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 | 4 |
| 1883 | 24 |
| 1884 | 16 |
| 1885 | 52 |
| 1886 | 17 |
| 1887 | 23 |
136 stories matching light
- Seattle's First Electric Lights
The Seattle Electric Light Company fires up its dynamo, turning darkness into a clear, white glow.
- The Night the Hue Jacket Struck the Tacoma
A federal admiralty complaint lays out a Strait of Juan de Fuca collision, a missing lookout, and a $15,000 claim against a square-rigged ship.
- A Fatal Jealousy in the City's Red-Light District
A jilted lover kills a woman at a brothel on West Third Street after she refuses his plea to return to him.
- The Deadly Sidewalks of Old Seattle
A local minister’s tumble into a 'horrible pit' sparks public outrage over the city’s treacherous, poorly lit, and uneven walkways.
- City Left in Total Darkness
A gas main failure leaves downtown Seattle residents scrambling for lamps on Thanksgiving Eve.
- The Struggle Over Mount Rainier
A traveler in 1885 recounts a journey from Portland to Seattle, noting the locals' intense and 'desperate' campaign to rename the iconic peak dominating the Tacoma skyline.
- Vigilante Justice in the Big Bend
After a rancher vanishes for two months, a local investigation uncovers a brutal murder and leads to a swift, extrajudicial execution.
- The Deadly Consequences of 'Just for Fun'
A sobering editorial on how boys' thoughtless pranks—like stretching ropes across sidewalks or lighting dogs on fire—result in lifelong tragedy.
- Homesteader Tracks Wails to Lake Washington's Haunted Spring
A lonely homesteader discovers the source of the eerie wails and mysterious shadows that had terrorized his cabin for thirty years.
- The Lonely Death of James Kenney
A body pulled from the bay reveals a paper trail of unpaid wages and a life on the fringes of the Snoqualmie road.
- The Brutal Execution of Chief Kanaskat
A vivid and harrowing account of the 1856 Puyallup conflict and the killing of the Klickitat leader.
- The Jailbreak of the Electrician Who Sabotaged the City's Power
After serving months in prison for destroying the Seattle Electric Light Company’s equipment, a disgruntled former employee walked out of the mill in borrowed clothes.
- Fatal Brawl in Port Madison
A domestic dispute involving a mill worker and a lighted lamp ends in a deadly fire.
- Inside the Territorial Asylum
A rare firsthand look at the conditions, characters, and daily routines of patients at the Washington Territorial Insane Asylum.
- The Forgotten Spirit Queen of Mount Klinqua
A tragic indigenous legend from the pages of 1885 tells the tale of a maiden who brought peace to the earth, only to be betrayed by greed and fear.
- The Great Seattle Oyster War
When Colonel Jim Steel discovered a legal loophole to seize Seattle’s tide flats for private oyster farming, he triggered a chaotic race against a major land company.
- The Tragic Finality of William Naff
A Seattle man, driven to despair by illness, orchestrated a gruesome end to his life using telephone company equipment.
- The Narrow Escape of the Ship Spartan
A historic vessel remains in Port Townsend Bay, a survivor of a devastating waterfront fire that nearly cost its captain his life.
- The Phantom Murder of Snohomish
A night of terrifying screams and gunfire leads to a frantic, futile search for a body in the river.
- The Unlucky Menomonie
A top-heavy ship bound for the coal mines meets an unfortunate fate at the wharf.
- A Homesteader Tracks Wailing to Haunted Spring
A terrified settler stalks a supernatural wailing in the woods near Lake Washington, only to find the culprit is far more mundane.
- Homesteader Investigates Wailing at Lake Washington Spring
A lonely homesteader chases a supernatural wailing into the woods, only to discover a surprisingly commercial origin for his ghostly disturbances.
- The Ghostly Wails of Lake Washington
A pioneer’s terrifying nightly ordeal near a 'haunted' spring ends not with a supernatural discovery, but with a piece of patent medicine marketing.
- Shanties Cleared at University Street
The City Council orders the destruction of precarious housing at the waterfront, forcing residents out to make way for development.
- The Haunted Spring Mystery
A lonely Lake Washington homesteader risks his life to find the source of an uncanny, mournful wailing in the woods, only to discover a bizarre piece of litter at the center of the phenomenon.