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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1871 | 3 |
| 1872 | 4 |
| 1876 | 5 |
| 1877 | 2 |
| 1878 | 10 |
| 1879 | 1 |
| 1880 | 1 |
26 stories matching assembl
- The Laws That Built the Frontier
A look back at the 1879 Territorial Assembly's agenda, from banning wandering hogs to regulating the earliest salmon canneries.
- The Burning of the Bon Ton
After the proprietor of the notorious Bon Ton was jailed for running a 'bawdy house,' his building was razed by a suspicious fire.
- Seattle's 1878 Auction of Property for Unpaid Taxes
When the city of Seattle moved to liquidate the private property of its citizens to cover a year of unpaid taxes.
- The Delinquent Tax Auction of 1878
A sweeping list of King County residents facing property forfeiture offers a window into the messy, frontier-era accumulation of Seattle real estate.
- Seattle’s 1878 Auction of Delinquent Tax Properties
When the city's growth outpaced its residents' pockets, dozens of Seattle properties were put on the auction block to cover delinquent taxes.
- The 1878 Great Seattle Tax Auction
Before the skyline, there was the spreadsheet: A massive public auction of delinquent Seattle properties reveals the names, debts, and land-holdings of the city's pioneer founders.
- A Night of Music and Politics in 1872 Seattle
A town gathering for a local official reflects a brief moment of unity in a territory weary of 'Carpet Bag' appointments.
- The Mudflat Standoff: A Political Tug-of-War for Seattle’s Waterfront
In 1872, Seattle’s local press accused the Territorial Delegate of suppressing a crucial memorial to cede Duwamish mudflats to the city for his own electoral gain.
- The Night the 'Mad House' Burned Down
A suspicious blaze destroys a landmark building in Seattle, forcing local citizens to scramble to save the nearby gas works from the encroaching flames.
- The Great Seattle Land Foreclosure of 1878
A sweeping list of hundreds of local property owners faced with losing their land to the county for unpaid taxes, signaling the precarious nature of early Seattle real estate.
- The Great Legal Squabble of 1871
A simmering territorial dispute over the 'Big Wigs'—the lawyers and judges—debating exactly when a law becomes a law.
- A Night of Political Fervor at Yesler's Hall
Hundreds pack the Seattle venue to hear Judge Thomas Burke and local speakers rally support for the Democratic ticket.
- The Rules of the Game: How Seattle's First Lawyers Codified the Fight for Land
When the Washington Territorial legislature overhauled the rules of civil procedure, they essentially wrote the blueprint for how Seattle’s developers and land speculators would battle over the city’s footprint for decades to come.
- The Seattle Lottery Scandal of 1876
A local editor confesses his regret for backing a 'legal' lottery that turned the city into an open gambling hell.
- The Fight for Seattle’s Rail Future
In 1878, a local leader rallied Seattle to demand federal land reform and a railroad connection, decrying the influence of corporate interests over the prosperity of the Territory.
- The Struggle for Equitable Taxation in Early Washington
An open letter from 1878 explores the difficulties of managing state revenue and the inherent failures of centralized 'equalization' boards.
- The Rowdy Election of 1872: When Seattle Politics Was a Bare-Knuckle Brawl
A stormy Republican County Convention in 1872 exposes the messy, insider-heavy machinery behind early Seattle's local government.
- The Forgotten Wife at the Center of Seattle
Dr. David Maynard’s 1852 donation land claim, which comprises much of downtown Seattle, is tied up in a legal crisis over the validity of his divorce and the arrival of his first wife, Lydia A. Maynard.
- The Silent Killer in the Boarding House
An 1878 editorial warns Seattle residents that the city's obsession with airtight rooms and coal stoves is fueling a tuberculosis epidemic.
- The Great Railway Gamble of 1878
Territorial lawmakers drafted a sweeping plan to bind Washington’s counties together with a railroad, tasking local voters with footing the bill through massive debt.
- The Unincorporated City of Seattle
In 1877, a legal crisis regarding Seattle's city charter left the municipal government in limbo, struggling to prove its own legitimacy while 'disaffected individuals' looked to take advantage of the chaos.
- The Great Emigration Heist: How Oregon and California Stole Washington’s Future
A territorial report reveals that aggressive agents in San Francisco are actively sabotaging settlers bound for the Pacific Northwest, leaving only one man from a Nebraska colony to tell the tale.
- The Territory's Legislative Snake
A scathing critique from 1877 exposes the 'headless and tailless' chaos of newly minted Washington tax laws, exposing a system designed to strip residents of their property through administrative incompetence.
- The Old Settlers' Legislative Fantasy
In an 1871 satirical 'Act,' a Seattle newspaper mocked the arrival of ambitious newcomers by proposing that long-time residents receive supreme, legally mandated authority.
- The Taxation Trap: How Seattle’s Liquor Licenses Were Feeding the County, Not the City
In 1876, a territorial newspaper railed against a fiscal injustice: Seattle taxpayers were footing the bill for policing and street maintenance, while the county kept the revenue from liquor licenses sold within city limits.