Research the archive
Narrow 27,002 newspaper stories by words, years, place, newspaper and subject. See when and where they ran, then download what you find.
Put a phrase in quotes ("rent strike") or leave a word out with a minus (strike -baseball). Old scans misspell names, so when little is found, near-spellings are offered.
Refine
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1858 | 3 |
| 1859 | 4 |
| 1860 | 1 |
| 1861 | 10 |
| 1862 | 4 |
| 1863 | 3 |
| 1864 | 3 |
| 1872 | 14 |
| 1876 | 54 |
| 1877 | 46 |
| 1878 | 23 |
| 1879 | 1 |
| 1880 | 14 |
| 1882 | 10 |
| 1883 | 82 |
| 1884 | 44 |
| 1885 | 83 |
| 1886 | 45 |
| 1887 | 73 |
| 1888 | 47 |
| 1889 | 110 |
| 1890 | 20 |
| 1891 | 121 |
| 1892 | 235 |
| 1893 | 198 |
| 1894 | 340 |
| 1895 | 440 |
| 1896 | 1 |
| 1897 | 4 |
| 1898 | 15 |
| 1899 | 69 |
| 1900 | 6 |
| 1902 | 4 |
| 1903 | 96 |
| 1904 | 101 |
| 1905 | 7 |
| 1907 | 7 |
| 1908 | 41 |
| 1909 | 143 |
| 1910 | 33 |
| 1911 | 10 |
| 1912 | 4 |
| 1914 | 27 |
| 1915 | 19 |
| 1916 | 32 |
| 1917 | 22 |
| 1918 | 5 |
| 1922 | 4 |
| 1923 | 11 |
| 1924 | 5 |
| 1925 | 2 |
| 1928 | 5 |
| 1929 | 9 |
2,710 stories matching ask
- A Desperate Search for a Missing Seattle Boy
A seven-year-old child vanishes from his home on Second Avenue, sparking a plea for information.
- The Mayor Who Refused to Expel
When an outsider asked to ban Chinese residents from Tacoma, Mayor Jacob Mann stood his ground against the era's tide of exclusion.
- The Prizefighter’s Penance: John L. Sullivan in Seattle
After his high-profile prizefight in the Pacific Northwest, boxing legend John L. Sullivan faces a harsh judicial reality in a Seattle courtroom.
- The Unapologetic Diner
A husband takes offense when a shopkeeper publicly labels him a 'hog' for his hearty appetite.
- Coon v. Hay: When a Newspaper Ad Became an Election Law Fight
Former Lt. Gov. Charles E. Coon asked the state Supreme Court to rehear his suit against M. E. Hay, hoping to settle whether candidates who buy newspaper ads are barred from office.
- A Prospector's Plea for Support
A former Yukon miner writes to the editor asking for help to fund a prospecting expedition.
- Taming the Puyallup and Duwamish
Tacoma and Seattle delegates join forces to lobby the state and congress for flood control and navigation improvements.
- The Bank Asks Newport to Keep Its Nerve
Stockholders of the First State Bank of Newport pledged to cover depositors' losses and asked for time to collect loans as the Panic of 1907 tightened its grip on the country.
- The Battle for the Assessor’s Office
A Seattle taxpayer challenges the hiring of a deputy, sparking a tense public exchange in the press over bureaucratic authority and civic competence.
- The Coerced Vote: A State Official’s View on Compulsory Citizenship
When a worker asked if employers had the right to force registration, the Secretary of State endorsed the pressure, setting a precedent for civic ‘tyranny.’
- Private Money Wanted to Fill Smith's Cove—and Asked the City to Say Yes
A San Francisco syndicate lined up a state tide-land contract for May 7, with an injunction the only obvious obstacle.
- No Monopoly on Gaslight: Spokane's Council Draws a Line
Council granted a gas company the right to lay pipes—but pointedly refused an exclusive franchise, warning that monopoly would 'cinch the consumers.'
- The Woman Who Swore on Dynamite: A Spokane Courtroom Shock
In a rare moment of courtroom gravity, a female defendant in Spokane was asked to place her hand on dynamite instead of the Bible for her oath—leaving the room in profound silence.
- The Only Witness to a Saloon Killing
James Murphy’s second murder trial hinged on the sole eyewitness to a quarrel that began over cocktails and ended with Philip Dawe shot under the eye behind his bar.
- The Trial That Shook Tacoma: The Scandal of Sadie Brantner and Judge Wickersham
A dramatic courtroom battle in the late 1880s reveals a web of sexual politics, professional ethics, and character assassination involving a prominent probate judge and a young woman accused of immorality.
- The Growing Pains of Aberdeen's Public Schools
School directors move to expand the new school site, requesting the city vacate a public alleyway to make room for construction.
- A Case of Misspelling
Dr. Royal A. Gove files suit against the Sunset Telephone Company for losing him business after they misspelled his name in the directory.
- Tacoma’s Water Commissioner Says He’ll Stay—and He Won’t Take a Raise
H. J. McGregor denies rumors of resignation, turns down a higher salary, and vows to finish the city’s water supply and power plant.
- Newport's Road Race for the Calispel Valley Trade
As rival towns lobbied for a $30,000 state road, Newport banked on a new railroad and steamboats to secure the rich valley's business.
- The Battle for the Washtucna Coulee
A railroad and the government clash over a plan to turn a vital transportation artery into an irrigation reservoir.
- The Phrenologist's Uncomfortable Night
A visiting lecturer claiming to predict marital compatibility via head exams meets a skeptical local crowd in Ritzville.
- A Former Superior Court Judge Says the Streetcar Tracks Ate His Front Yard
John C. Stallcup wants $6,000 from Tacoma, arguing the city let the Pacific Traction Company double-track Cliff Avenue past his two South Fifth Street lots without so much as asking — and left private land doing the work of a public street.
- The Unseen Cost of a Growing City
A desperate letter from a laboring family illustrates the crushing reality of poverty in a booming Spokane, where basic survival was becoming an unreachable luxury.
- The Unintended Thief of Front Street
A disgraced attorney faces justice in Seattle for misappropriating client funds, pleading that his professional collapse was a desperate bid to survive.
- A Voice in the Dark: The Burglar Who Knew the Girls' Room
Three young women in Port Townsend wake to a prowler fumbling at the bureau, hand over ten cents and two trinkets, and wait trembling for daylight.