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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 62 |
| 1858 | 29 |
| 1859 | 52 |
| 1860 | 27 |
| 1861 | 101 |
| 1862 | 87 |
| 1863 | 69 |
| 1864 | 32 |
| 1865 | 11 |
| 1871 | 11 |
| 1872 | 140 |
| 1876 | 812 |
| 1877 | 678 |
| 1878 | 526 |
| 1879 | 64 |
| 1880 | 180 |
| 1882 | 130 |
| 1883 | 911 |
| 1884 | 499 |
| 1885 | 838 |
| 1886 | 492 |
| 1887 | 484 |
| 1888 | 440 |
| 1889 | 1,324 |
| 1890 | 287 |
| 1891 | 1,115 |
| 1892 | 2,855 |
| 1893 | 2,829 |
| 1894 | 2,116 |
| 1895 | 1,830 |
| 1896 | 2 |
| 1897 | 62 |
| 1898 | 196 |
| 1899 | 446 |
| 1900 | 114 |
| 1902 | 34 |
| 1903 | 1,332 |
| 1904 | 1,126 |
| 1905 | 124 |
| 1907 | 53 |
| 1908 | 351 |
| 1909 | 1,545 |
| 1910 | 413 |
| 1911 | 160 |
| 1912 | 73 |
| 1914 | 261 |
| 1915 | 300 |
| 1916 | 545 |
| 1917 | 332 |
| 1918 | 45 |
| 1919 | 5 |
| 1920 | 1 |
| 1922 | 18 |
| 1923 | 185 |
| 1924 | 151 |
| 1925 | 64 |
| 1928 | 14 |
| 1929 | 19 |
27,002 stories
- After the Fire, A New Blueprint for Seattle
When the flames destroyed the commercial district, city leaders fought to enforce strict building codes to prevent a repeat of the disaster.
- From the Ashes of the Great Seattle Fire
A desperate plea for resilience and community support in the days following the catastrophic 1889 fire that leveled the city’s business district.
- The Great Reconstruction Logjam
Following the 1889 fire, a desperate, city-wide shortage of building materials and poor infrastructure leaves Seattle’s recovery stalled.
- The Great Seattle Rebuild: Rethinking Fire Safety After the Ashes
In the wake of the Great Seattle Fire of 1889, experts and local leaders scramble to replace wooden tinderboxes with new, fireproof standards and modern building codes.
- The Rebuilding of Seattle
A desperate plea to voters in 1889 to elect leaders who could manage the massive, necessary reconstruction of a city decimated by fire.
- The Great Seattle Fire: A Call to Rebuild
In the shadow of the 1889 Great Seattle Fire, a local editor calls for unity, resilience, and an end to public complaining as the city begins the monumental task of reconstruction.
- The Great Rebuilding: Seattle’s Post-Fire Lumber Rush
In the wake of the 1889 Great Seattle Fire, the local lumber trade faces an unprecedented surge in demand as thousands rush to rebuild, signaling a massive shift in the city’s economy and labor market.
- The Great Reconstruction: Seattle’s Waterfront Rises from the Ashes
Less than a month after the Great Seattle Fire of 1889, the city’s wharves are a hive of frantic, round-the-clock labor to restore the vital commerce of the Pacific.
- Seattle's Burnt District Rebuilds in Brick After 1889 Fire
Following the Great Seattle Fire, the city's burnt district transforms as brick blocks replace wooden ruins and the city plans for a modern infrastructure.
- The Palouse Massacre: A Family Destroyed by Religious Mania
A farmer takes his own life after killing his wife and children in a brutal religious mania, leaving a chilling note behind.
- Walla Walla Devastated by Lower Main Street Blaze
A massive fire wipes out a half-block of wooden buildings, revealing the city's total lack of adequate firefighting equipment.
- The Battle Over Seattle’s Waterfront
Delegates at the constitutional convention debate the legality of old railroad land grants that once promised to privatize Elliott Bay.
- Government Moves to Forfeit Railroad Land Grants in Washington
Federal attorneys begin the legal process to reclaim millions of acres granted to railroad companies that failed to fulfill their construction promises.
- The Strange Confession of Henry Lattimore
After the murder of C. Grant in a Tacoma boarding house, a 19-year-old drifter with a 'straightforward' story was captured by rail workers and police.
- Who Owns the Water's Edge?
A legal brief detailing the property rights of landowners whose lots border the tides and navigable waters of Seattle.
- 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.
- Washington’s Constitution Takes Shape Amid Chaos
As Spokane Falls burns, the state’s constitutional delegates pivot from catastrophe to the fiery debate over regulating railroads and monopolies.
- A Family Tragedy Near Palouse
Tragic news emerges from a local farm where a man took his family's lives before turning a weapon on himself.
- Blood and Bullets in Colville
A railroad worker's lethal temper leads to a dramatic manhunt near Colville as a suspect flees on horseback after a double shooting.
- The Swindler of Spokane Falls
After the great fire, a relief distributor made off with the city's food and funds, establishing a private grocery store on the backs of the desperate.
- 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 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.
- The Mob's Cruel Gamble: A Wrongful Lynching Attempt in Rosalia
A husband and wife were dragged into a horrific ordeal by a lynch mob convinced of their guilt in a missing child case—only to discover the child had been safe all along.
- The Governor Who Stood Between Corporations and the Workingman
When railroads threatened to use militia to break a strike in 1873, Governor Elisha Ferry refused to deploy state power until the laborers were paid, carving out a legendary reputation for fairness.
- 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.