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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1891 | 4 |
| 1892 | 3 |
7 stories matching competit
- The $25,000 Schoolhouse and the Competition That Smelled
A letter writer asks the school board a sharp question: if the winning architect was allowed to redraw his plans after the price came in too high, what exactly was the competition for?
- The Railroad Beats the Steamboat on Puget Sound
Olympia’s favorite steamer Bailey Gatzert makes its last run as Northern Pacific trains drain the passenger trade.
- Tumwater's Mass Meeting Cast 65 Votes With Only 50 Voters in the Room
A local nominating meeting for council seats turned harmonious—and hilarious—when the ballots outnumbered the attendees.
- A Schoolhouse Fight Over Who Builds Olympia
Local architects and mechanics cry foul after the school board quietly accepts a Tacoma-drawn plan for the new high school.
- Thurston County’s $3,985 Court House Contract Went to a New York Firm
Commissioners signed off on metal vault furniture for the new county courthouse, trimming the order from $5,000 and choosing a Rochester manufacturer after inspecting competing bids in Seattle and Tacoma.
- The Railroad Baron Who Refused to Compete With Shadows
Northern Pacific president Tom Oakes tells Seattle that Jim Hill’s Great Northern is more phantom than threat—and explains why cutting timber rates could backfire on Puget Sound’s lumbermen.
- Olympia’s Booster Year: Brick, Bridges and a 50,000-Person Promise
As 1891 closed, the capital city counted $3 million in new buildings, a record bridge, electric lights and new rail lines — and predicted 50,000 residents within a decade.