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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 1 |
| 1861 | 2 |
| 1862 | 2 |
| 1864 | 1 |
| 1872 | 3 |
| 1876 | 9 |
| 1877 | 7 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1880 | 4 |
| 1882 | 2 |
| 1883 | 10 |
| 1884 | 7 |
| 1885 | 14 |
| 1886 | 5 |
| 1887 | 13 |
| 1888 | 3 |
| 1889 | 6 |
| 1891 | 18 |
| 1892 | 14 |
| 1893 | 18 |
| 1894 | 33 |
| 1895 | 43 |
| 1897 | 3 |
| 1898 | 3 |
| 1899 | 18 |
| 1903 | 19 |
| 1904 | 5 |
| 1907 | 2 |
| 1908 | 3 |
| 1909 | 15 |
| 1910 | 3 |
| 1914 | 7 |
| 1915 | 2 |
| 1916 | 3 |
| 1917 | 2 |
| 1923 | 2 |
| 1924 | 1 |
304 stories matching ascertain
- The Tragedy on the Mud Flats
A fisherman’s attempt to reach his boat in the dark ends in a horrific drowning, as bystanders mistake his cries for help.
- A Near-Fatal Carriage Crash on the Beach Road
A local man is severely injured when a startled team of horses plunges off an embankment, highlighting the dangers of early Seattle infrastructure.
- The Quillayute and Makah Had Been Trading Across the Strait for Years. Then the Customs Inspector Arrived.
Inspector Fisher of Port Angeles seized $1,500 in blankets, sugar, rope and tinware bought in Victoria, and arrested two Quillayute men who freely admitted the practice — and pleaded it was the custom of years.
- The Nickel Strike That Wasn’t a Boom—Yet
A Kittitas County nickel discovery promised one of the largest deposits in the country, but capital and roads had to be convinced before the wealth could move.
- Customs Raid Finds Illicit Opium in Walla Walla
Law enforcement seized $1,000 worth of smuggled opium from Chinese business houses in a coordinated sting operation.
- The Territory Picks Its Favorite
A survey of prominent Republicans across Washington Territory shows overwhelming support for James G. Blaine in the upcoming presidential nomination.
- The Mystery of the Drowned Man’s Missing Fortune
In July 1870, Seattle’s probate court launched a frantic investigation into whether $2,000 vanished from the pocket of John Filfe, who drowned in Puget Sound days earlier.
- Greening the City Park
Chairman McLean works to beautify Walla Walla's public spaces while protecting a new local quail colony.
- The Science of Shuddering Earth
A look at the nascent field of seismology and why the earth moves beneath our feet.
- The 'A Co.' Misunderstanding
A linguistic confusion at a Seattle restaurant leads to a partnership change and a new sign.
- The Death of Belle Lincoln
A woman dies after being found severely beaten in a remote area, highlighting the vulnerability of marginalized people in the frontier.
- A Deadly Commute to the Newcastle Mines
A ship carpenter’s fatal attempt to board a moving coal train highlights the dangerous conditions of industrial life in 1880s Seattle.
- The Secret Census of Incarcerated Aliens
Federal agents conduct a quiet, month-long sweep of Washington’s state institutions to identify non-citizens for deportation.
- Horrific Industrial Accident Near 15th and Dock Street
A man is struck by a Northern Pacific engine and suffers a severed leg while watching a separate engine approach.
- Voters Approve New Columbia Irrigation District
Kennewick community moves to take control of private canal systems to secure agricultural future.
- The Flower Seller's Valise Held a Counterfeiter's Die
Z. M. Hawkins, who sold bouquets at Second and University, was held for trial after officers found a counterfeit dollar and a coin-making die—and a trail leading to a Mexican-dollar exchange in San Francisco.
- Narrow Escape from St. Mary’s Inferno
A Kennewick woman survives a harrowing hospital fire in Walla Walla that leveled the historic building.
- The Sudden Collapse of the Farmers' Bank
Seattle's financial community was left in shock as a major institution shuttered its doors, leaving depositors and creditors in the lurch.
- The Mystery of the Vanished Donation Claim
Thurston County officials try to purchase a poor farm, only to discover the original land claim may never have been finalized.
- The Explorer’s Widow Visits Olympia
Lady Jane Franklin, still searching for answers about her husband's lost Arctic expedition, visits the Washington Territory.
- St. Louis Money Comes to Dig Seattle's South Canal
A telegram to Eugene Semple announced that the Ames brothers and their St. Louis backers were on their way to take charge of the South Canal, as engineers surveyed the tide flats and a dredger headed west.
- The Seamen's Union and the Dynamite Scare
A wave of paranoia hits the Pacific Coast as authorities hunt for a fugitive sailor linked to a fatal San Francisco bombing.
- The Battle for the St. James Mission Land
Secretary of War Robert Todd Lincoln denies a church petition for land, sparking a debate over the government's military reservation boundaries in Vancouver.
- The Opium Smuggler of the 'City of Kingston'
A Port Angeles woman is arrested for running a profitable cross-border smuggling operation.
- The Tragic Final Wages of John Smith
A deckhand on the steamer 'McNaught' met a mysterious and lonely end on the Seattle waterfront, leaving behind nothing but a tragic search for dignity.