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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 1 |
| 1858 | 1 |
| 1859 | 3 |
| 1860 | 2 |
| 1861 | 2 |
| 1862 | 6 |
| 1863 | 1 |
| 1865 | 1 |
| 1872 | 8 |
| 1876 | 39 |
| 1877 | 43 |
| 1878 | 31 |
| 1879 | 5 |
| 1880 | 13 |
| 1882 | 10 |
| 1883 | 41 |
| 1884 | 31 |
| 1885 | 53 |
| 1886 | 43 |
| 1887 | 18 |
| 1888 | 30 |
| 1889 | 94 |
| 1890 | 15 |
| 1891 | 73 |
| 1892 | 179 |
| 1893 | 191 |
| 1894 | 171 |
| 1895 | 163 |
| 1897 | 3 |
| 1898 | 10 |
| 1899 | 24 |
| 1900 | 10 |
| 1902 | 3 |
| 1903 | 81 |
| 1904 | 63 |
| 1905 | 1 |
| 1907 | 1 |
| 1908 | 19 |
| 1909 | 77 |
| 1910 | 38 |
| 1911 | 13 |
| 1912 | 6 |
| 1914 | 16 |
| 1915 | 22 |
| 1916 | 33 |
| 1917 | 21 |
| 1918 | 2 |
| 1922 | 4 |
| 1923 | 5 |
| 1924 | 11 |
| 1925 | 4 |
| 1928 | 3 |
| 1929 | 3 |
1,741 stories matching fail
- City Faces Financial Collapse After Failed 'Boom' Schemes
Aberdeen’s city council orders lawsuits against property owners who failed to pay for the ambitious boulevard projects that left the town in debt.
- Road Supervisor Jailed for Embezzlement
A local official faces charges after allegedly pocketing road tax cash and failing to perform the required public works.
- The Sheriff’s Shabby Costume: A Prisoner’s Trick to Escape the Penitentiary
In a bizarre twist of early Washington Territory justice, a sheriff attempted to smuggle a prisoner into the territorial penitentiary by disguising him in shabby clothes. The trick failed, but not before the warden made a memorable quip.
- The Patriotism of Production
A wartime editorial debates whether local farmers are failing their country by exiting the livestock business during high feed costs.
- The Tragic Wreck of the Steamer Tacoma
Captain George D. Korts faces an official inquiry into the catastrophic loss of the vessel, revealing a series of navigational errors and failed rescue attempts.
- The Deadly Cost of a Supreme Court Precedent
A tragic railroad workplace death in Pennsylvania becomes a rallying cry for Everett labor activists opposing the appointment of a pro-corporate judge.
- The Bank President’s Private Till: Walla Walla’s Savings Bank Scandal
An expert’s report finds that J. K. Edmiston used the failed bank’s money for personal claims, had the books “fixed,” and left more than $151,000 in worthless notes.
- The Great 'Pulp' Boom of Seattle
While Seattle’s real estate developers were busy building the city, the local papers were fixated on an odd, failed experiment to tow a massive Canadian timber raft down the Pacific Coast to California—a project that ended in a floating, ocean-clogging disaster.
- Walla Walla's Baseball Future Hangs in the Balance
After struggling with poor attendance and low ticket revenue, the local manager warns that the team will disband unless fans step up their support.
- The Great Land Grab: Congress’s Failure to Hold the Northern Pacific Accountable
A scathing editorial from 1886 demands legislative accountability as Congress fails to reclaim land granted to the Northern Pacific Railroad.
- The River Escape That Failed
A riverside elopement turns into a dramatic showdown when a steamer captain intervenes in a young woman's flight.
- They Promised Clean Bunks and Good Food. The Sailors Knew Better.
At a longshoremen's meeting in Tacoma, a delegate described how ship's officers lured landsmen aboard with false promises — and told of a sailor who drowned swimming for shore rather than sail on the Henry Failing.
- The Tragedy of a Blasting Accident
After an industrial accident left a laborer blinded and injured, his family is left destitute and appealing for public charity to survive.
- The Great Land Reclaim: The Fight Over Northern Pacific’s Unearned Rails
A legislative push in 1886 aimed to strip the Northern Pacific Railroad of vast swaths of public land it held but failed to build upon, seeking to return it to settlers.
- The Great Tacoma Piano Liquidation
When the Tayler-Gardner Music Company overextended itself during the boom, the court ordered a massive, fire-sale liquidation of over 200 pianos to satisfy creditors.
- The Deserted Family of Seattle
A husband is sued for divorce in 1872 on the grounds of cruel neglect and failure to provide for his family.
- The Tragedy at the Drug Store
A quiet night at a Tacoma pharmacy ends in a shocking murder-suicide, leaving the community reeling and a clerk fighting for his life.
- A Victory for Property Rights Against a Flawed City Tax
A Superior Court judge voids a municipal tax sale, finding that the city failed to follow mandatory legal procedures.
- The Reverend Who Hated Grays Harbor
A disgruntled preacher trashed Aberdeen in a Minnesota paper after he failed to find success in the Pacific Northwest—and local editors didn't take it lying down.
- The Failed Arson Plot at the Denny Block
A tenant discovers a trail of kerosene-soaked fabric and a trap door beneath his shop, thwarting an attempt to burn down a Seattle business district.
- The Martial Law Debate that Rocked the Territory
When the Democratic Party of Washington Territory tried to denounce Governor Squire for imposing martial law, they ended up in an awkward tangle of political hypocrisy.
- A Night at the Chinese Lodging House
A persistent disturbance in a Chinese boarding house leads to a violent confrontation and a jail sentence.
- The Miracle Cures of the Brunswick Hotel
A Yakima resident claims a proprietary medical system cured his chronic illness where professional doctors failed.
- The War Against the Russian Thistle
Walla Walla County officials launch an aggressive campaign to eradicate the invasive Russian Thistle before it chokes local wheat fields.
- The Baker Who Walked Up Fourth Street and Vanished
Herman Schwarzbach, proprietor of Olympia's city bakery, left work one Thursday afternoon and was never seen again — leaving a small debt, a failed property sale, and friends who feared foul play.