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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1888 | 9 |
| 1889 | 13 |
| 1891 | 10 |
| 1892 | 20 |
| 1893 | 35 |
| 1894 | 26 |
| 1895 | 24 |
137 stories matching plot
- The Industrial Army Prepares to March on Washington
As unemployment spikes during the panic, Seattle's 'Industrial Army' plots to seize trains to reach the capital and force federal action.
- The 'Citizens' Ticket' Plot in San Juan County
A Friday Harbor editor claims Democrats and Populists will skip their own nominations, then run a fusion slate disguised as a nonpartisan citizens' ticket.
- The Dream of the Suburban Garden Plot
Developers in 1891 sold city dwellers on the 'choicest' acreages just outside of the developing Seattle core, promising a life of suburban gardens along the new Rainier Avenue electric line.
- Gambling Interests Attempt to Oust Mayor Ronald
Pro-gambling factions in Seattle conspire to force Mayor Ronald's resignation through threats of impeachment.
- The Great Timber Land Swindle: How Seattle’s Elite Claimed Farmable Soil as Forest
A federal commissioner rules that the lands held by Bailey and Hawley are actually fertile agricultural soil, not timber land, overturning decades of speculative entries in the Samish Lake district.
- The Mystery Grave in Masonic Cemetery
Sexton D.P. Metz discovers a tiny, unmarked grave, reviving memories of a haunting trend of abandoned burials.
- The Price of Ownership: Seattle’s 1888 Delinquent Tax List
A sprawling registry of property owners, from the prominent to the 'Unknown,' failing to pay their dues during Seattle’s rapid expansion.
- Washington Tide Land Bill Would Create Sales Commission
A new bill moves through the state legislature to codify how the state will survey and sell off the submerged lands along the shoreline.
- The Husking Bee at Learned's Opera House
Port Townsend society gathers for a successful amateur performance to benefit the Seamen's Bethel.
- The Battle for the Mayor’s Office
Gambling syndicates attempt to oust Mayor J.T. Ronald after he refuses to legalize or ignore their operations in Seattle.
- The $500 Vote: How a Spokane Judge’s Bribery Plot Exposed Seattle’s Political Rot
In the winter of 1903, Washington’s legislature was paralyzed by a scandal involving bribed senators and a desperate governor. When Representative Metcalfe revealed he was paid to vote for Judge Calkins, the resulting investigation tore through Olympia’s elite, revealing a web of corruption that threatened to define the state’s young democracy.
- Anatomy of a Jailbreak
Sheriff Woolery foils a plot to escape the King County jail, uncovering acid and a sharpened knife.
- The Morning After: A Local Scandal Retraction
The Press-Times finds itself in an awkward tangle, celebrating its own bold reporting of a poisoning plot before immediately disavowing the accusations as 'too absurd for belief.'
- The Arsonist's Confession: 'He Wanted Me to Burn It'
A Tacoma man details his coerced participation in the Aurora Hotel fire, revealing a plot by property owner Ed Williams to collect insurance money.
- The Ousting of Captain Sims
A police captain claims he was purged from the department as a sacrificial lamb to appease the city's gambling interests.
- The Political Fight Over Federal Jobs
A brewing rebellion among Democratic legislators in Olympia threatens the leadership of Col. Griggs over the spoils of federal patronage.
- The Struggle for Suburban Stability in 1891 Seattle
Advertisements for installment-plan housing plots reflect the anxiety of a growing city where 'hard times' pressured residents to settle in rapidly developing suburbs like Medina.
- The Burglar Who Asked for Prison, Then Fought to Stay Out
Eugene Kelly and Charles Amos were convicted of stealing machinery from a Vashon Island brickyard. Amos had plotted to kill a jailer; when put in irons, he begged to begin his sentence—then changed his mind and appealed.
- The Iron King Comes to Town
James J. Hill, railroad magnate, plots the Great Northern's arrival in Seattle and the future of regional freight rates.
- Bribery Scandal Rocks Great Northern Condemnation Trial
A railroad condemnation suit descends into chaos as court witnesses reveal a plot to buy off the jury.
- The School Board's Costly Real Estate Wake-up Call
After proposing to trade high school land for a smaller plot, officials discover the exchange would cost them thousands and force a costly infrastructure upgrade.
- The Railway King Comes to Town
James J. Hill, president of the Great Northern Railway, arrives in Seattle to scout terminal sites and plot the future of the city's waterfront.
- Seattle Fire Department Eyes Expansion
Board of commissioners plots a budget for 1894 that includes new stations on Jackson and Madison streets.
- The Maid Who Stole the Hidalgo’s Gold
A young woman’s romantic deception in Quiggletown backfires when her maid decides to take the suitor, the dowry, and the partnership for herself.
- An Arson Plot Aboard the Steamer Messenger
A cook discharged after a dispute is suspected of rigging candles to burn a vessel mid-transit.