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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1882 | 6 |
| 1883 | 54 |
| 1884 | 23 |
| 1885 | 26 |
| 1886 | 18 |
| 1887 | 18 |
145 stories matching section
- Judge Greene Slaps Down Legal Nitpicking
A Territorial judge refuses to let a clerical error in the law strip working teamsters of their property exemptions.
- A Boston Banker Tells Walla Walla to Hold Its Wheat
A capitalist touring the territory by rail — with $75,000 already sunk in Washington land — predicts high grain prices, a finished Northern Pacific, and scolds the town's 'sleepy' businessmen for taking their money elsewhere.
- The Fight to Fix Washington's Territorial Schools
A concerned teacher proposes major reforms to end patronage, cheating, and superintendent corruption in the Territory's school system.
- The Price of a Drink in 1885 Seattle
A newly passed city ordinance lays out a complex, bureaucratic, and cash-heavy system for anyone hoping to open a saloon or bottle house.
- Fatal Steamship Boiler Explosion Rocks Seattle Waterfront
A boiler aboard the steamer J. S. Kobinson exploded with 'frightful force' at the foot of Yesler Way, resulting in fatalities and massive property damage.
- The Great Land Grab of 1886
A legal dispute over Northern Pacific Railroad land grants highlights the struggle between territorial settlers and the encroaching influence of transcontinental rail monopolies.
- Armed Standoff at the Green River Coal Mines
A local syndicate and a railroad-backed corporation clash over mineral rights in the Green River country, as hired men and revolvers complicate property disputes.
- Northern Pacific Pushes Rail Construction Across the Cascades
The Northern Pacific Railway moves to bridge the gap between Yakima and Puget Sound, signaling a major boom for regional commerce.
- The Fight for Washington’s Soul
Legislators clash over a proposal to split the Washington Territory, revealing deep-seated animosity between the eastern and western regions.
- The New Charter for a Growing Seattle
Newly enacted territorial legislation reshapes the city's government, ward boundaries, and municipal authority.
- The Cross-Cascades Trade War
Seattle and Portland merchants battle for control over inland freight routes to the Yakima Valley.
- Streetcar Ambitions Stalled by Charter Flaw
A bungled provision in the city charter leaves rail companies unable to lay tracks, as no legal mechanism for compensation exists.
- A Sixty-Mile Ditch and a Railroad Over the Mountains: Seattle Money Goes East
Judge Lewis reports from Yakima: new banks, booming towns, and a plan by Seattle investors to reclaim 350,000 acres of desert with a canal — while 1,000 men push the Northern Pacific's Cascade Branch toward Snoqualmie Pass.
- The Seattle Petition Against Chinese Labor
A group of prominent attorneys and citizens petition the territorial legislature, demanding the passage of exclusionary labor laws despite constitutional concerns.
- The City’s Blueprint: Codifying Seattle’s 1886 Charter
A comprehensive look at the new municipal laws defining everything from fire prevention to drainage, setting the legal foundation for a growing city.
- The Unchecked Power of the Northern Pacific
A scathing editorial decries the 'bloodless, soulless' corporation for exploiting homesteaders and evading taxes while demanding public lands.
- The Logging Law Loophole
A court ruling renders timber-scaling laws toothless, allowing logs to be transported before taxation.
- The Women’s Crusade Against Vice
Twenty-five prominent Tacoma women demand the city council clear out gambling houses and houses of ill-repute, citing the city charter and moral degradation.
- Bridging the Divide: The Quest to Unite Washington Territory
In 1882, residents and leaders were grappling with the geographic and cultural chasm between the rugged, booming Puget Sound and the burgeoning Eastern Washington region.
- The Struggle for Access: Farmers Demand Roads to Seattle
Early Washington farmers protest the neglect of rural infrastructure, warning they will take their trade to Tacoma if the King County commission fails to connect them to the city.
- The Chamber of Commerce Backs the Seattle, Walla Walla and Baker City Railroad
A new report argues that the construction of a cross-state railroad is essential to securing Seattle's industrial future.
- The Cedar River Standoff
A booze-fueled construction argument at the Black Diamond coal mines turned into an armed pursuit through the woods.
- The 3,000-Foot Log Shute That Fed the Lumber Boom
With logs growing scarce, mill men near Cathlamet planned a railroad and a mile-long timber chute down a 700-foot bluff.
- Riding the Rails to Newcastle: A Journey Through Seattle's Future
In 1883, a Post-Intelligencer correspondent took the new Columbia and Puget Sound Railroad south from Seattle, dreaming of tide flats turned into wharves and a bustling commercial city.
- Seattle Challenges the Railroad Monopoly
A local committee led by Judge Jacobs petitions the government to stop the Northern Pacific from claiming an old coal line as a major branch.