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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1883 | 1 |
| 1884 | 1 |
| 1885 | 1 |
| 1886 | 1 |
| 1889 | 4 |
| 1891 | 2 |
| 1892 | 6 |
| 1893 | 4 |
| 1894 | 3 |
| 1895 | 5 |
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35 stories matching instig
- The Railroad That Built the Town Now Charges It Tribute
Spokane Falls merchants discover the Northern Pacific has quietly raised freight rates 50 to 150 percent — to fatten Portland at the inland towns' expense.
- The Plot to Lock Up a Witness: How Greed Tried to Silence a Pioneer
William De Shaw, a respected Seattle merchant and witness to a will worth millions in British Columbia, was nearly committed to an insane asylum by land speculators who wanted his testimony silenced.
- Creditors Circle a Seattle Hotel as an Heir Fights a Forced Sale
The executor of the Harmon estate asks for time to collect a judgment and mortgage the New England Hotel, while an heir accuses creditors of trying to seize valuable property at a sacrifice.
- Three Hundred Olympians Pack Columbia Hall to See Who Takes the Cake
A novelty dance craze two weeks in the gossiping arrives at last: one hundred couples, a flag, a pair of clashing cymbals, and a ten-cent ticket for every march — all to raise money for the YMCA's women's auxiliary.
- A Streetcar Magnate Denies Bribery and Blames an Alderman's Grudge
Writing from St. Louis, Union Trunk Line president E. F. Wittler flatly denies offering Alderman J. Eugene Jordan $100 and a lifetime pass to stop fighting the line's Rainier Heights branch — and says Jordan told him he was only trying to 'get even with Lowman.'
- Candy, Land Claims and a 'Confidence Man': Arlington's Commissioner Hits Back
George Morrell denies stealing ginger snaps and swindling settlers—then accuses his accuser of running an extortion racket with a Seattle police escort.
- The Judge’s Double Life: Seduction, Abortion, and the Cover-Up That Shook Tacoma
In 1889, a young canvasser named Sadie Brantner took the stand to accuse Pierce County Probate Judge James Wickersham of luring her into a trap in Seattle, forcing an illegal abortion, and paying her off to silence. The trial revealed a web of deceit involving fake names, land fraud, and medical conspiracies.
- The Coal Creek Massacre: A Coroner’s Inquest into the Battle Between Knights of Labor and Mine Owners
In January 1890, Seattle Sheriff Cochrane deployed militia to Newcastle to suppress a miners' strike. When a riot erupted at Coal Creek, one man was killed and ten arrested. The subsequent coroner's inquest revealed a chaotic scene where union men claimed self-defense against armed mine owners, while the sheriff dismissed the Knights of Labor as 'too excitable.'
- The Wig and the Wire: How a Tacoma Newspaper Owner Tried to Destroy a Judge
In the sensational Wickersham trial of 1889, prosecutor R.P. Radebaugh’s own past and his alleged conspiracy to frame Judge Wickersham for 'immorality' were laid bare in court.
- The Mayor Fires Two Police Commissioners to Keep Blackchapel Shut
In a single day, Mayor Phelps removed two police commissioners, accused them of conspiring to protect a red-light district and oust Chief Rogers, and installed replacements before the House of Delegates could slow him down.