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.
Refine1 on
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1882 | 130 |
| 1883 | 799 |
| 1884 | 455 |
| 1885 | 838 |
| 1886 | 492 |
| 1887 | 484 |
3,198 stories
- The Neah Bay Sealing Conflict
A local captain alleges a corrupt scheme involving a government agent and a private trader to monopolize the sealing industry at the expense of Indigenous laborers.
- The Ghost Town Gambit
A scathing exposé of how the Northern Pacific Railroad manipulated land values and abandoned the established citizens of Yakima City for a new, company-owned townsite.
- The Strange Disappearance of John Steele
A Seattle man is lured to a Canadian steamer under the pretense of work, only to be held captive and told he is a deserter from the British army.
- The Tragedy on the Bridge: How a Drunken Arrest Turned Fatal
A routine police arrest at a lodging house in Olympia ends in the shooting death of a gas worker, highlighting a volatile era of street-level policing.
- Fatal Debt: A Dispute Over Sewing Machine Collections Ends in Murder
A Seattle sewing machine manager, Arthur M. Peck, was fatally shot at his residence after a heated collection dispute with a client in Olympia escalated to lethal violence.
- The Judge and the Paper: A Judicial Power Play in 1885 Seattle
When a Seattle newspaper editor made a habit of attacking Chief Justice Greene, the court didn't just sue for libel—it took direct control of the editorial desk.
- Tragedy at the Tremont Hotel
A morning boiler explosion at a five-story hotel left multiple dead and injured, rattling the foundations of downtown Seattle.
- The Deadly Dispute at the Arcade
A long-standing property feud between members of the Dashaway Association erupts into a shooting in the heart of Seattle’s business district.
- The Tragedy at Second and Stewart
A domestic dispute ends in a death, sparking mutual accusations of murder and poisoning in a Seattle household.
- A Deadly Afternoon in Seattle
A rifle shot aimed at a magazine door results in a catastrophic explosion, claiming lives and damaging buildings across the neighborhood.
- The 1886 Municipal Election: A Fight Over 'Law and Order' vs. Business Interests
As Seattle gears up for a city election, a fierce political battle erupts over the enforcement of liquor laws, city debt, and the controversial administration of Mayor Leary.
- The Final Voyage of the Wildwood
A steamship captain recounts the harrowing night his vessel burned to the water’s edge while docked at Olympia.
- The Scandal at St. Mary’s
A Seattle Episcopal rector faces a congregation-led revolt after rumors of 'immoral practices' turn an ordinary service into a chaotic public showdown.
- Half-Million Dollar Blaze Destroys Cincinnati Freight Depot
Seattle fire department rushed to the corner of Sixth and Main streets to battle a fire that decimated a major grain and freight warehouse.
- A Tragic Disappearance at the Occidental Hotel
After arriving in Seattle alone, a young woman known as Nellie McNiel left behind a letter claiming she had been seduced, betrayed, and intended to take her own life.
- The Myth of the Promised Land: 1885
A reader challenges the city's booster press, exposing the gap between industrial promises and the reality of a struggling population.
- An Anti-Chinese Assault at the Seattle Waterfront
A group of Chinese laborers is attacked while attempting to depart for Portland, highlighting the escalating racial tensions in the city.
- The Schoolteacher vs. The Coal Baron
An outspoken Newcastle teacher risks his career to confront the Oregon Improvement Company over its brutal labor practices and the displacement of local widows.
- The Sheriff Who Refused to Enforce Mob Rule
In 1885, as anti-Chinese sentiment gripped Seattle, Sheriff J.H. McGraw defied a mass meeting of local citizens by refusing to join an exclusionary committee, citing his oath of office and the rule of law.
- The Price of Challenging the Northern Pacific
After suing a railroad giant for injury, George Conroy was met with a perjury charge, jailed for the summer, and driven to insanity.
- The Hydra-Headed Monster of the Yakima Valley
A scathing indictment from 1885 reveals how the Northern Pacific Railroad's broken promises and predatory land schemes terrorized Washington frontier settlers.
- The Chinese Expulsion Crisis at the Seattle Waterfront
Federal authorities arrest thirty Chinese laborers arriving from British Columbia, highlighting the intense racial tensions and labor politics of the 1885 Washington Territory.
- The Siege of the 'Standard Theater' Meeting
A Seattle labor group, barred from its intended hall, holds an indignant public meeting to solidify their boycott against Chinese workers.
- The Coal Wars of Newcastle
Facing declining profits and labor unrest, the Oregon Improvement Company declares war on its miners, threatening total shutdowns unless the union relents.
- The Rogue of the Sound
A smuggler on the Puget Sound recounts a brutal night of human trafficking and violence, offering a chilling glimpse into the lawless reality of the 1880s maritime border.