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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1882 | 11 |
| 1883 | 59 |
| 1884 | 26 |
| 1885 | 69 |
| 1886 | 30 |
| 1887 | 36 |
231 stories matching keep
- Keeping the Pass Open in Winter
A bold effort to keep the Snoqualmie Pass trail clear for cattle drivers sets a new precedent for Cascade mountain travel.
- The Unintended Consequence of Sunday Closing
When Seattle’s city officials tried to enforce strict Sunday liquor laws, the city's saloons found a loophole that turned a day of temperance into a day of public defiance.
- The Unlikely Swimmer of the San Juans
A stylish newcomer to the island society set shocks locals at the natatorium with a startling reveal about her supposed physical disability.
- Seattle’s First Chinese-Owned Cigar Factory
Wa Chong Co. launches a manufacturing venture on Third Street, aiming to keep local profits within the community.
- The 'Habitual Drunkard' List
A proposed law would have forced Seattle barkeepers to publicly post a list of 'habitual drunkards' in their establishments, effectively blacklisting them from purchasing alcohol.
- The Secret Bride of Fifteen Years
A chance encounter in Seattle reveals a woman’s decades-long secret: a teenage marriage kept hidden from society and the law.
- Seattle Telegraph Operators Join National Strike
As Western Union operators walk out, the regional superintendent scrambles to keep local communication lines open.
- The Fatal Price of Keeping the Peace
A local man dies a week after being stabbed for attempting to break up a fight in a Seattle saloon, leaving his family destitute as his insurance policy had just lapsed.
- The Sheep Wars of Orcas Island
Tensions rise on Orcas Island as residents clash over the rights of sheep farmers to graze large herds on public lands, pitting economic interests against community access.
- The Unseen Crime Wave in Early Seattle
A local report exposes how the Seattle police force in the late 1880s suppressed news of burglaries to keep them out of the papers, hoping to solve the crimes quietly—with disastrous, ineffective results.
- 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.
- The Jury That Called Out King County’s Corruption
A scathing 1887 report from the Grand Jury exposes the mismanagement, dangerous roads, and broken record-keeping systems of pioneer-era Seattle.
- The Price of the 'Boom' in 1885 Seattle
While the city rode a wave of prosperity, locals were already feeling the strain of rapid expansion, speculation, and the 'dull times' that inevitably follow a growth spurt.
- Assault at the West Street Lodging House
A local French landlady faces battery charges after a dispute, highlighting the rough-and-tumble nature of early Seattle housing.
- The High-License Gamble: Seattle’s 1886 Liquor War
Business owners threaten to shutter their doors in a high-stakes protest against the city’s new, aggressive liquor licensing ordinances.
- Battling the Cascades: A Railroad Contractor’s Winter Ordeal
Before high-tech de-icing, railroad crews in the Cascade Mountains spent months shoveling snow by hand just to keep the tracks from vanishing into the mud.
- The Persistent Jailbreaker of Seattle
Bob Matthews, imprisoned for stealing lard, proves to be a one-man wrecking crew for the local jail’s security.
- 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.
- Suspended Sentence for Liquor Sales
A local woman avoids prison for selling alcohol to Indians on the condition of future 'right behavior.'
- The Eight-Year-Old Drummer Who Captivated the Band
A young Seattle boy, dressed in a fancy frock, stunned a visiting military band with his natural rhythm and command of the drums.
- Blood on the Waterfront: A Bloody July 4th in LaConner
A quiet holiday celebration in the Skagit County mill town turned violent when a local businessman was stabbed in a saloon dispute.
- The Runaway Street Car on Battery Street
When the brakes failed on a steep Seattle incline, passengers faced a terrifying ride as their horse-drawn car hurtled down the tracks toward the waterfront.
- The Night Watchman Who Traded His Lantern for a Crab Net
After trading the damp misery of night-shift railroad duty for the docks, a Seattle man explains how he makes a living pulling crab from the bay—and why the job comes with its own set of neighborhood troubles.
- The Tragedy of August Raymond
A proprietor of the Steamboat Saloon suffers a mental health crisis, ending in his transport to the asylum at Steilacoom.
- The Silent Delegate: Why Washington Territory Is Falling Behind
While Montana’s representative aggressively lobbies for statehood and investment, Washington’s Delegate Voorhees remains inexplicably quiet, missing crucial opportunities for federal patronage and political clout.