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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1876 | 17 |
| 1877 | 11 |
| 1878 | 2 |
| 1880 | 2 |
32 stories matching begin
- The Price of Building Seattle
An 1876 notice reveals the commodification of local clay as Seattle's rapid expansion begins to reshape the landscape.
- The First Avenue Hill Real Estate Hunt
A straightforward 1876 listing for a 60x120 lot on Second Street captures a moment when the prestigious First Avenue Hill neighborhood was just beginning its transformation into Seattle's urban core.
- The High Cost of Keeping Warm in Pioneer Seattle
As Seattle's population climbed toward 45,000 in 1880, local leaders sounded the alarm on the soaring price of firewood and looked to the untapped coal mines of the region for a heating revolution.
- The Dairy Dilemma of 1876
Before high-tech factory farming, Seattle's early settlers navigated the delicate, labor-intensive art of managing livestock health by hand.
- The Unclaimed 480-Acre Homestead
A prime piece of King County farmland near Lake Washington goes on the market as the region's early real estate rush begins to accelerate.
- The Great Seattle Front Street Excavation of 1876
As teams and scrapers descend on the heart of the city, laborers begin carving out the steep terrain between Cherry and James to make way for the future.
- General Howard’s Seattle Revival
The Civil War general takes the pulpit to debate the 'infidelity' of the American West.
- Primary Meeting Erupts in Laughter
A political primary meeting takes a humorous turn when a physician makes a pointed jab at the judiciary.
- The Case for 'Made in Seattle' Ships
An 1877 editorial argues that Seattle’s abundant timber and cheap labor should make it a maritime powerhouse rather than a consumer of imported vessels.
- The Sugar Rush: Seattle's Pacific Ambitions in 1876
A century and a half ago, Seattle business leaders were banking on a trade treaty with Hawaii to turn the city into the West Coast’s sugar refining capital.
- The Hidden Gold of the Swamps
While pioneers once clung to the sandy prairies, Seattle's growing interest in 'tule lands'—the rich, reclaimed marshes of the Sound—reveals a new frontier for agricultural wealth.
- The Price of Saving the Country
In 1880 Seattle, a local paper captures a cynical, all-too-familiar conversation between two men on the street regarding the true value of political engagement.
- The Bachelor’s Secret: Why He Loves a Crying Baby
A humorous anecdote from the May 5, 1877, *Seattle Daily Intelligencer* reveals the cynical charm of a local bachelor who finds comfort in infant noise because it clears the room.
- Harvesting Begins on the Skagit Flats
Farmers in the Skagit Valley report massive yields, even as they face challenges with potato blight and the historic Skagit River 'jam.'
- The Classroom Crunch of 1877
Before Seattle grew into an educational hub, the city struggled to find enough space for its students, forcing a desperate lease of university buildings.
- Seattle’s First Fire Company: A Half-Hearted Start in a City That Needs It
In October 1876, Seattle’s citizens are debating the formation of a volunteer fire engine company. While some jeer at their 'small beginnings,' the paper argues that even a half-hearted effort is better than no defense against the city's greatest fear: fire.
- The Iron Road Comes to the Sound
With the first section of the Seattle and Walla Walla railroad under heavy construction, the city braces for a transformation that promises to connect the waterfront to the mountains.
- The Minister and the Mysterious Cartload of Produce
A thrifty frontier couple surprises a local minister with a literal 'garden' fee for his services, proving that a modest beginning can grow into a generous legacy.
- The Railroad Reach: Seattle Pushes Its Trestle and Track Toward the Coal Mines
Crews close the last gap in the Seattle & Walla Walla trestle, let another three-quarters of a mile to Yesler, and wait for rails to lay two more miles of track.
- The Apple Orchard Dreams of Early Seattle
Before the city became a tech hub, civic boosters saw the future of Seattle in the 'stately forests' replaced by row after row of fruit trees.
- Puget Sound Herring Fisheries Need Capital and Experience
A local editor argues that Seattle’s budding herring industry is destined to become a global titan—if only local businessmen would stop throwing away the fertilizer.
- The Most Decisive Juror in Seattle History
A disheveled, reluctant man is pulled from the street to serve on a murder jury, and he reaches a verdict before the trial even begins.
- The Midnight Treasure Hunt on Coffin Island
A fever for gold and Captain Kidd’s fabled riches sends Seattle-area prospectors into a frenzy of night-time digging.
- The Soil-Killer’s Ledger
An 1878 editorial warns that Pacific Northwest farmers are repeating the mistakes of fallen empires by exhausting their land for short-term profit.
- The Night the City Tried to Eat Itself: A Confidence Man’s Flight Through the Woods
In May 1877, a swindler stole cash from a saloon, fought off a citizen, and fled into the Seattle wilderness—only to be caught by an officer hiding among ruins at dawn.