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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 1 |
| 1859 | 1 |
| 1860 | 1 |
| 1861 | 1 |
| 1872 | 1 |
| 1876 | 8 |
| 1877 | 3 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1879 | 1 |
| 1880 | 1 |
| 1883 | 4 |
| 1884 | 3 |
| 1885 | 1 |
| 1886 | 3 |
| 1887 | 2 |
| 1888 | 3 |
| 1889 | 9 |
| 1891 | 4 |
| 1892 | 10 |
| 1893 | 6 |
| 1894 | 7 |
| 1895 | 8 |
| 1898 | 2 |
| 1899 | 1 |
| 1900 | 1 |
| 1902 | 1 |
| 1903 | 6 |
| 1904 | 10 |
| 1909 | 5 |
| 1911 | 1 |
| 1914 | 2 |
| 1915 | 2 |
| 1916 | 2 |
| 1917 | 2 |
| 1918 | 1 |
| 1922 | 1 |
| 1924 | 2 |
| 1925 | 1 |
| 1928 | 1 |
120 stories matching rigid
- The Empire Sells Off the Smelter
Independent miners in the Pacific Northwest move to seize control of the Everett reduction works, breaking the stranglehold of the industry trust.
- The Crackdown on 'Fast Riding' in Old Seattle
When rowdy horsemen turned Front Street into a racetrack, the city police decided the era of reckless riding in the city center had to end.
- City Finances Near Total Collapse
Tacoma’s Controller warns that general expense funds will run dry within six months as expenditures dwarf tax collections.
- An Etiquette Dispute Over a Business Letter
A Walla Walla man takes deep offense at the formal address used in a professional letter to his wife, revealing the rigid social anxieties of the era.
- The Viral Panic of 1924
Washington State launches a defensive campaign against a hoof-and-mouth outbreak in California, warning citizens to watch for 'disease bootleggers' and misinformation.
- Seattle's Struggle for Green Space
A fledgling park commission battles City Hall for funds and autonomy in 1894.
- Smallpox Rumors Spark Cross-Border Panic
Exaggerated reports of a smallpox outbreak in Seattle lead to international tensions and calls for quarantine from British Columbia authorities.
- Tacoma’s Liberal Turn Stirs Public Outcry
Mayor Wright’s new administration faces harsh criticism for loosening city moral standards.
- The Price of Matrimony in Territorial Seattle
A public court summons from 1877 highlights the rigid legal and social standards for marriage and family in the Washington Territory.
- The Ghost Stories of the City Reservoir
While typhoid fever rages in Tacoma, the city council struggles to address public panic over rumors of bodies dumped in the water supply.
- The Mother, The Child, and The Purser’s Zeal
A desperate mother is arrested in Seattle after a daring escape from the hospital, exposing the cruelty of rigid legal intervention in the 1870s.
- The Persistent Loophole in Walla Walla's Temperance Laws
While the city restricts alcohol sales to 'probated' drunkards, families find that local saloons are ignoring the law—leading to a potential wave of civil litigation.
- The Fight for Childhood
A national campaign to end the exploitation of children in the factory system gains ground in state legislatures.
- Smallpox Scare in Seattle Hotels
Public health officers scramble to quarantine guests at the Alaska Hotel and St. Elmo after two smallpox cases emerge on Main Street.
- The Town Goes to the Dogs
A state-mandated rabies quarantine forces Kennewick residents to muzzle their dogs or face the consequences.
- The 'Buy Local' Crusade of 1904
Tacoma’s industrial boosters celebrate a year of lobbying, recruitment, and a rigid insistence on regional loyalty.
- Associated Charities Weeds Out the 'Unworthy'
Seattle's charitable bureau meets to handle a growing caseload, drawing a rigid line between the 'deserving' poor and those deemed unworthy of aid.
- The Scent of 'Unmarked Coin' at the Capitol
As local option battles intensify, rumors of a slush fund designed to sway legislators circulate through Olympia.
- The Oyster Catastrophe
A restaurant diner faces a terrifying and slippery ordeal when a raw oyster takes a wrong turn.
- The Opium Ring Debauching Tacoma’s Messenger Boys
Detective Flannigan uncovers a ring of adults using opium and illicit lodging houses to exploit children in the messenger service.
- The Bank That Quit the Nation
A Colton financial institution abandons its national charter, highlighting the struggle of small-town banks under federal mandates.
- City Hall Shakes Up Police Department
Tacoma replaces officers as the city prepares for a strict enforcement of municipal ordinances.
- Thrown Off the Train for Three Miles
A railroad conductor enforces a strict, rigid, and brutal fare policy against a weary worker in Centralia.
- The Fight Against the Rail Barons
A fiery interview with a Washington Territory delegate exposes the 'gentlemanly footpad' tactics used by the Northern Pacific Railroad to seize public land from settlers.
- The Great Seattle 'Slot' Debate
A local cable railway company threatens to abandon a major investment after the city council forces an impossible construction standard on their tracks.