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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1882 | 4 |
| 1883 | 16 |
| 1884 | 2 |
| 1885 | 9 |
| 1886 | 5 |
| 1887 | 6 |
42 stories matching higher
- Stevedores Strike for Higher Wages
Dockworkers loading the 'Benj. F. Packard' walk off the job when their request for higher Sunday pay is denied.
- Lumber Prices Jump as Seattle Mills Confront a Labor Shortage
Seattle lumber dealers will raise prices $1 per thousand on August 1, blaming higher wages, scarce mill hands, costlier logs—and Chinese laborers who struck for $1.50 a day.
- The Newspaper Monopoly Holding Seattle Hostage
In 1887, the Post-Intelligencer exposed a 'printing ring' between rival newspapers that artificially inflated the cost of public contracts.
- The Fight for Seattle's First High School
An 1886 public debate over the 'luxury' of secondary education mirrors the modern struggle to fund public infrastructure.
- The Fight to Fund the Territorial University
Legislators debate the future of education in Olympia, questioning the status of the University's land title and its academic standards.
- The Strike of the Coastal Sailors
Sailors in Seattle and along the coast organize to demand higher wages, leading to a blockade of vessels in the harbor.
- The Great Chehalis Flood
A historic deluge leaves mill workers homeless and livestock lost as record tides overwhelm the river valley.
- The Mailroom Kerfuffle in New Tacoma
A secret telegram, a local feud, and a postmaster who chose 'higher law' over departmental secrecy.
- The Brutal End of a Winter Manhunt
After escaping custody, two fugitives are recaptured on the Walla Walla River, suffering from frostbite and starvation.
- The Hypocrisy of Convict Labor
An editorial draws a direct, nativist parallel between New York's stance on prison labor and the push to expel Chinese laborers from the Pacific coast.
- The Teachers' Pay Gap
An editorial from 1887 argues that Seattle’s teachers are overworked, undervalued, and paid significantly less than city laborers.
- Digging the Portage Canal
A progress report on the ambitious project to connect Lake Washington and Lake Union by a man-made waterway.
- County Corruption Scandal
Auditors find discrepancies in the accounts of King County officials, sparking fears of thousands of dollars in losses.
- Salmon Season in Crisis
A collapse in prices and over-capacity lead to tension on the Columbia River.
- The Struggle for a Fair Wage in Seattle's Garment Industry
A historic report on the 'Working Women's Union' advocacy for fair compensation and the battle against underpaid labor in Seattle’s growing industrial sector.
- Living on Borrowed Time in Lower Seattle
A scathing editorial decries the 'man-traps' of the waterfront, where buildings are propped up on flimsy planks to accommodate rising street grades.
- The Great Land Reclaim: The Fight Over Northern Pacific’s Unearned Rails
A legislative push in 1886 aimed to strip the Northern Pacific Railroad of vast swaths of public land it held but failed to build upon, seeking to return it to settlers.
- The City’s Fiscal Turnaround
Seattle’s rapid debt reduction and infrastructure growth are hailed as a success story for low-tax policy.
- The Bold Plan to Create an Island City
Prominent citizens incorporate the Washington Improvement Company to carve a canal linking Lake Washington to Lake Union, promising to reclaim marshland and shift the city's geography.
- The Price of Public Safety
City council debates delaying fire limits due to high brick costs.
- Will They Harvest the Hops?
Facing a glut of inventory and low market prices, Seattle-area hop growers debate whether to pick the season's yield or let it wither on the vine.
- Seattle’s Massive Water Ambitions
The Spring Hill Water Company is betting its future—and the city's growth—on a monumental pipeline from Lake Washington.
- The Price of Keeping the Peace
After anti-Chinese riots rocked Seattle in 1886, the city found itself with a massive bill for martial law and the cost of keeping the peace.
- Seattle Bricklayers Push for a Nine-Hour Day
The city's bricklayers' association counted 29 members and commanded $5 a day—more for top hands—as workers eyed shorter hours without a pay cut.
- The Struggle to Find Your Way in Early Seattle
Before the city had a standardized grid, navigating its muddy, stump-filled streets was a chaotic task—until one resident proposed a system that still echoes today.