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 |
|---|---|
| 1876 | 6 |
| 1877 | 4 |
| 1878 | 3 |
| 1880 | 2 |
| 1882 | 3 |
| 1883 | 10 |
| 1885 | 8 |
| 1886 | 2 |
| 1887 | 4 |
| 1888 | 3 |
| 1889 | 13 |
| 1890 | 1 |
| 1891 | 11 |
| 1892 | 9 |
| 1893 | 10 |
| 1894 | 12 |
| 1895 | 13 |
| 1898 | 1 |
| 1899 | 3 |
| 1900 | 1 |
| 1903 | 6 |
| 1908 | 3 |
| 1909 | 7 |
| 1910 | 3 |
| 1911 | 1 |
| 1914 | 2 |
| 1915 | 5 |
| 1916 | 6 |
| 1917 | 1 |
| 1924 | 1 |
| 1925 | 2 |
156 stories matching soft
- The Great Soap Bust of South Seattle
A federal raid on a clandestine distilling operation leaves a local man out of soap and out of luck.
- The Coal Miner Who Took the Capitol: Labor's 1911 Push in Olympia
Four hundred union delegates descended on the legislature, and a soft-spoken miner made the case for workmen's compensation — while the federation set its sights on women's eight-hour work and direct legislation.
- The Old Capitol Gets a Hurried Remodel Before the Legislature Returns
Secretary Weir is shoring up sagging foundations, rebuilding the Senate chamber, and squeezing five or six more years out of Olympia's aging statehouse.
- The Night Watchman Who Traded His Lantern for a Crab Net
After trading the damp misery of night-shift railroad duty for the docks, a Seattle man explains how he makes a living pulling crab from the bay—and why the job comes with its own set of neighborhood troubles.
- The Ghost of the Streetcar Line
A Seattle streetcar driver recounts the haunting memory of a boy he once lashed with his whip, only to learn later that the child was dying.
- A Railroad Depot's Unlikely New Recruit
A stowaway cat found at the Northern Pacific depot secures a new life as a mouser after surviving a dangerous journey on the trucks of a Pullman car.
- The Great Ensilage Experiment of 1887
When an experimental farm in King County opened its massive silo, it sparked a neighborhood sensation that smelled like 'the mischief' but promised a revolution in Washington agriculture.
- The Soap-Making Distillery Bust of South Seattle
A federal raid on a modest South Seattle property reveals an enterprising soap-maker operating without a permit, leading to the seizure of his entire livelihood.
- Death on the Seattle Waterfront: A Call for Boiler Safety
An 1886 letter to the editor demands accountability for the 'shoveling engineers' and shoddy steamship maintenance risking lives in Puget Sound.
- The $20,000 Road Left to the Wind
Finley's Live Wire Sparks demand to know who maintains the new Kennewick-Finley road after the experts depart and oil over sand turns into ruts.
- The Soapy Scandal of South Seattle
A federal revenue collector busts a clandestine distillery masquerading as a soap-making business.
- Cheaper to Ship Wheat to Liverpool Than to Seattle: An Inland Empire Farmer's Case Against the Railroads
A Whitman County grower tells the Post-Intelligencer that Palouse wheat can be raised for about 30 cents a bushel — and sent 16,000 miles to England for less than the railroad charges to haul it 400 miles to the Sound.
- Defective Brick in the Courthouse? The Former Superintendent Says Yes
Former superintendent W. A. Rogers says the county courthouse contains defective brick that can be crushed by hand, disputing the county attorney's claim that only the architecture is at fault.
- The Tragedy of the Dancing Mouse
A tiny creature with a flair for the dramatic met her end while trying to enjoy a violin performance in the comfort of a private home.
- The City's Private Water Pioneer
Before the city operated its own utility, one visionary resident sank a deep well on Ninth Street, betting his own fortune that he could out-pump the ground itself to supply a growing Seattle.
- The Oyster Swindler of State Street
A mysterious philanthropist promises to feed the hungry of Seattle, only to vanish and leave the bill at a local restaurant.
- A Skeleton, a Revolver, and $10.70: The Trailside Mystery No One Could Name
A hunter in Wahkiakum County found a well-dressed man's remains beside a five-shot revolver—an apparent suicide that had lain undiscovered for perhaps eighteen months.
- The Milk Route Aristocrat of Archer Avenue
A satirical social drama involving a milk route heiress and a love triangle, printed as news filler in 1881.
- Seattle's Sewers Were Cracking All Over Town — and the City Engineer Blamed the Dirt
A furious letter writer insists the pipes broke not from 'percussion' but from the very worst kind of trench work — and points the finger straight at the man in charge.
- The Formosa Runs Aground in Bellingham Bay
A lumber-laden ship bound for Peru is stuck in the mud off Deadman's Point after a tug takes the wrong line—and her captain says the tug will pay.
- Newport Saloon Owners Sue the Railroad That Remade Their Street
John Koch and Max Weinkauff say the Idaho Washington Northern turned Fourth Street from a business center into a smoky, obstructed nuisance—and they want $10,000.
- Seattle Begins Filling Its Tide Flats
Surveyors lay the base line and piledrivers start a brush-and-earth bulkhead along Railroad Avenue, turning watery flats into buildable ground.
- The Day the 'Worst Boy' in Seattle Found His Voice
In an 1876 schoolhouse, a song about 'John Brown' acts as a social intervention to curb the disruptive behavior of a local child.
- The Uncultivated Yankee and the Professor's Sword
A late-night brawl breaks out in the rotunda of Seattle’s most prestigious hotel after a visiting musician insults an American sea captain.
- The Skagit Valley's Endless Harvest
While the rest of the country faced the winter chill of 1891, gardeners in Skagit County were picking fresh blackberries and watching peas bloom in the open air.