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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1871 | 2 |
| 1872 | 19 |
| 1876 | 13 |
| 1877 | 12 |
| 1878 | 27 |
| 1879 | 1 |
| 1880 | 9 |
83 stories matching receiv
- The Widow’s Pension Legal Trap
A woman finds her pension rights threatened by the complex, shifting definitions of marriage under 19th-century law.
- The Confidence Game: How a Fake Order Stole from Seattle’s Own
A merchant in Waitsburg receives goods he didn't order, paid for by a 'Mr. Williams' who doesn't exist—revealing a sophisticated fraud ring targeting Pacific Northwest businesses.
- The Skagit River Snag-Clearer's Defense
After volunteers broke their backs clearing river jams, a community organizer had to fight off accusations of embezzlement.
- The Chinese Doctor’s Radical Revival
A Seattle man, presumed dead after two weeks of typhoid fever, was brought back to life by a doctor’s unconventional intervention.
- The Gold Rush to Ruby Creek
A local merchant receives a singular order for gold scales from miners in the North Cascades, signaling a major mineral boom on the Upper Skagit.
- The Scandal of the City Fire Engine
A missing $300 in gold coin leads to a bitter political falling-out in 1878 Seattle, revealing the city's early struggles with public trust and municipal accounting.
- The Duwamish River Schoolhouse Scandal
A romantic dispute between two suitors erupts into violence at a church service, forcing a local justice to mediate the cost of their bruised egos.
- The Chief Who Just Wanted to Be Left Alone
While Washington settlers braced for potential conflict with Chief Moses in 1878, a local merchant argued the indigenous leader was being provoked by a political usurper, not a desire for war.
- A Deadly Shift in the Coal Mines
A tragic industrial accident at the Newcastle coal mines claims the life of a laborer.
- The Rowdiest Port in the Pacific Northwest
An 1872 report describes the brutal realities of the maritime labor market in Port Townsend, where sailors were coerced into service and returned to shore battered and bruised.
- The Sisters of Providence Take Over Seattle's County Farm
In an era of rapid expansion, King County commissioners shift the burden of social welfare for the impoverished and ill to the Sisters of the House of Providence for a fixed annual rent.
- The Ship Eldorado is Lost
A valuable Seattle coal vessel runs aground near Port Angeles, signaling a likely total loss.
- The Tragic End of a Railroad Worker
A young man, injured on the job, succumbs to his injuries at a local Seattle hotel.
- The Olympia Safe Heist and the Culture of Corruption
A government agent discovered a $39,000 deficit in the Olympia sub-treasury, only for the missing funds to vanish entirely after the agent allegedly returned control to the defaulting official.
- Seattle's Barrel Factory Doubles Its Shifts — 'No Chance for Chinamen There'
The factory near Belltown boosts production to 4,000 barrels a day and hires about a hundred men and boys, all white, in a blunt public statement of racial hiring policy.
- The Last Stand of Bebe Low: A Saloon Keeper’s Final Plea
In August 1876, Seattle saloon owner Bebe Low publicly demanded his debts be settled before disappearing from the city, leaving behind a cryptic notice and a legacy of vanished frontier commerce.
- The Baker’s Strike: Twelve Hours for $12
In a bold move against grueling labor conditions, Seattle’s bakers are contemplating a strike to demand shorter hours and fair wages, challenging the era's standard of 18-hour workdays.
- A Heartbreaking Plea for a 'Stout' Boy
A desperate local advertisement seeks a home for an eight-year-old child in exchange for farm labor in the late 1870s.
- The Empathetic Pup of Idol Hill
A local carpenter finds comfort in a loyal companion who mirrors his own physical struggle.
- The Ghost of Whidby Island
A prominent Seattleite vanishes into the rural wilds, triggering a frantic search and a small-town communication breakdown.
- The Stranger’s Fatal Fight at Benton
A bystander’s attempt to break up a tavern brawl in a small town near Seattle ends in a tragic, senseless death.
- The Claret Rebellion in 1870s Seattle
At a meeting of the King County Farmers Club, a local leader tried to replace the frontier staple of 'bald-face' whiskey with homegrown wine, igniting a fiery debate about culture and grit.
- The Devil-Fish of Port Orchard
A local fisherman's harrowing encounter with a tentacled beast off the coast of Kitsap County.
- The Man Who Ran Seattle: Thos. W. Prosch Appointed Postmaster
In October 1876, President Grant signs the commission for Thomas W. Prosch as the new Postmaster of Seattle, cementing his role in a town where he is already the undisputed king of commerce and politics.
- 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.