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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1882 | 5 |
| 1883 | 24 |
| 1884 | 68 |
| 1885 | 64 |
| 1886 | 36 |
| 1887 | 19 |
216 stories matching grant
- The Great Western Land Grab
A federal investigation exposes how massive railroad corporations illicitly claimed hundreds of thousands of acres of public land by exploiting loopholes and keeping government clerks in the dark.
- A Massive Land Grab Stalled: Seattle’s Northern Pacific Victory
A pivotal decision in Washington Territory nullifies a $125,000,000 corporate claim on public land, forcing a reckoning for the Northern Pacific Railroad.
- Corporate Audacity: The Northern Pacific Land Grant Controversy
A scathing report on how a railroad company attempted to keep massive public land grants despite failing to build the promised infrastructure.
- Land Office Cuts Northern Pacific Claims by One-Third
A government intervention restores a third of Northern Pacific's land claims in Washington to the public domain, sparking a bitter feud between settlers and the railroad.
- The End of the Railroad Land Grab
A trio of government decisions finally ends the Northern Pacific's long-standing practice of seizing settler homes in Washington Territory.
- The Midnight Ambush on the Northern Pacific Line
When an informal poker game at a remote sawmill camp turned into a violent robbery, the patrons initially thought it was all just a practical joke.
- Committee Urges Forfeiting Northern Pacific Railroad Land Grant
A scathing House committee report accuses the Northern Pacific Railroad of failing its contractual obligations while hoarding millions of acres of public domain.
- Settlers Rise Against Railroad Land Grab
Kittitas County citizens demand the federal government forfeit Northern Pacific railroad land grants, accusing the monopoly of stifling settlement and hoarding millions of acres of land.
- Congress Moves to Forfeit Railroad Land Grants
A House committee prepares to claw back millions of acres from the Central Pacific Railroad, citing failed construction promises.
- Seattle Declares War on the Northern Pacific
A packed town hall votes to demand the forfeiture of unearned railroad land grants, signaling a shift from boosterism to populist revolt.
- The Fight for Seattle's Coal Lands
A Seattle attorney challenges the Northern Pacific Railroad's land grant claims, alleging the company is 'filching' thousands of acres of coal-rich territory from the public domain.
- The Axe That Struck the Root of Corporate Greed
A landmark 1885 federal land order threatens to forfeit the Northern Pacific Railroad's vast land grants for failing to meet its building requirements.
- The Great Railway Land Scandal
A sweeping federal report reveals that major railroad corporations failed to complete thousands of miles of track despite receiving massive federal land grants.
- The Fight to Forfeit the Northern Pacific Land Grants
A fiery congressional minority report slams corporate lobbyists and land speculators while demanding the government reclaim unfinished rail corridors.
- Congress Moves to Reclaim Northern Pacific Land Grants
A House committee votes to restore millions of acres of public land to the domain, challenging the Northern Pacific Railroad's long-delayed construction promises.
- The Great Land Grant Tax Dodging Scheme
Railroad companies are holding onto millions of acres of public land without filing for patents to avoid taxes, placing the burden of government costs on local settlers.
- City Council Denies Liquor License to Infamous Proprietor
A contentious debate erupts over an application to open a saloon on Jackson Street, fueled by community protests and charges of operating a house of prostitution.
- Seattle Pauses for the General: A City Honors Ulysses S. Grant
When word reached the Pacific Northwest that General Ulysses S. Grant had passed away, Seattle held a solemn city-wide memorial to honor the leader of the Union Army.
- The Fight Over Unpaid Rail Taxes
A new Congressional bill aims to force Pacific railroads to pay taxes on their vast land grants, closing a loophole that left farmers shouldering the civic burden.
- Make the Streetcars Pay for the Parks
With a new city council set to hand out street-railway franchises, an editor points to Baltimore's model: a fifth of gross receipts set aside for public green space.
- The Fight for Seattle’s Land and Labor
In 1885, as railroads tightened their grip on territorial land, Seattle’s local press warned that monopolistic control over soil was a direct threat to the prosperity of future generations.
- The Smallholder’s Victory Against the Railroad Giant
In a landmark 1883 ruling, the General Land Office denied the Northern Pacific Railroad's claim to homestead land within Tacoma, protecting a local settler's right to his property.
- The People vs. The Northern Pacific Railroad
Across Washington Territory, furious citizens—from farmers in Colfax to merchants in Seattle—revolted against a railroad monopoly they claimed was hoarding millions of acres of 'earned' land and stifling development.
- The Surprise Ballot: How Women Upended Seattle Politics in 1887
When Washington women were granted the vote, skeptics assumed they wouldn't use it—until they turned out in such force they shocked the political establishment.
- The City Council Grants Massive Streetcar Monopoly
A sweeping new ordinance grants a local transit company the right to lay tracks across vast swaths of Seattle's downtown, prioritizing private infrastructure over the city's future growth.