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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1876 | 8 |
| 1877 | 6 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1880 | 3 |
18 stories matching flame
- Arson Attempt Targets Chinese Business District
A deliberate fire set in the basement of Wah Chong's store nearly triggers a catastrophe for the city's business sector.
- A Father’s Desperate Dash Through the Flames
In Snohomish County, a father saved his three young children from a burning home just as the roof collapsed, leaving the family physically scarred but alive.
- The Unsung Heroes of the Fire Line
When the flames rose, a small team of steamboat captains rushed into the fray to save Seattle's firefighting equipment, a vital act of civic solidarity in the 1870s.
- The Great Fire of Seattle: A City in Ashes
As the dust settles on the inferno that consumed the heart of the young settlement, residents face the daunting task of rebuilding from nothing.
- Tragedy Across the River
A Snohomish family loses everything to a fire while attending a funeral.
- The Great Fire on Washington Street: A Narrow Escape from Ashes
A blaze in the upper story of a building near Pike Street threatened to consume Seattle’s growing commercial district, but the quick arrival of the fire engine saved the day.
- The Charred Remains of a Pioneer: A Tragic Fire on Commercial Street
In the early days of Seattle, fire was the city's greatest enemy. On October 6, 1876, a blaze swept through the heart of the business district, claiming the life of a man named Hilder and destroying property near Jamison & Prescott.
- Fire on the High Seas
A stowaway on the bark Lady Lampson, bound for the Pacific Northwest, nearly destroys the ship with a fire and a razor.
- The Day Seattle’s Firefighters Forgot the Engine
A narrow escape on Mill Street in 1876 reveals how quickly a small fire could consume the wooden city—and how unprepared the new volunteer company was.
- The Unbreakable Glass That Promised a Household Revolution
In 1877, a new chemical tempering process promised Seattle residents that lamp chimneys would never crack again—even if you drove nails with them.
- Seattle's 1876 Centennial Oration and Pioneer Memory
On the nation's Centennial, Seattle pioneers recounted early conflicts with Native peoples and the settlement's growth into a commercial hub.
- The Hilltop Inferno: Arson Claims a Seattle Landmark
When the residence of J.P. Robbins burned in 1877, the city’s lack of water infrastructure and public apathy turned a potential save into a total loss.
- A Near-Miss Conflagration in Old Seattle
A pre-dawn fire in a Commercial Street smokehouse nearly levels a city block, sparking a call for urban reform.
- The Great Olympia Mill Fire: A City's Heart Stolen by Flame
In the early hours of October 16, 1876, a devastating fire consumed the steam sawmill and all its property in Olympia, Washington Territory, leaving the community to wonder how they will replace their primary source of timber processing.
- The Misery of the Miser’s Hoard
A destitute family in 1870s Seattle survives a devastating house fire only to unearth a fortune hidden beneath the ashes of their former home.
- The Plague at the Doorstep: Seattle’s Battle Against Smallpox in 1877
As smallpox ravages Port Orchard and Salmon Bay, the city's Health Officer takes drastic quarantine measures against Indigenous communities, highlighting the fragile public health infrastructure of early Seattle.
- The Slave Ship That Vanished: An Old Man’s Confession in Seattle
A weathered sailor walks into a Seattle saloon and recounts the night his crew mutinied against a slaver, only to watch the ship sink with 200 souls aboard.
- The Man Who Wouldn't Die: The Last Survivor of the Alamo Walks Among Us
A heroic frontiersman named Jimmy Kennon has resurfaced in Washington Territory, proving false reports of his death. He claims to be the sole survivor of the Battle of the Alamo and a legendary scout who once rescued a captive from Sioux hands.