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 | 1 |
| 1859 | 1 |
| 1862 | 3 |
| 1863 | 1 |
| 1864 | 1 |
| 1872 | 1 |
| 1876 | 15 |
| 1877 | 10 |
| 1878 | 10 |
| 1880 | 4 |
| 1882 | 4 |
| 1883 | 2 |
| 1884 | 4 |
| 1885 | 11 |
| 1886 | 10 |
| 1887 | 5 |
| 1888 | 5 |
| 1889 | 17 |
| 1890 | 1 |
| 1891 | 7 |
| 1892 | 18 |
| 1893 | 24 |
| 1894 | 18 |
| 1895 | 26 |
| 1897 | 1 |
| 1898 | 1 |
| 1899 | 8 |
| 1900 | 2 |
| 1902 | 2 |
| 1903 | 12 |
| 1904 | 10 |
| 1907 | 1 |
| 1908 | 2 |
| 1909 | 18 |
| 1910 | 3 |
| 1911 | 4 |
| 1912 | 1 |
| 1914 | 3 |
| 1915 | 4 |
| 1916 | 4 |
| 1917 | 2 |
| 1918 | 1 |
| 1923 | 1 |
| 1928 | 1 |
| 1929 | 1 |
18 stories matching plea
- A Rich Lumberman Abducted for $6,000 — and the Kidnapper's Defense Is Insanity
In Mount Vernon, the young man accused of seizing wealthy lumberman E. O. English and holding him for a $6,000 ransom abruptly drops his not-guilty plea and admits the deed — then pivots to an insanity defense.
- A Burglar Caught in the Act
Howard Dodd, caught ransacking a home on North L Street, is sentenced to up to 14 years in the state penitentiary.
- The Plea of an Ex-Convict
A man caught breaking into a North End residence claims poverty drove him to steal, sparking a brief glimpse into the struggle for survival in 1910s Tacoma.
- The Venison Peddler of South Tacoma
A Thurston County man finds the local market for illicit game isn't as lucrative as he hoped after a run-in with a game warden.
- The Fight for Tacoma’s Pool Rooms
City council weighs whether to lower the age limit for young men in Tacoma's billiard parlors.
- Teachers Weep Over the Ruthless Slaughter of Birds
A visiting conservationist urges Tacoma educators to abandon feathered hats in protest of plume hunting.
- Ledwena Mowitch's Plea for Safety
A young woman escapes a violent marriage through the court system, forcing a reckoning for her abusive husband.
- A Plea for Proactive Road Maintenance
An editorial critique on the inefficiency of waiting for spring washouts to repair critical county roads.
- A Grocery Clerk Stole a Streetcar and Made a Run for Puyallup
James M. Tankisley took a Tacoma Railway & Power repair car out of the company barns at midnight and got as far as the Puyallup road before the law caught up. By the next afternoon he had pleaded guilty, and by night he was in the county prison waiting for the March jury.
- The Cook Who Robbed the Till—and Then Fled to Canada
Newport restaurant man James Warren spent eight months in jail before a plea deal, because the only witness had vanished into British Columbia.
- The Fight for Lewis County Land
A federal court decision could strip railroad corporations of vast land grants held since the early days of territorial expansion.
- The East End Fire Fight
After a local shop burned down, a councilman demands improved water access and fire equipment for the city's growing East End.
- The Cruelest Con: Fake Letters From the Sickroom
Police say an Englishman charmed strangers, learned their children’s addresses, then mailed desperate pleas for medical money.
- Triple Tragedy at Three Lakes
A night watchman murders his former wife and teenage daughter after she refuses his plea to remarry, then turns the weapon on himself.
- Olympia Moves to Outlaw the Insanity Defense — and Gag the Press on Murders
With the 1909 session half gone, Washington's legislature advances local option and an anti-racetrack gambling bill, while a sweeping new criminal code would strip juries of the insanity plea and bar newspapers from covering homicides before trial.
- Nine Votes to Kill Civil Service—Tacoma's Council Tries to Gut the Charter
At a special meeting, nine councilmen back a plan to let the mayor fire city workers at will; reformists need to hold two more votes to stop it.
- Five Dollars a Week: Tacoma's Women Ask If a Shorter Day Is Worth Anything
As Olympia weighs an eight-hour law for working women, two readers argue that the real question isn't the clock — it's whether the wage will cover rent and groceries.
- The Rule That Told Workingmen to Keep Out of Politics
Everett's Labor Journal goes after Roosevelt's civil service order, arguing that machinists and mechanics in government shops are muzzled while partisan appointees run the machine — and quotes Grover Cleveland back at the administration to prove it.