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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1871 | 11 |
| 1872 | 140 |
| 1876 | 153 |
| 1877 | 124 |
| 1878 | 248 |
| 1879 | 15 |
| 1880 | 83 |
774 stories
- The Great Railway Gamble of 1878
Territorial lawmakers drafted a sweeping plan to bind Washington’s counties together with a railroad, tasking local voters with footing the bill through massive debt.
- The Mail Must Go Through: A Fatal Storm on the Coast
A dedicated mail carrier and his father lost their lives in a treacherous storm off the Washington coast while attempting to deliver the mail from Montesano to Chehalis Point.
- The Black Pall Over Washington’s Future
A proposed decade-long extension for the Northern Pacific Railroad threatens to monopolize the territory's vast timber and mineral wealth while stifling independent settlement.
- The Great Jailbreak of 1878
Five inmates, including a man held for attempted murder, escaped a Seattle jail using a key hand-crafted over six weeks.
- The Great Land Ring of the Northern Pacific
Settlers of Washington Territory take on a powerful railroad corporation accused of hoarding public land for private profit.
- The Chief Who Just Wanted to Be Left Alone
While Washington settlers braced for potential conflict with Chief Moses in 1878, a local merchant argued the indigenous leader was being provoked by a political usurper, not a desire for war.
- The Governor and the Libel Suit: A Battle for Political Character
When Governor Elisha P. Ferry sued the 'Democratic Press' for accusing him of selling pardons, he ignited a fierce debate about the limits of press freedom and the nature of public character.
- The Fight Against the 'Two-Percent Shylocks'
A fierce 1878 constitutional debate in Washington Territory pits anti-monopoly reformers against banking interests.
- The Great Northern Pacific Railroad Robbery
In 1878, Seattle citizens packed a town hall to condemn the Northern Pacific Railroad, alleging that corporate greed and land fraud were strangling the territory's economic future.
- Tragedy on the Skagit: Six Miners Lost in River Crossing
A supply-laden canoe capsized near the Portage, ending the lives of six men seeking their fortune in the gold-rich mountains.
- A Family Tragedy in the Whatcom Courtroom
A mother and her twelve-year-old son were convicted of manslaughter after a deadly land dispute, highlighting the violent risks of territorial-era frontier claims.
- The Battle for the Unsurveyed Frontier
A 19th-century court case in Steilacoom exposes the tension between local land speculators and the ideal of the 'actual settler' on the Washington frontier.
- The Great Freeze of 1872
When an arctic blast paralyzed Puget Sound, turning the Columbia River to ice and testing the grit of Seattle's early pioneers.
- The Pirate King of Seattle
A real-life adventure of a man who survived a childhood on a pirate ship and returned to Seattle to recruit a crew for a treasure hunt.
- The Chinese Doctor’s Radical Revival
A Seattle man, presumed dead after two weeks of typhoid fever, was brought back to life by a doctor’s unconventional intervention.
- The Rowdy Election of 1872: When Seattle Politics Was a Bare-Knuckle Brawl
A stormy Republican County Convention in 1872 exposes the messy, insider-heavy machinery behind early Seattle's local government.
- The Delegate’s Missing Work
A Seattle newspaper calls out the territory’s Washington D.C. representative for feigning ignorance about a local land rights petition.
- The Auditor’s Open Revolt
A defiant Seattle county official squares off against the city’s tax-paying elite, sparking a public war of words in the local press.
- An 1872 Manifesto for the 'Working Girl'
In an era of stifling expectations, a Seattle newspaper columnist argues that women should prioritize professional autonomy over the 'inferno' of a loveless marriage.
- The Rowdiest Port in the Pacific Northwest
An 1872 report describes the brutal realities of the maritime labor market in Port Townsend, where sailors were coerced into service and returned to shore battered and bruised.
- The Case of the Empty Bond: A Cautionary Tale of Corruption in Walla Walla
When an elected official absconded with nearly $20,000 in public funds, the court had to decide if his sureties were still on the hook—even though they had signed a blank piece of paper.
- The Scandalous Church Rivalry of 1872
A Seattle editor lashes out against a local rival, defending his character against allegations of meddling in the affairs of the Methodist Church.
- The Neighborhood Siege on Commercial Street
A century and a half ago, a massive petition of Seattle residents demanded the city ‘cleanse’ a house of ‘contagious pollution,’ setting a precedent for civic moral panics.
- The Primary Teacher’s Plea: Why Seattle’s Schools Are Failing Our Children
Miss C.I.T. Parsons delivers a scathing indictment of the King County Teachers' Institute, arguing that cheap buildings and unqualified instructors are robbing Seattle’s youth of their potential.
- The Tragedy on the Beach
A grim discovery near a logging camp raises questions of foul play in 1876 Seattle.