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1. The Great Yesler Way Runaway

   A pair of frightened horses stampede through downtown Seattle, missing pedestrians by mere inches.

   Jul 25, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerYesler Avenue, Seattle, King CountyDisasters

2. A Local Woman's Wit on the Suffrage Debate

   A satirical letter to the editor uses the 'woman question' and local chores to expose the absurdity of the disenfranchisement of women.

   Jul 26, 1889The Mason County JournalShelton, Mason CountyCity Hall

3. The Thresher's Letter

   A moving sketch of two young brothers working the wheat fields of Yakima, finding connection to home through a pressed pansy.

   Aug 29, 1889The Yakima HeraldYakima, Yakima CountyStrange But True

4. The Passing of a Skokomish Valley Pioneer

   Emily Purdy, who survived the Indian War of 1855, has passed away at 44 after thirty years of frontier life.

   Sep 20, 1889The Mason County JournalShelton, Mason County

5. The Housing Squeeze of 1889

   With not a single vacant house in town, developer W.H. Kneeland is rushing to build four new double tenements.

   Oct 4, 1889The Mason County JournalFirst Street, Shelton, Mason CountyHousing & Rent

6. The End of the Volunteer Era

   Seattle decides to abandon its volunteer fire system in favor of a professional, paid department, prioritizing efficiency over neighborhood spirit.

   Sep 1, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

7. The Seattle Land Boom’s Elite Sales Pitch

   A 19th-century real estate advertisement lists Seattle’s power brokers as testimonials for a major development push near Madison Street.

   Sep 16, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerMadison Street, Front Street, Yesler Avenue, Seattle, King CountyBoom & Bust

8. The Trial That Wasn't: Tacoma’s Libel Case Collapses Into Farce

   A high-profile libel trial in Tacoma devolves into legal sophistry and personal insults, revealing the chaotic state of territorial justice.

   Jan 16, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerTacoma, Pierce CountyCity Hall

9. The Man Who Would Make Seattle Beautiful

   A landscape architect from Cleveland arrives in the Pacific Northwest with a radical proposal: tear down the ugly retaining walls and let nature take over.

   Feb 16, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyBoom & Bust

10. The New Guard: King County Elects a 'Clean Sweep' of Officials to Replace Corrupt Incumbents

    As the new Republican administration takes power in Washington, local voters in King County have ousted a slate of officials they deemed unfit, installing a 'splendid set' of men pledged to honesty and efficiency amid rapid growth.

    Mar 5, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

11. The Swamps and Hills of Democracy

    For settlers near Cottage Lake, a four-mile trip to the polls was rendered impossible by rough terrain, forcing a twenty-five-mile detour until local officials intervened.

    Apr 3, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerCottage Lake, Woodinville, King CountyCity Hall

12. The Secret Elopement of Olympia

    Defying parental orders and a bitter feud, a young couple flees their hometown to be married.

    Apr 6, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerOlympia, Thurston CountyScandal

13. Why Seattle Should Own Its Own Power

    An 1889 editorial argues that municipal control of gas, electricity, and water is the only path to fair pricing and civic progress.

    Apr 7, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyFollow the Money

14. The Brutality of the Ring on Sunday

    An editorial denounces a lawless prize-fight in Seattle and the city officials who allowed it to happen.

    Apr 9, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyNightlife

15. The Library Trustees and the Question of Control

    A new library for Seattle comes with strict conditions: no religious control, no religious dogma in book selection, and strict financial oversight.

    Apr 12, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

16. The Bold Bid for Seattle’s Shipyards

    An 1889 editorial argues that if San Francisco can successfully build naval warships, Washington Territory—with its vast timber and coal reserves—should be the next center of American maritime power.

    Apr 12, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyBoom & Bust

17. The Crackdown on Seattle’s ‘M & N’ Gambling Den

    After a series of police raids on the city's notorious 'M & N' saloon, the operators are brought before the justice to face the consequences of their illicit card tables.

    Apr 27, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyNightlife

18. The Strange Lottery of Seattle’s 1889 Democratic Primary

    While Republicans held conventional district conventions to nominate candidates for the constitutional convention, Seattle’s Democrats opted for the 'novel' method of picking delegates by lottery.

    May 8, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerKing County Courthouse, SeattleCity Hall · Strange But True

19. The Rowdy Bible Debate

    A theological debate between an ex-rev and a professor turns into a shouting match, leaving the audience divided and the town of Chehalis unsettled.

    May 25, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerChehalis, Lewis CountyStrange But True

20. The Struggle for Jury Reform in Early Seattle

    An editorial from 1889 argues that the traditional twelve-person jury, while an 'inheritance of freedom,' is ripe for modernization in the new Washington Territory.

    Jun 5, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

21. A Frontier Discovery: Quicksilver in the Hills

    A routine spring cleaning by a settler’s wife in Clallam County leads to a potentially major discovery of mercury ore.

    Jun 25, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerClallam Bay, Clallam CountyStrange But True

22. The Forbidden Book That Survived the Fire

    A rare, centuries-old volume of Martin Luther’s 'Table Talk' was miraculously salvaged from the ashes of the Great Seattle Fire, having been smuggled across the ocean and hidden away by generations to escape religious persecution.

    Jul 7, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyStrange But True

23. The Hidden Wealth of the North Cascades

    New mineral discoveries near the head of the Cascade Pass, including the massive QuinnSabie ledge, promise to turn the wilderness into a mining powerhouse as the railroad approaches.

    Jul 28, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerMarblemount, Skagit CountyBoom & Bust

24. The Price of a Hand: A Labor Settlement in Port Townsend

    A longshoreman injured while unloading cargo from the steamship Walla Walla receives a court-ordered settlement, highlighting the physical dangers of 19th-century maritime work.

    Aug 22, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerPort Townsend, Jefferson CountyWork & Pay

25. The Silver Rush in the Cascades

    A new mineral strike in the Cascade district promises rich deposits of silver, lead, and copper, with local mining experts calling it a 'second Comstock.'

    Sep 4, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSnoqualmie, King CountyBoom & Bust

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