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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1861 | 1 |
| 1862 | 1 |
| 1871 | 1 |
| 1872 | 5 |
| 1876 | 34 |
| 1877 | 19 |
| 1878 | 12 |
| 1880 | 8 |
| 1882 | 2 |
| 1883 | 18 |
| 1884 | 19 |
| 1885 | 31 |
| 1886 | 5 |
| 1887 | 27 |
| 1888 | 55 |
| 1889 | 70 |
| 1890 | 1 |
| 1891 | 24 |
| 1892 | 50 |
| 1893 | 48 |
| 1894 | 47 |
| 1895 | 66 |
| 1897 | 1 |
| 1898 | 2 |
| 1899 | 25 |
| 1902 | 1 |
| 1903 | 12 |
| 1904 | 2 |
| 1909 | 2 |
| 1910 | 1 |
| 1915 | 1 |
| 1916 | 4 |
| 1924 | 1 |
| 1928 | 1 |
| 1929 | 1 |
598 stories matching develop
- The Balloon-Powered Park Plan
A satirical interview with a Seattle developer reveals the absurd lengths civic boosters would go to inflate the value of local land.
- A Frontier Home on Second Street
In the winter of 1876, a simple advertisement captures the rapid development and domestic churn of a burgeoning Seattle.
- 1888 Seattle Development Offered 60 Lots and Five Cottages
Developers used a high-stakes giveaway to lure buyers to the city’s growing outskirts, blending real estate speculation with a chance at a 'small fortune.'
- Turning Lakes into Pearl Factories
A University of Washington professor claims the Pacific Northwest could dominate the global pearl button market by transplanting Mississippi mussels.
- The Morning the Earth Shook in Seattle
An unusually violent tremor rattles early risers in 1886, marking a moment of shared alarm in the developing town.
- The Rivalry of the Sound: Seattle vs. Tacoma
A critical report from a German newspaper highlights the starkly different development paths of the two boomtowns.
- Untangling the 'Ram's Horn' Rail Lines
A committee of aldermen pushes to straighten a confusing rail right-of-way that crippled Seattle's waterfront development.
- A House and Lot for Sale on Second Street (Dec 25, 1876)
A quiet real estate listing from 1876 highlights the rapid development of early Seattle’s residential landscape.
- The Tragedy of the Salmon Bay Shipyard
A maritime accident in the newly developing industrial tideflats of late 1889 reveals the human cost of Seattle's rapid expansion.
- The Mother Who Fled a Tyrant
A mother escapes her husband’s brutal control and property schemes after enduring years of abuse, turning to the law to secure her child’s safety.
- The Push for a Seattle-Tacoma Inter-Urban Boulevard
Business leaders rally behind a proposed wagon road to connect the two cities, hoping to capture rural trade and boost regional development.
- The Forgotten Dream of an Open Seattle Library
In 1885, Seattle residents could access the University's library for just one dollar a quarter, a radical experiment in civic education that the local press urged to become a permanent foundation for the city's future.
- The Buried Forest Beneath Denny Hill
Excavations for a new industrial facility in Seattle reveal a startling subterranean history: an ancient, preserved forest resting 22 feet beneath the city's surface.
- The Next Pittsburg: Seattle’s Coal Rush
A new mine opens across the Cedar River, fueling hopes that the young city of Seattle will soon become a major center for iron and coal production.
- The 1888 Land Grab: Seattle’s First Lottery-Style Housing Development
Before modern zoning and master plans, developers in the boom-era Northwest used gimmicks like house-lot raffles to sell undeveloped land on the city’s fringes.
- The Rise of Seattle Football
Three months ago the game was unknown; today, the city is a powerhouse on the Pacific Coast.
- The Gold Rush That Never Was: How Canadian Laws Stifled Seattle’s Northern Dream
A Victoria contractor tells the Star that new British Columbia legislation has turned away American miners, leaving Alaska's gold fields dark and local businesses in ruins.
- The Great Seattle Streetcar Franchise Fight: Why Short Leases Save the City
As city councilors debate a controversial 40-year lease for street railway operations, The Seattle Star argues that short-term concessions are the only way to prevent corporate greed from strangling public transit.
- Railroad Monopoly Targets Seattle’s Prosperity
The Northern Pacific Railroad is accused of prioritizing Tacoma's land values over the economic development of Seattle.
- The Unwanted Guest of Providence Hospital
A 'harmless crank' in 1885 Seattle exposes the gaps in the city's social safety net.
- The Wife-Slasher Who Tried to Play Insane—and the Seattle Jury That Didn’t Buy It
McGee feigned madness so badly that the jury convicted him on the first ballot. A Steilacoom asylum doctor explained why three months of observation found no insanity—only a terrified wife.
- The Iron Rush: Seattle’s Early Fight Against Monopoly
When mining magnates and railroad tycoons clashed over the future of Washington's natural resources, Seattle’s civic leaders took a stand to protect local control.
- The Curse of the Golden Calf: Seattle’s Economic Anxiety in 1877
As banks tightened their grip on local capital, a Seattle editor warned that hoarding wealth—rather than investing in local industry and homes—was a dangerous path to ruin.
- The Seattle Land Rush of 1889
A weekly log of deeds and transactions reveals the frenzied pace of development, speculation, and shifting property lines in pre-statehood Seattle.
- The City Rises Against a Heavyweight Bully
When boxing legend John L. Sullivan publicly spewed racist venom in 1892, Seattle’s Afro-American League turned his own brutal rhetoric against him, demanding dignity from the local press.