing a growing crisis of 'filth, dirt and garbage,' the City of Seattle threatens strict enforcement of sanitation ordinances to clean up the heart of downtown.
- The Struggle to Keep Seattle Clean in 1888
As Seattle prepared for a massive influx of tourists for a summer celebration, one citizen publicly shamed the city's leadership for allowing its streets to remain a cluttered, hazardous mess of construction debris.
- The Child Who Vanished in Plain Sight
A toddler wanders off near First Street and is found covered in blood, sparking fears about Seattle’s crowded streets.
- The Front Street Fight: Seattle’s First Battle Over Urban Planning
In a rare moment of civic clarity, the Seattle City Council rejected a street railway company's proposal to destroy Front Street, recognizing that private profit should not override public infrastructure.
- The Cable Car Scheme: How Seattle’s Council Blocked a Franchise to Save Front Street
In a decisive move against corporate influence, the City Council rejected the Seattle Electric Railway Company’s bid for a new cable car line on Front Street, citing public safety and narrow roads over private profit.
- The Cable Car That Changed Seattle: Jackson Street Line to Open August 1st
As the Jackson and Mill Street cable road prepares for its inaugural run, developers are already betting that this new artery will double and triple property values in the city's most desirable district.
- The Theater That Wanted the Street
Tacoma’s grand new opera house design sparks a city council debate over encroaching on public sidewalks and creating private carriage driveways.
- The City Council's Permissive Grift
A frustrated fire official reveals that Seattle's fire safety ordinances are being gutted by the very council members who passed them, as they issue private permits to bypass building restrictions.
- The Cable Car Veto: How a 1889 Power Struggle Defined Seattle’s Streets
Mayor Robert Moran’s refusal to approve a cable railway franchise on Front Street—citing private greed over public interest—mirrors Seattle’s century-long battle with developers and transit infrastructure.
- The 'Small Fortune' Lottery in Early Seattle
A 1888 real estate promotion for Jackson and Rainier streets promised investors not just a home, but a chance at a windfall in a property lottery.
- Seattle's Jackson and Rainier Lots Came With Cottages
In 1888, a massive housing development promised buyers a 'small fortune' by raffling off luxury cottages to lucky land purchasers.
- The Woman Who Defended Her Home With a Shotgun
When city laborers arrived to tear down Mrs. Williamson's fence for a road-widening project, she made it clear that some property rights are defended by force.
- The Great Seattle Street-Cleaning Decree
A desperate 1888 city ordinance threatens property owners with fines if they fail to scrub the filth from their sidewalk frontages.
- Five Free Cottages Offered With Seattle Building Lots
Developers Kittinger Brothers launch a marketing blitz for their new 'Jackson and Rainier Streets Addition,' complete with a promise to raffle off modern cottages to random lot buyers.
- The Million-Dollar Protest: Front Street Owners vs. The Cable Car
Pioneers and property magnates rallied against a proposed cable railway on Seattle’s main thoroughfare, arguing that the city council was ignoring the will of taxpayers in favor of outside capital.
- The 1888 Land Grab: Seattle’s First Lottery-Style Housing Development
Before modern zoning and master plans, developers in the boom-era Northwest used gimmicks like house-lot raffles to sell undeveloped land on the city’s fringes.
- The Governor’s Grand Brick Block
As Seattle expands, former Washington Territorial Governor Watson C. Squire commissions a massive new downtown commercial building on South Second and Main Streets.
- Seattle Lot Listings Pitch Prime Business Corners in 1888
A classic advertisement from the Seattle Post-Intelligencer reveals the city’s early land-grabbing fervor, offering prime downtown lots and suburban tracts for a fraction of today's prices.
- The Political Machine at the Engine House
Seattle Republicans assemble at the local engine house to organize their county convention and choose delegates, marking a night of high-stakes civic coordination in the city's early history.
- The Great Fourth of July Exodus: Tacoma’s Streets Empty as Seattle Claims the Holiday
While Tacoma lay quiet and deserted on Independence Day, its residents flocked to Seattle for steamers, picnics, and political meetings, leaving behind only a few 'pocket pickets' and a marching army of women.
- The Great Seattle Streetcar Heist
A scathing editorial exposing the city council's plans to give away a lucrative cable car franchise on Front Street without public oversight or fair payment.
- The 1888 Seattle Housing Gamble
Developers promised a 'small fortune' to lucky buyers in this early Seattle land scheme.
- The Great Front Street Fraud: City Council Exposes Fake Petition for Cable Car
In a stunning display of civic integrity, Seattle’s Common Council unmasks a fraudulent petition designed to grant a monopoly cable car franchise, revealing that applicants forged signatures and misrepresented property frontage.
- The Real Estate Giveaway That Promised a 'Small Fortune'
In 1888, developers sold off 60 lots in Seattle with a high-stakes gambling hook: a chance to win a fully built cottage on your property.
- The Wild West of Seattle Real Estate
An 1888 advertisement promises 'fine acreage' and quick riches in a rapidly expanding Seattle, highlighting the speculative fervor that defined the city's early growth.