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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1888 | 27 |
| 1889 | 51 |
| 1891 | 28 |
| 1892 | 206 |
| 1893 | 224 |
| 1894 | 201 |
| 1895 | 161 |
898 stories
- Judge Hanford Lets Railroad Cross Puyallup Reservation
A federal judge rules in favor of a railroad contractor over U.S. Army soldiers stationed on Indigenous lands.
- Indigenous Opposition to the Squire Bill
Jonas Stannup warns against the theft of tribal land by government commissioners, citing the suspicious nature of the 'Squire bill'.
- The Unhallowed Site of a Parsonage
A dispute over a church building on the Puyallup reservation cemetery reveals the discovery of Indigenous burials beneath the structure.
- The Million-Dollar Water Loot
A lucrative deal involving city water bonds sparks outrage over embezzlement and public debt.
- Tension Rises on the Puyallup Reservation
A federal commission attempts to settle land disputes while facing intense resistance from the Puyallup people, who reject the government's authority to dismantle their land holdings.
- The Dynamite Murder of Tacoma: A Mob’s Verdict
In the early hours of January 1890, a Tacoma man was dragged from jail and hanged by a vigilante mob for blowing up a house and killing a sleeping family. The Seattle press offers a chilling reflection on whether such 'swift justice' is ever truly justified.
- The Judge Who Wanted to Join the Salvation Army
Probate Judge Wickersham faces seduction charges in Tacoma; his defense seeks a venue change as he jokes about his future with the Salvation Army.
- The Wickersham Scandal: A Judge’s Honor on Trial
In a Tacoma courtroom that captivated the Pacific Northwest, Miss Brantner takes the stand for days, detailing alleged improprieties with Probate Judge Wickersham. The trial exposes a web of land fraud, cocaine use, and social climbing, culminating in a judge’s furious rebuke of a laughing crowd.
- The Trial of Judge Wickersham: A Tacoma Scandal Over Land, Lies, and 'Delirium'
In February 1889, the trial of a powerful federal judge in Tacoma exposed a web of political corruption, land fraud, and sexual scandal involving a young woman named Sadie Brantner.
- The Wig and the Wire: How a Tacoma Newspaper Owner Tried to Destroy a Judge
In the sensational Wickersham trial of 1889, prosecutor R.P. Radebaugh’s own past and his alleged conspiracy to frame Judge Wickersham for 'immorality' were laid bare in court.
- The Railway Bribe on the Reservation
A railroad company agent admits to a systematic scheme of paying Puyallup men to secure a right-of-way through their land.
- The Day the Wind Took Down Tacoma’s New Buildings
A fierce storm topples a nearly finished commercial building, claiming the life of a prominent contractor and leaving a city in shock.
- The Mystery of the Murdered Man's Two Wives
A shocking revelation in the case of C. C. Grant suggests the victim may have been a bigamist, or perhaps the victim of a clever fraud.
- The Railroad’s Big Heist: Northern Pacific Claims Indian Land It Doesn’t Own
As the Puyallup Reservation faces a legal siege from the Northern Pacific Railway, federal officials warn that a treaty-protected land grab could strip thousands of acres from Native families for pennies on the dollar.
- The Six Who Vanished: Tacoma’s Senatorial Scandal and the Art of Political Silence
In the wake of a bitter Washington State Senate race, the six key allies of defeated candidate Judge Calkins have disappeared from public view, leaving behind a trail of bribery allegations and a furious debate over whether the election was stolen or won by superior strategy.
- Eviction Threatens Historical Black Settlement in Tacoma
A US Marshal is ordered to collect rent from 450 squatters living on a 163-acre tract established by early Black settlers.
- The Shackled Sailors of the Karoo
A federal judge in Tacoma intervenes to protect a crew 'inveigled' onto a British ship, exposing a brutal system of forced labor and maritime exploitation.
- The Puyallup Land Dispute: A Forgotten Fight for City Growth
In 1892, Representative John L. Wilson proposed liquidating the Puyallup Indian Reservation to spur the growth of Tacoma, highlighting the long-standing tension between tribal sovereignty and urban expansion.
- The Horror in the Cabin: A Tacoma Tragedy
A brutal murder of a fruit dealer in his sleep reveals the violent shadow of immigrant debt and desperation in 1892 Tacoma.
- The Cabin on South Nineteenth Street
A brutal murder in Tacoma’s Italian community shocks the city, leading to a swift conviction of a man who carried holy relics to his own trial.
- The Sudden End of a Tacoma Tycoon
A wealthy real estate developer and pillar of the financial community takes his own life following financial struggles.
- Tacoma’s Chinese Merchant Question Turns to Threats of Violence
A visiting Chinese businessman tests whether Tacoma will admit Chinese merchants, while the Trades Council calls them “a pestilential social element” and a crowd waits at the depot.
- A Nighttime Murder in Tacoma
A popular patrolman is stabbed to death by strangers while off-duty, sparking a vigilante threat in the streets.
- Chinese Merchants Return to Tacoma
A trading company opens in the Bostwick Block, sparking fears of renewed anti-Chinese violence.
- Chinese Merchants Return to Tacoma Streets
For the first time since the forced expulsion of 1885, Chinese business owners walk the streets of Tacoma openly.