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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1890 | 91 |
91 stories
- The Great Northern Rail Boom
Fairhaven residents are buzzing over rumors that their local rail line has been absorbed by the Great Northern, promising a future as a major Pacific terminal.
- A Gift for a Growing City
Prominent developer Nelson Bennett pledges a steam fire engine to Fairhaven, sparking a massive community fundraising effort.
- The Waterfront Brawl at Anacortes
A simmering land-boom rivalry between Fairhaven and Anacortes turns violent on the docks.
- Fairhaven Organizes for Fire
Twenty-five citizens meet to fund hose, carts, and a bucket brigade ahead of the city's formal incorporation.
- The Sergeant-at-Arms Breaks a Representative's Nose
A legislative debt dispute turns violent on the floor of the Washington House, leading to a physical brawl and a public reprimand.
- The Capitulation of Captain Stone
A domestic dispute over custody ends with an arrest and a forced surrender of a child in Fairhaven.
- Fairhaven Pushes for City Status
Citizens rally to establish a formal municipal government to manage growth, improve infrastructure, and address the presence of transients.
- The Con Artist of Fairhaven
A smooth-talking accountant gambles away his reputation and his wife's dignity with a string of bad checks and a faked suicide attempt.
- The Lonely Death on Harris Street
A worker for the Fairhaven Land Company is found dead after a final, downward spiral triggered by isolation and heavy drinking.
- The Tacoma of the North: Selling the Future of Fairhaven
Boosterism was the engine of Fairhaven’s birth, with developers painting a vision of a transcontinental metropolis on the shores of Bellingham Bay.
- The Relief Scandal: Secretary Accused of Profiteering from the Needy
A Seattle relief committee secretary faces investigation after allegations that he cashed a relief check and kept the majority of the funds.
- Boomtown Hype Meets a National Hero
General Russell A. Alger visits the booming city of Fairhaven, promising to lobby for a port of entry as speculators dream of rising land values.
- Selling the 'Magic City': Fairhaven’s 1890 Development Boom
Boosterism was at its peak in Fairhaven as the Fairhaven Land Company touted steel furnaces, electric lights, and an inexhaustible connection to Skagit coal.
- Steamer Collision at Yesler's Wharf
The steamer State of Washington smashed into the docked Cascade, nearly destroying the smaller vessel in a chaotic wharf-side accident.
- A Custody Dispute in Whatcom
A mother seeks justice after her husband forcibly seizes their child in an escalating marital conflict.
- The Street-Grading Graft
A shocking report from Tacoma reveals that city street foremen were shaking down laborers for job security.
- A Rejection of Anti-Black Rhetoric
The Fairhaven Herald takes a rare, strong public stance against a neighboring editor's racist call for colonization.
- A Desperate Leap into the Sound
A former railroad official jumps from a steamer into the Puget Sound, allegedly following a morphine injection.
- The Fairhaven Hotel Rises to Meet the Boom
A grand, multi-story hotel with steam heat and electricity aims to make the new city a destination for wealthy tourists and investors.
- A Port on the Bay
Fairhaven positions itself as the primary maritime gateway for Bellingham Bay to bypass shipping delays in Seattle and Tacoma.
- The Shoemaker's Retribution
A downtown confrontation erupts after a local businessman catches a thief red-handed.
- Cruelty on the Puget Sound: A Call to Fix the Mail Boats
Passengers describe the Tacoma-Fairhaven steamers as ‘tubs’ that are unseaworthy, unreliable, and an insult to the traveling public.
- The Lights Turn On in Fairhaven
After months of construction, the Fairhaven Electric Light Company successfully powers the city's streets and businesses for the first time.
- Fairhaven’s Fragile Future
With no fire protection and a growing district of wooden structures, local business owners fear the city is one spark away from total ruin.
- The Fire Engine Test that Thrilled Fairhaven
Citizens and business leaders gathered to watch a dramatic demonstration of a new chemical firefighting engine, sparking immediate calls for city-wide protection.