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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1872 | 6 |
| 1876 | 2 |
| 1877 | 4 |
| 1878 | 7 |
| 1879 | 1 |
20 stories matching circul
- The Fight Against the 'Two-Percent Shylocks'
A fierce 1878 constitutional debate in Washington Territory pits anti-monopoly reformers against banking interests.
- The Unsparing Champion of Right
In 1878, the Weekly Puget Sound Dispatch positioned itself as the 'Fearless Champion' of the common citizen, promising to be the cheapest and most comprehensive source of news in the Washington Territory.
- The Midnight Bells of Olympia
When two Northern Pacific agents arrived at midnight to announce the rail terminus, the town of Olympia erupted in a celebration that would define its future.
- The Great Incorporation Panic of 1878
When a legal technicality threatened to render Seattle’s entire municipal government illegitimate, a frantic scramble to re-incorporate revealed the fragile foundations of early frontier law.
- The Horse That Stopped a City: How an Epidemic Ground Seattle to a Halt
In October 1872, a mysterious disease swept through the Pacific Northwest, paralyzing streetcars and commerce. As merchants turned to oxen and hand carts, the Territory of Washington faced its first major public health crisis.
- The Jail That Took Too Long
A Snohomish correspondent laments the bureaucratic foot-dragging that delayed the construction of the county's first lock-up.
- The Midnight Shot at the Eldorado
A quiet night in a Seattle saloon turns into a tense legal spectacle after a musician goes on a shooting spree during a restless sleep.
- The Port Townsend Sewer of Defamation
A small-town attorney attempts to build a media empire on vitriol and libel, only to be dismantled by the Governor he targeted.
- The Battle for the Sunday Morning Calm
When Seattle’s businesses first debated the secular 'day of rest,' local editors questioned if the city’s newspapers should be forced to observe the Sabbath.
- The City That Wasn't: Seattle’s First Real Estate Scam
In April 1876, a man named Charles Smith claimed to own the entire town of Seattle and tried to sell it to investors. The local press exposed him as a fraud, but his audacity reveals how fragile the young city's land titles were.
- The Unwritten Laws of Seattle’s Press
When a local paper targeted young women in its columns for 'assuming social superiority' at a dance, a vigilante citizen took matters into his own hands.
- The Vice Capital of the Sound: Seattle's Moral Crisis
An outraged local editorial condemns Seattle as a haven for gambling and prostitution, blaming the influx of 'dissolute classes' and corrupt officials for the city's scandalous reputation.
- The Scapegoat of Pierce County
A prominent local businessman finds himself the target of a smear campaign after a financial scandal guts the county treasury, revealing the toxic power of public rumor in 1870s Tacoma.
- The Scandal That Shook Seattle: The Arrest of Victoria Woodhull and Tennessee Claflin
In November 1872, two women were jailed for 'obscenity' after sending publications to a prominent broker. Their arrest sparked a frenzy in the young city, drawing crowds and highlighting the clash between radical feminism and Victorian morality.
- The Unfortunate Travels of an 'Imperial' Grifter
A self-proclaimed Russian noble finds that Seattle hospitality—and the local church choir—has its limits when his 'aristocratic' habits turn out to be nothing more than petty fraud.
- 'Free' Printing, $176 Later: Seattle's County Contract Scandal of 1877
The Dispatch accuses the Intelligencer of taking public money after bidding to do the county's printing for nothing—and demands the next contract be opened to honest bids.
- The Territorial Governor’s Malice: A False Rumor of Corruption Exposed
In June 1876, the *Puget Sound Dispatch* launches a fierce defense of Washington Territory Governor William H. Wallace against a malicious slander campaign claiming he was embezzling public funds.
- The Editor Who Sold His Paper to a Brothel Keeper
A scathing letter in the Puget Sound Dispatch exposes the corrupt alliance between Seattle’s Republican party and its most notorious vice kingpins, asking: 'What of that newspaper publisher... who for a palm share in the wages of prostitution gives his aid and influence?'
- The Shoe That Could Save Seattle: Why We Must Stop Exporting Our Hides to San Francisco
An editorial in the Puget Sound Dispatch argues that Seattle’s economic survival depends on manufacturing its own boots and shoes locally, rather than shipping raw hides south for a 10% premium.
- A Seattle Pastor on Trial: 'Attentions' to Another Woman, Harsh Words at Home, and a Public Rebuke
In 1877, the Presbytery of Puget Sound spent six days in Seattle deciding whether Rev. E. P. Dunning had crossed the line with another woman and mistreated his wife — then publicly reproved him and urged him to guard his conduct.