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 | 1 |
| 1872 | 1 |
| 1876 | 4 |
| 1877 | 1 |
| 1884 | 2 |
| 1885 | 2 |
| 1886 | 2 |
| 1887 | 1 |
| 1889 | 2 |
| 1890 | 1 |
| 1891 | 2 |
| 1892 | 5 |
| 1893 | 3 |
| 1894 | 1 |
| 1895 | 3 |
| 1904 | 1 |
| 1905 | 1 |
| 1909 | 1 |
| 1911 | 1 |
| 1916 | 1 |
36 stories matching hostag
- The Pirates of the Pacific: When Salvage Means Plunder
A biting critique from 1886 argues that maritime 'salvage' laws in the Pacific Northwest have transformed honest sailors into modern-day pirates who hold ships hostage for ransom.
- The Price of a City’s Future: Yesler’s Corner
A single landowner held Seattle’s urban development hostage, forcing the city council to choose between private property rights and the public good.
- The Tariff That Stole Your Coat: How Washington's Economy Was Held Hostage
In October 1890, Aberdeen workers and farmers felt the bite of the McKinley Tariff before it even passed, as prices soared and wages stagnated in a state where 'free labor' was being priced out of existence.
- The Struggle for Rails and Revenue in Pioneer Seattle
An editorial chastising local property holders for failing to invest in their own infrastructure, warning that without local buy-in, Seattle’s growth remains a hostage to outside capital.
- The Perilous Steam Bath of 1876
A Nevadan visitor to a Seattle Turkish bathhouse finds himself in a comedic, sweltering hostage situation over the reputation of his famous family name.
- The Great Land Squeeze of 1885
While the Northern Pacific Railroad publicly promised to 'build up the country,' settlers in King County found their land held hostage for mineral rights and future profits.
- One Coal-Oil Dealer Is Holding Olympia's New Electric Railway Hostage for $10,000
The streetcar line is contracted, the rails are shipped and the crews are ready — but George Marvin Savage's outfit sits squarely in the middle of Main Street, and he will not budge for less than ten thousand dollars.
- The Great Cow Standoff: When Seattle’s Streets Were Held Hostage by Livestock
In September 1878, a herd of cattle and horses blocked the wharf district, forcing pedestrians to halt in their tracks. The city council was forced to intervene as commerce ground to a standstill.
- A Landlord, a Seized Trunk, and a Lady Left in Her Shift
After months on the run, a Populist orator is arrested at a poultry show for holding a tenant's only clothes hostage over unpaid rent.
- The Roadhouse in the Woods That Kept Its Women in Debt
A raid between the coal towns of Wilkeson and Carbonado exposed a liquor-and-gambling dive where miners were fleeced and women said their clothes were held hostage for debts.
- The Wooden Revolver That Freed Ten Prisoners
Thomas Blanck held a jailer hostage with a carved fake gun, emptied the King County jail, and vanished into Seattle's streets.