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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1859 | 1 |
| 1863 | 1 |
| 1872 | 1 |
| 1876 | 12 |
| 1877 | 6 |
| 1878 | 5 |
| 1882 | 1 |
| 1883 | 9 |
| 1884 | 3 |
| 1885 | 21 |
| 1886 | 11 |
| 1887 | 5 |
| 1888 | 15 |
| 1889 | 17 |
| 1890 | 3 |
| 1891 | 13 |
| 1892 | 39 |
| 1893 | 35 |
| 1894 | 48 |
| 1895 | 11 |
| 1897 | 2 |
| 1899 | 10 |
| 1900 | 1 |
| 1903 | 12 |
| 1904 | 16 |
| 1905 | 3 |
| 1908 | 1 |
| 1909 | 16 |
| 1912 | 1 |
| 1914 | 2 |
| 1915 | 1 |
| 1916 | 7 |
| 1917 | 2 |
| 1918 | 2 |
| 1923 | 1 |
334 stories matching shut
- Twenty Inches of Snow Bring Seattle to a Standstill
A February 1893 blizzard blocks streetcars, freezes water pipes and threatens a coal famine, forcing schools to close and residents to melt snow for drinking water.
- The Mine That Stood Still: How One Man’s Leave Sparked a Labor War in Newcastle
A dispute over a fired miner named Kenny Ramsay has shut down the Newcastle coal mines, pitting the Knights of Labor against the company and threatening to flood the pits if arbitration fails.
- The Water Inspector Who Shut Off Seattle’s Lawn Sprinklers
Seattle’s water superintendent cracks down on out-of-hours sprinkling on Renton Hill, turning off service until offenders pay—and finally restoring pressure.
- The Newcastle Lockout: When Knights of Labor Shut Down the Mine
A bitter dispute over union recognition and foreman selection turned violent in Newcastle, Washington, as miners refused to work under non-union leadership and arrested rioters.
- The Great Timber Truce: Tacoma Mills Shut Down for a Week to Save Prices
In a rare display of unity, Tacoma’s logging camps and sawmills have agreed to a seven-day shutdown. While workers face temporary unemployment, the industry claims this 'paradoxical' move is the only way to prevent lumber prices from collapsing.
- The Great Cedar Shingle Cartel: How Washington’s Mill Owners Colluded to Halt Production
In a bold move to stabilize collapsing prices, nearly all of the state's 141 cedar shingle mills agreed to shut down for two weeks, forming an association to enforce quality standards and living wages.
- The Price of Coal and the Cost of Labor
After shifting from Chinese laborers to white workers, mining companies find themselves in a standoff over wages that leaves miners idle and mines shuttered.
- The Cable Car Wars of Seattle
A fierce power struggle over streetcar franchises reveals how infrastructure deals shaped the development of early Seattle.
- Vancouver’s Sunday Shutdown
The saloon keepers of Vancouver, Washington, enforce a strict city-wide Sunday closure, leaving the town deserted.
- Seattle's Cutoff Conundrum
Superintendent Wilson triggers a neighborhood uprising by shutting off water to hundreds of residents who missed payment deadlines.
- The Mill That Stopped: A City Holds Its Breath
When Colman’s sawmill ceased its daily roar for repairs, the silence was so profound it forced Seattleites to confront their terrifying dependence on industrial machinery.
- The 'Shut Up or Shut Up' Baseball Challenge of 1885
After a hard-fought draw on the diamond, the Newcastle Baseball Club issues a pugnacious challenge to the Seattle team for a rematch on the race track.
- Thirty-Seven Miners Died 150 Feet From Safety
An 1894 coroner's jury in Franklin, Washington, heard how a small fire in the Oregon Improvement Company's coal mine became a wall of smoke — and why the men who could have escaped stayed to fight it.
- The Grays Harbor Sawmill Strike
The President of the State Federation of Labor details the brutal suppression of striking sawmill workers in Aberdeen and Hoquiam.
- The Coal Wars of Newcastle
Facing declining profits and labor unrest, the Oregon Improvement Company declares war on its miners, threatening total shutdowns unless the union relents.
- A Mill Owner Held Hostage by His Own Unpaid Crew
When John Tuilock threatened to shut his Rainier shingle mill without paying his hands, the men seized him, marched him back, and forced him to write checks at the point of their anger — until a deputy sheriff rode to the rescue.
- Tacoma’s Water Crisis: Livestock and Ducks Contaminating the City's Supply
While citizens face water shortages and lawn sprinkling bans, city officials grapple with a public health dilemma where contaminated surface water is routinely mixed with pure well water.
- The Newcastle Standoff: Labor’s Last Stand in the Shadow of the Mines
As Seattle prepares for its Fourth of July celebrations, a violent labor dispute in nearby Newcastle threatens to shut down the region's timber industry. The Knights of Labor demand the reinstatement of fired worker Kelly Ramsey, while company officials and county authorities clash over jurisdiction, legality, and the very definition of union power.
- The Coal That Built Seattle: How a Strike at Newcastle Mine Shook the City's Economy
A bitter labor dispute between the Oregon Improvement Company and the Knights of Labor has shut down the Newcastle coal mine, halting shipments to Portland and driving up fuel prices across Puget Sound.
- The Day the Wharves Froze: Tacoma’s Lumber Workers Strike Over Wage Cuts
In March 1890, dockworkers at Tacoma’s massive timber mills walked off the job when owners slashed their monthly pay from $60 to $45. The resulting gridlock piled lumber so high it brought the entire industry to a halt.
- Miners March Thirty Miles for a Solidarity Strike
A group of Newcastle miners trekked across the territory to convince Franklin workers to shut down the pits in a labor dispute.
- The Secret Syndicate Attempting to Control the Pacific Timber Trade
A covert effort by lumber barons to establish a monopoly by paying smaller mills to shut down.
- Old Town Mill Shuts Its Doors After 37 Years
Economic slump and overproduction force the closure of a historic Tacoma institution, leaving 250 workers in limbo.
- Tacoma’s Police Chief Under Fire
Accusations of public intoxication and failure to enforce gambling laws turn the city council into a battlefield.
- City Engineer Axes Staff Amidst Financial Crisis
A local corruption scandal involving a 'defalcation' leaves the city unable to pay for essential infrastructure, forcing layoffs in the engineer's office.