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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1883 | 1 |
| 1885 | 2 |
| 1886 | 2 |
| 1889 | 1 |
| 1891 | 2 |
| 1892 | 7 |
| 1893 | 5 |
| 1894 | 3 |
| 1895 | 8 |
| 1899 | 1 |
| 1908 | 1 |
| 1909 | 3 |
| 1910 | 1 |
| 1914 | 1 |
| 1916 | 1 |
| 1928 | 1 |
41 stories matching backer
- The World at War, Felt in Kennewick
As Europe descends into the First World War, Kennewick residents with roots in Germany, Belgium, and Britain watch the news with growing anxiety and divided loyalties.
- The Political Gambler of the Puget Sound
A look back at the life of Captain Marshall Blinn, the independent candidate who once chartered a steamer to campaign for Congress across the territory.
- The High-Stakes Duel on Jackson Street
Two prominent Seattle businessmen settled a long-standing rivalry with an elaborate, heavily trained, and well-wagered foot race across a city bridge.
- The Opium Smuggling Ring of Pike Street
A failed nurseryman and a former grocer are arrested in a desperate scheme to smuggle opium in Seattle, orchestrated by a local 'fast young man.'
- 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 Council Strikes Back: Seattle Turns on Its Own Power Company
Mayor Humes vetoes saloon restrictions, but the City Council is far more concerned with a corporate power grab. They launch an investigation into the Snoqualmie Falls Power Co., accusing it of using legal injunctions to block the city’s water supply contracts and protect its private interests.
- A County Treasurer’s Bond With Too Many Holes
Seattle’s newly elected county treasurer filed a surety bond riddled with defects, withdrawn signatures and backers who pledged more than they could justify.
- A Gas Boom in Benton County, Complete With a Camp Lit by Its Own Well
Backers of the Benton County gas field planned a December 7 excursion to show off a well that powered engines, lit the driller’s houses, and they hoped would soon fuel a pipeline to Walla Walla.
- The $750,000 Question Tacoma's Park Board Couldn't Answer
Days before a citywide bond vote, an editorial demanded specifics on parks, playgrounds and boulevards—while a Twelfth Street improvement club secretary insisted the plan had backers.
- Deadlock in Olympia: A Governor Says No and the Senate Seat Stays Empty
Governor McGraw refuses a U.S. Senate seat, George Turner is pushed forward, and Ankeny's backers dig in as Populists threaten to break the deadlock.
- Seattle's Canal Backers Turn Up the Pressure—and the Cash
Boosters behind the Lake Washington canal reported fresh subscriptions, promised a gravity water supply for the tide flats, and argued the city could not afford to miss its chance.
- The Treasurer’s Bond Had a Hole in It
Seattle’s treasurer-elect filed a $90,000 bond, but wives’ names were penciled in, signatures were missing, and one backer wanted out.
- The Telephone Franchise Fight: A Speculator's Bid Rejected
Aldermen refused S. H. Piles a phone franchise because he wouldn't name his backers or put up a bond — and the competitor they did trust never built a line.
- The Mine That Wasn’t? A Captain Denies a Half-Million-Dollar Gold Swindle
An English capitalist’s suit against Alaska millionaires turned a Port Townsend sailing into a Pacific Coast sensation, with charges of swapped ore, gold-soaked drill cores, and a forceful denial from Capt. James Carroll.
- The $2 Fee That Sunk a Warehouse: Railroads Tighten Grip on Seattle's Waterfront
A group of local businessmen planned a major grain warehouse at the foot of Battery Street, but Northern Pacific's refusal to budge on switching fees scuttled the deal—and highlighted the railroads' stranglehold on Seattle's shipping future.
- The Octopus and the Seal: A Local Captain’s War Against a Washington Monopoly
In 1901, Port Townsend resident James G. Swan published affidavits from experienced hunters to debunk Professor Elliott’s claim that seal pups sink like stones, exposing the Alaska Commercial Company’s stranglehold on federal policy.