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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1876 | 9 |
| 1877 | 10 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1880 | 3 |
23 stories matching write
- 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 Midnight Laborer of Seattle’s Waterfront
A rare, intimate portrait of a 19th-century 'night worker' advertising his specialized sanitation services in the growing settlement of Seattle.
- A High-Stakes Adventure on the River
A young woman's terrifying ordeal while navigating the dangerous waters of the Snohomish River.
- The Mystery of the Drowned Man’s Missing Fortune
In July 1870, Seattle’s probate court launched a frantic investigation into whether $2,000 vanished from the pocket of John Filfe, who drowned in Puget Sound days earlier.
- The Miracle Man of the Tremont House
A Seattle sawmill worker recounts his miraculous recovery from a mysterious 'general nervous debility' thanks to a touring medical lecturer.
- The Struggle to Pipe Water into Early Seattle
A City Council report from 1876 reveals the frantic, early negotiations to secure a reliable, private water supply for the burgeoning frontier town.
- An Invitation to the Timberlands
A New Jersey pattern maker seeks a new life in the Pacific Northwest, prompting a classic territorial pitch for labor and land.
- The Grasshopper Exodus: How a Plague in Nebraska is Filling Seattle's Streets
As locusts devour the Midwest, desperate farmers look to Washington Territory for salvation—and the *Intelligencer* sees an opportunity to boost settlement.
- The Tax War That Almost Killed Seattle's Economy
In 1877, a federal order threatened to strip Seattle of its tax base by forcing steamships to register their 'home port' in Port Townsend. The local press warned that without this revenue, the county would collapse.
- The Indestructible Spring Chicken
A satirical look at local wildlife hunting and the legendary toughness of the American barnyard bird.
- The Sermon on Seattle’s Future
In 1880, a local minister preached that Seattle’s prosperity depended less on its natural harbor and railroads, and more on the moral integrity of its citizens.
- The 'Nile of the Occident' Demands a Road
A settler from Kittitas Valley writes a fiery open letter to Seattle, advocating for a direct mountain passage to boost the region’s agricultural potential.
- The Price of Discontent: A Warning from the 1877 Panic
While Seattle thrives on the steady hum of mills and logging camps, a Seattle editor warns citizens against petty grievances by recounting the harrowing hunger and unemployment plaguing the rest of the country.
- The Seattle Correspondent’s Gaze on China
A disorienting, 1877 report from a Seattle newspaper explores the rigid social hierarchies and gender dynamics of the Qing Dynasty through a lens of Victorian fascination.
- 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 Unsung Toll of the 19th-Century Newsroom
A sermon reprinted in the Seattle press reveals the brutal reality of working as a journalist in 1877—from midnight shifts and 'fetid alley-ways' to the constant temptation of artificial stimulants.
- The High Cost of City Living in 1876
An expatriate writing from London offers a comparative analysis of the staggering costs of housing, labor, and provisions in New York City versus abroad.
- The Empty Crib at the Corner of Third and Union
A quiet, haunting reflection from 1876 Seattle on the enduring grief of losing a child and the keepsakes that remain.
- The Romantic Ruin of a Seattle Dreamer
A young woman in 1878 Seattle finds her intellectual ambitions derailed by a fleeting, unequal affair with a local 'villain.'
- The 'Lazy' Reservation: A White Settler's Rant Against Indian Farming
In May 1877, a Seattle correspondent published a vitriolic letter in the *Intelligencer* challenging claims of Native agricultural success on the Suckley Reservation, arguing that federal land policies encouraged 'idleness' and demanding the lands be opened to white settlers.
- The $100,000 Mill: Seattle’s Legalized Lottery for a Fortune
In 1876, the Washington Territory authorized a massive public lottery to fund a road across the Cascades. The grand prize? A fully operational steam sawmill and prime real estate in downtown Seattle.
- The Land Grab That Stalled Seattle’s Growth
A local editorial warns that the Northern Pacific Railroad’s hoarding of millions of acres is strangling settlement and development in Washington Territory.
- 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.