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 | 62 |
| 1858 | 29 |
| 1859 | 52 |
| 1860 | 27 |
| 1861 | 101 |
| 1862 | 87 |
| 1863 | 69 |
| 1864 | 32 |
| 1865 | 11 |
| 1871 | 11 |
| 1872 | 140 |
| 1876 | 812 |
| 1877 | 678 |
| 1878 | 526 |
| 1879 | 64 |
| 1880 | 180 |
| 1882 | 130 |
| 1883 | 911 |
| 1884 | 499 |
| 1885 | 838 |
| 1886 | 492 |
| 1887 | 484 |
| 1888 | 440 |
| 1889 | 1,324 |
| 1890 | 287 |
| 1891 | 1,115 |
| 1892 | 2,855 |
| 1893 | 2,829 |
| 1894 | 2,116 |
| 1895 | 1,830 |
| 1896 | 2 |
| 1897 | 62 |
| 1898 | 196 |
| 1899 | 446 |
| 1900 | 114 |
| 1902 | 34 |
| 1903 | 1,332 |
| 1904 | 1,126 |
| 1905 | 124 |
| 1907 | 53 |
| 1908 | 351 |
| 1909 | 1,545 |
| 1910 | 413 |
| 1911 | 160 |
| 1912 | 73 |
| 1914 | 261 |
| 1915 | 300 |
| 1916 | 545 |
| 1917 | 332 |
| 1918 | 45 |
| 1919 | 5 |
| 1920 | 1 |
| 1922 | 18 |
| 1923 | 185 |
| 1924 | 151 |
| 1925 | 64 |
| 1928 | 14 |
| 1929 | 19 |
287 stories
- The Prosecutor Who Prosecuted Himself: How Aberdeen’s DA Ignored a White Mob’s Attack on Chinese Residents
When a mob drove Aberdeen’s Chinese community out of town and stole $550, the county’s prosecuting attorney charged the victims with libel instead of the perpetrators—sparking a furious editorial defense of civil rights in 1890.
- The Great Exodus: Aberdeen’s Chinese Community Vanishes in the Night
A local editorial and a sympathetic 'Communicated' letter reveal the forced departure of Aberdeen’s Chinese residents, highlighting both the racial hostility that drove them out and the rare moral outcry against their mistreatment.
- The Great Yakima Avenue Conflagration
A devastating blaze sweeps through the business district, leveled by fire and saved only by the grit of citizens and a stand of shade trees.
- The Fugitive Bride of Ellensburg
After a coerced marriage and a secret divorce, a local real estate dealer’s legal nightmare ends in a mysterious chase across the state.
- Federal Land Ruling Paralyzes Yakima Valley
A new Department of the Interior circular abruptly halts all land filings in Yakima and Kittitas counties, invoking federal irrigation laws to freeze regional development.
- Disaster Strikes Spokane Falls Again
Mayor R.K. Nichols of North Yakima reaches out as news of a second major fire catastrophe hits Spokane.
- The Town That Suddenly Didn't Exist
A Supreme Court ruling declaring sixty Washington towns unconstitutional leaves saloon keepers in Roslyn facing a massive $10,000 licensing bill.
- Calls for Segregation in North Yakima
Local property owners threaten to turn their own buildings into 'China tenements' unless Chinese residents are restricted to a specific district.
- A Massive Education Project for Native Youth
Catholic mission leaders acquire 100 acres near North Yakima for a new industrial training school.
- The Battle for the Capital: Yakima vs. The Railroads
A fiery local editorial argues that Yakima, not Olympia, should be the state capital to break the corrupt influence of the Northern Pacific Railroad.
- The Desperate Flight from a Domestic Abductor
A mother fighting for custody of her child leaps from a steamer to escape her husband’s attempt to forcibly abduct their daughter.
- Vigilante Sentiment Grows After Sunday Violence
A wave of fights and assaults by 'tramps and toughs' on Harris Street leaves the town calling for better policing.
- The Four Cities of the Bay: A Failed Marriage
Delegates from four separate municipalities on Bellingham Bay meet to debate the dream—and the logistical nightmare—of merging into a single metropolis.
- The Great Boundary Brawl of 1890
Fairhaven and Bellingham citizens mobilize to challenge New Whatcom's aggressive land-grab tactics before the county board.
- The Price of Disappointment
Retribution against Indigenous medicine men persists in Yakima and Klickitat counties over failed spiritual interventions.
- Scandalous Politician Drowns in Anacortes
A prominent Seattle Republican dies while boarding a steamer, leaving behind a legacy of real estate speculation and a massive public deficit investigation.
- Street Blasting Terrifies Fairhaven Neighbors
A massive stump removal operation inside city limits wreaks havoc on local storefronts and rattles the nerves of residents.
- A Railroad Feud in Whatcom
Citizens of Whatcom are up in arms after a railway company performs a bare-minimum, last-minute track laying to save their franchise.
- The Stench of the Fairhaven Mudflats
Citizens demand immediate action to address the foul refuse dumping ground north of Harris Street.
- Legal Loophole Shuts Down Roslyn Saloons
A Supreme Court ruling invalidating town incorporations leaves local liquor dealers facing massive fines and total business closures.
- Washington House Speaker Says Courts Can Save Tide Lands
Speaker J. W. Feighan argues that Washington's tide land giveaway is unconstitutional and calls for a citizens' lawsuit to halt the sale.
- Fatal Train Wreck Near Cle-Elum
A sleeping brakeman’s lapse leaves a freight train to roll backwards into a collision, killing a stowaway.
- Fatal Train Wreck Near Cle Elum
A freight train section breaks loose on a steep grade, colliding with a passenger train.
- Tragedy on the Tracks: A Silent Commuter
A deaf man walking to find work near Selah was struck by a train in the night.
- The Desert Bloom: Engineering the Yakima Valley
A detailed technical vision for transforming arid plains into a high-yield agricultural engine via irrigation.