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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1903 | 21 |
| 1904 | 885 |
| 1907 | 5 |
| 1909 | 750 |
1,661 stories
- Tacoma’s Poisoned Water
A local newspaper argues that the city's reliance on the polluted Clover Creek for drinking water is driving typhoid fever and threatening the lives of its residents.
- A Deadly Encounter at the Pharmacy
A South Tacoma druggist is fighting for his life after a masked intruder opened fire during a robbery attempt.
- The Battle for Tacoma's Soul
Tacoma’s Republican primaries pit an 'incumbent status quo' against a faction promising an 'open town' policy.
- The War for Power in the Pacific Northwest
A Boston-backed syndicate attempts to monopolize water rights and electricity, sparking a high-stakes legal battle with independent producer Charles H. Baker.
- Fatal Dynamite Blast on Second Avenue
A Seattle contractor and his powder man face manslaughter charges following a reckless dynamite incident that killed a young boy.
- The Thief Who Leaped from the Heights
A notorious international criminal is finally cornered in Tacoma after a dramatic chase involving a 200-foot plunge down an embankment.
- Battle for the Soul of Tacoma’s City Hall
Republican and Democratic mayoral candidates trade sharp accusations of corruption, ring rule, and financial mismanagement in final campaign rallies.
- The Desperate Plea of a Starving Squatter
A man living in an abandoned log house on the Puyallup reservation describes the violent standoff that led to his arrest and the shooting of a local sheriff.
- The Price of Being a 'Wide Open' Town
Tacoma’s city officials are formalizing a system of monthly 'bail' payments for gambling house owners, effectively legalizing the industry through a protection racket.
- 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.
- A Desperate Corral Rescue
A husband is gored by a bull near his home, leading to a harrowing, multi-generational effort to save his life.
- A Mother on the Dock: Four Shots for the Man Who Ruined Her Daughter
Mrs. Gertrude Robb waited at Seattle's Coleman Dock for the steamer Telegraph, called her daughter's seducer by name, and emptied a revolver into him. Then she handed the gun to a bystander and waited for the police.
- The Crumbling Span Over the Gulch
South Tacoma residents demand immediate action as a critical bridge over a ravine shows dangerous signs of structural failure.
- The Shadowy Rail Deal Behind Tacoma’s Tide Flats
A quiet war of railroad giants leaves a smaller line in a chokehold, as local business interests scramble for answers regarding the city’s industrial future.
- The Shadowy Slot Machine King of Tacoma
A brutal divorce filing exposes the secret owner of Tacoma's pervasive slot machine operations.
- Tragedy on the Tacoma Waterfront
A newborn child found dead on Dock Street stirs dark memories of an earlier unsolved discovery in the same industrial zone.
- Fireworks Committee Blamed for Panic at Wright Park
Careless handling of explosives during Tacoma's Fourth of July celebration left spectators injured and fleeing for their lives.
- The Rockets Turned Around: Tacoma's Fourth of July Went Up in a Sheet of Flame
A spark touched off the entire $500 pyrotechnic stock at Wright Park, driving rockets and bombs into a crowd of thousands and leaving women and children burned, trampled and briefly lost in the smoke.
- Late-Night Stabbing on Pacific Avenue
A laborer is found dead in a pool of blood after a night of drinking, leading police to arrest a local porter on suspicion.
- A Spilled Bowl of Soup, a Fatal Shot at Camp Murray
A mess-tent quarrel between two young soldiers ended with Private Thomas Vandiver shot through the body and Private Frederick Stubbs in the county jail, claiming self-defense.
- Black Workers Organize for Fair Employment
After facing widespread discrimination from employers and fellow workers, Tacoma’s Black community gathers to demand equal opportunity.
- The Price of a 'Wide Open' Town
A citizen accuses the County Attorney of enabling a graft scheme that granted a single operator a lucrative monopoly on slot machines while allegedly shaking down other business owners.
- They Promised Clean Bunks and Good Food. The Sailors Knew Better.
At a longshoremen's meeting in Tacoma, a delegate described how ship's officers lured landsmen aboard with false promises — and told of a sailor who drowned swimming for shore rather than sail on the Henry Failing.
- Tacoma’s Secret 'Fining' System
Mayor Wright and Chief Malony allegedly operated a shadow tax on gambling and vice, using fake names to funnel illicit profits through the city’s ledgers.
- The Shadow of 1885 Lingers in Tacoma
Twenty years after the forced expulsion of the city's Chinese population, rumors of new arrivals trigger threats of vigilante action.