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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1888 | 314 |
| 1889 | 785 |
| 1891 | 328 |
| 1892 | 1,308 |
| 1893 | 1,604 |
| 1894 | 1,246 |
| 1895 | 1,087 |
6,672 stories
- The 1889 Great Seattle Thirst
As Seattle boomed toward 30,000 residents, the city faced a critical choice: build a dual system of salt water for fire and fresh for drinking, or bet everything on Lake Washington.
- The 'Gentleman' Thief and the Seattle Police Ring
A covert sting operation exposes a criminal syndicate that allegedly operated with the complicity of local law enforcement.
- The Great Seattle Land Rush: How 1890 Rewrote the Map
Newly unearthed records from 1890 show a city transforming through massive real estate speculation, where plots bought for hundreds were suddenly worth tens of thousands.
- The Great Seattle Bread Strike of 1891
After decades of grueling night shifts and labor-intensive production, Seattle’s unionized bakers walk off the job to demand an eight-bucket limit and daylight hours.
- The Great Tide Land Grab
A legal battle over the ownership of Seattle's waterfront reaches a fever pitch as investors stake claims on mud-flats using federal 'Valentine scrip.'
- The Collapse of a Railroad Empire
A classic story of overreach, mismanagement, and the harsh realities of the market as Jay Gould maneuvers to seize the Union Pacific during the Baring Brothers financial crisis.
- Seattle's 1891 Ballot: Annexation and $861,704 in Bonds
Before Seattle grew to its modern size, the city held a massive special election to decide the future of its neighboring townships and fund its expanding infrastructure.
- The Midnight Hold-Up That Turned Deadly
A trio of armed men terrorized downtown saloons until a victim fought back with a shotgun, leaving one assailant near death.
- The Tragedy of 'Cowboy Mary' and the Lost Lover of Whitechapel
After her partner died by suicide, a local woman known as 'Cowboy Mary' was arrested for disorderly conduct while mourning him at a Seattle morgue.
- The Constitutional Right to Not Be Imprisoned for Debt
When local merchants tried to jail a man for unpaid loans to prevent him from leaving town, a Seattle judge put the state’s progressive constitution to the test.
- Longshoremen Wage War on Stevedoring Monopoly
A newly formed stevedoring firm threatens the livelihoods of union workers, sparking a conflict on the Seattle waterfront.
- The Strange Abduction of Lodie Wirt
A young girl from Philadelphia, missing after being swept into the orbit of a disreputable variety actress, is recovered in a Seattle boarding house.
- The Abduction of Lodie Wirt
A teenage girl is rescued from a couple suspected of using opium to control and abduct young women.
- The Test Case of Chin Fook
A legal battle over the constitutional rights of Chinese residents in 1890s Seattle.
- The Runaway Cable Car of Madison Street
A silent, uncrewed cable car plunges down the steep grade toward Lake Washington, resulting in a fatal collision and a sobering coroner's inquest into transit safety.
- The Tragedy Beneath Lake Union
A routine sewer tunneling project turns into a deadly nightmare, leaving one laborer lost beneath six feet of quicksand as his comrades narrowly escape.
- The City’s IOUs: Seattle's Great 1892 Debt Reckoning
Facing a mountain of unpaid warrants and legal liabilities, the city council asks voters to decide if Seattle will settle its debts with bonds or face financial collapse.
- The Deportation Trap
A Seattle man is ordered out of the country after an accidental admission in court exposes him to the harsh realities of the Chinese Exclusion Act.
- The Fight for Frances: A Seattle Girl’s Battle for Freedom
A sister challenges the detention of a 16-year-old girl in a reformatory without legal warrant, revealing the precarious power institutions held over young women in the 1890s.
- The Great Seattle Audit: When the Mayor Defended the Ledger
Facing down accusations of corruption and fiscal recklessness, Seattle’s outgoing mayor releases a meticulous—and defensive—account of his administration's massive infrastructure push.
- The City of Seattle’s 1892 Great Debt Reckoning
Facing a mountain of unpaid warrants and legal liabilities, the city council asks voters to decide if they will bail out the city through a massive $1.2 million bond issue.
- The Price of Building a City: Seattle's 1892 Great Debt Gamble
Facing a mountain of unpaid warrants and legal judgments, the city government asked voters to ratify a massive bond issuance—and, for the first time, to approve a sweeping, 37-point overhaul of the municipal charter.
- The Election of 1892: Private Detectives and Political Brawl
As Seattle heads to the polls, allegations of private security 'thugs' and corporate-funded campaign spying highlight a desperate, high-stakes municipal battle.
- The 'Sullivan Thugs' and the Battle for Seattle's Soul
On the eve of the 1892 mayoral election, a local political scandal involving hired enforcers and intercepted telegrams brings Seattle to the brink of chaos.
- The Brotherhood at a Standstill
When the Canadian Pacific Railway attempted to force workers to abandon their unions, the entire Pacific division walked off the job, halting freight and leaving the region’s supply chains in chaos.