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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1876 | 36 |
| 1877 | 24 |
| 1878 | 3 |
| 1880 | 8 |
71 stories matching third
- The Forged Signature and the Legal Loophole of Marriage
A husband accuses his wife of forgery for signing his name, only to have a judge dismiss the case based on the legal doctrine of coverture.
- The Wild Foot Race on Commercial Street
Before the city grew, Seattle’s main thoroughfare hosted a high-stakes sprint that drew crowds to the rooftops and left bettors stunned.
- The Ice Water Gambit: How a Seattle Drifter Was Framed for Theft
A local vagrant was doused in freezing water and coerced into a false confession by a cunning runner, only to be caught red-handed on Third Street.
- The Mayor’s Peaches and the City’s Panic: A Night of Burglary in Pioneer Square
Burglars break into Mayor Gattert’s home on Third Street, fleeing with nothing but a can of peaches, while public outrage over crime reaches a fever pitch.
- Seattle's Grand New Courthouse Plans Unveiled
Architect Isaac Palmer presents a bold, brick-and-mortar vision for the corner of Third and Jefferson, signaling the city's aspirations for civic permanence.
- The Land Grab That Built Tacoma: How the Northern Pacific Railroad Stole Millions of Acres
A furious editorial in the Seattle Star exposes the Northern Pacific Railroad’s scheme to misappropriate public lands for a private coal line, arguing that the company is using legal loopholes to steal from settlers in King and Snohomish counties.
- The Displacement of Chinese Women in Early Seattle
Local courts and newspapers in 1876 actively campaigned to criminalize and drive out Seattle's Chinese community, viewing their presence as a blight on property values.
- The Great Hotel Heist That Wasn't: How Seattle’s Gamblers Were Fooled by a Fake Fortune
A broken-down cardsharp named 'Splitcheck Jimmy' was tricked into stealing an envelope full of newspaper, only to be ambushed by actors in a staged robbery at the St. Denis Hotel.
- The Professor’s Last Trick: Clara Baldwin’s Final Spiritualist Spectacle
In a packed hall in Seattle, the renowned medium Clara Baldwin performed her final show before departing for Portland, captivating the audience with 'wonderful bat' illusions and binding herself in chains to prove her powers were real.
- The Muddy Road to Greatness
As Seattle rapidly expanded in 1877, its editors lamented that the city’s commercial ambitions were literally stuck in the mud, demanding urgent infrastructure for a growing population.
- The 'Bear of Third Street' Prank
A group of rowdy boys in 1880s Seattle found a cruel way to terrorize women walking home alone at night.
- The Engineer’s Ash-Box Ghost: A Tale of New Year’s Eve Peril
In a column dated October 1870, the Seattle Daily Intelligencer reprints a harrowing tale from an old engineer about surviving a wreck by hiding under his locomotive's ash pan during a blizzard.
- The Nine-Inning Scandal at the Old Exchange
A local baseball game ends in a high-stakes confrontation that reads like a pulp novel, leaving one man bitter and another victorious.
- A Close Call at Third and Union
An evening horseback ride ends in a fright for a toddler and a lucky escape from harm.
- The Perils of Seattle's Cherry Street
In 1877, a local editor called out the city for the dangerous sidewalks and 'savory' sewage runoff plaguing one of Seattle’s most elegant residential streets.
- The Blue Sand Beneath Seattle
In September 1876, a crew of Chinese laborers excavating the foundation for a new building at Wellington and Third struck a rare geological treasure: a bed of pure blue sand.
- A Third Street House and Lot for Sale
Before Seattle became a city of skyscrapers, a simple plot of land between Seneca and University was a common commodity for sale in the local paper.
- The Curious Case of the Missing Canary
A yellow bird with a black top-knot goes missing on Third Street, sparking a small-town hunt in the heart of 1876 Seattle.
- The Unfinished Business of Alfred H. Jones
A standard probate notice reveals the vanishing point of a pioneer's life in 1876 Seattle, where debts and assets were tied to the rapidly developing corners of Third and Union.
- The Political Brawl for Seattle’s Soul
On the eve of the 1876 mayoral election, Seattle’s political landscape is marked by accusations of voter fraud, candidate interference, and a bitter struggle for city hall.
- The Great Seattle Lottery: A $100,000 Sawmill and a Road to Nowhere
In 1876, the Washington Territory legislature authorized a massive public lottery to fund a road through Snoqualmie Pass. The grand prize? Yelver’s Steam Saw Mill. It was a bold gamble on infrastructure that reveals how early Seattle funded its growth.
- The Million-Dollar Ticket: How Seattle Bet Its Future on a Lottery
In 1876, the city’s most prominent businessman launched a massive lottery to fund a mountain road, offering a steam sawmill valued at $100,000 as the grand prize.
- The City’s First Legal Battle: Seattle vs. the Man Who Owned the Water
In April 1877, just months after Seattle was incorporated, the new Common Council authorized a lawsuit against Henry Yesler—the very man who built the city's first mill and gave it its name—over a dispute that would define municipal power.
- The Spirit of '76: Seattle’s Grand Centennial Celebration
A meticulous guide to how Seattleites organized their first massive city-wide celebration of the American Centennial in 1876, featuring a parade, a regatta, and grand fireworks.
- The Man Who Walked the Continent: A Fifteen-Year Pilgrimage Ends in Seattle
Frank M. Streamer arrives in the Pacific Northwest after completing a staggering 14,000-mile journey on foot across the United States, offering a rare glimpse into the grueling reality of 19th-century travel.
Also about this, in other words
- The Ghost of Third and Pike
A Seattle resident recounts a chilling, post-mortem promise kept by a friend who returned from the beyond to answer questions about a late-arriving train.