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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1891 | 22 |
| 1892 | 23 |
45 stories matching set
- The Railroad Comes for the Church's Back Lot
Northern Pacific asks a superior court jury to set a price on the west 64 feet of block 79, behind St. Michael's — ground held by the Catholic Bishop of Nesqually and the State Bank of Olympia.
- A Mayor Willing to Resign Over a Ballot Technicality
When Olympia’s election tickets were printed under the wrong law, Mayor Horr offered to step down rather than hold office on a legal loophole—and urged the council to appoint the people’s chosen successors.
- A Family's Desperate Winter
A local family faces extreme poverty and illness, highlighting the precarious nature of life in the territory.
- Sheriff’s Hammer Sets the Price: Hotel Olympia Sold for $48,322.30
With no other bidders, A. H. Chambers and J. F. Gowey bought in the hotel for the Hotel Olympia Company—then the trustees named T. I. McKenny president.
- The Olympia Pianist Who Claimed Franz Liszt Taught Him Through a Window
A local musician known as the sage of Sherman Valley told a Tribune reporter that as a boy in Westphalia he stole piano lessons from the great Franz Liszt—until Liszt pulled him through the window and set him on his knee.
- The Tax Assessors' Cold Shoulder
Washington's county assessors struggle to find a warm place to meet, eventually retreating to the State Auditor's office to set property valuation standards.
- The Trolley That Had to Buy a Gulch
A streetcar line blocked by a ravine gets its way to Harrison Avenue — for the price of a $1,630 strip of C. M. Moore's block 48.
- The Captain Who Sailed North to Sell Ice — and Found There Wasn't Any
A would-be ice merchant arrived in Puget Sound expecting a frozen market. The climate had other plans, so his crew started cutting piling instead — and stumbled into the region's real fortune.
- Red Pepper Tea and a Blind Healer: The Death That Aroused Olympia's Eastside
A fourteen-year-old girl died after two weeks of treatment by a blind Thomsonian practitioner. Neighbors called it poison, and an inquest was set for that night.
- A Newspaper Opens a Fund So Poor Men Can Afford the Keeley Cure
The Tribune sets a contribution box at Main and Fourth for Olympia residents too poor to pay for the Keeley Institute's addiction treatment, seeding the fund with $5 and naming a committee to vet applicants.
- Jailbreak in Montesano
Two prisoners assault a deputy sheriff and escape into the woods, leaving the jailer senseless.
- A Bishop Claimed 430 Acres of a Federal Military Reservation
The Roman Catholic Bishop of Nesqually went to the U.S. Supreme Court to secure title to the Vancouver military reservation, setting church, Crown-era permission, and federal ownership against one another.
- The Attorney General Says the Bible Doesn't Belong in Public School
A ruling out of Olympia that Bible reading in the common schools is unconstitutional sets the state's country editors howling — and the capital's own dailies suddenly have nothing to say.
- Settlers Beat the State to the Best School Lands
Washington's land commissioners say squatters are claiming the best parcels before the state can select them for schools, putting millions at risk.
- The Streetcar Builder Who Refused to Buy His Own Right of Way
J. R. Chaplin tells Olympia's council that asking his Westside Railway to purchase Block 48 would insult the enterprise promising the city its first mile of track.
- She Asked the Court for Her Maiden Name Back
Alma C. Van Epps filed for divorce and alimony in Olympia, alleging assault and cruelty and asking the court to restore her name and divide the property.
- A Rail-and-Timber Empire Offers Its Workers a Cut
A new corporation tied to former governor Elisha P. Ferry acquires the Mason County Central railroad and Shelton sawmill, plans a Grays Harbor line, and sets aside $50,000 in stock for employees.
- Hand Grenades for Passengers? The Perils of Olympia’s Naphtha Streetcar
An editorial imagines the explosive risks of Mr. Savage’s naphtha-powered streetcar on Main Street, citing a recent launch fire near Aberdeen.
- Defective Brick in the Courthouse? The Former Superintendent Says Yes
Former superintendent W. A. Rogers says the county courthouse contains defective brick that can be crushed by hand, disputing the county attorney's claim that only the architecture is at fault.
- The Sunday Search of Olympia's Chinese Gardens
A newly sworn customs inspector found opium hidden among vegetables and buried in boxes, arrested one man, and left the city's Chinese market gardens under guard.
- The Lease a Husband Had No Right to Sign
A Tacoma mercantile firm stopped paying $500-a-month rent, arguing the leased property was community property and the wives had never signed. Washington’s Supreme Court said the lease was not absolutely void—but the tenants had rights too.
- Two Small Boys Run Away to Live in the Woods—With Muskets but No Ammunition
A pair of Olympia schoolboys declared independence and set up camp up the bay, but their lack of provisions and a father’s search brought them home.
- Spokane Taxpayers Revolt Before the Bonds Come Due
After selling $1.2 million in bonds, Spokane's council kept planning improvements. Property owners talked injunctions and credit, and the Ledger saw a lesson for every taxpayer.
- A Night of Dolls, Knives, and Highland Flings
Olympia’s 'Little Helpers' sewing society hosts a lively children's party at the Unitarian church, complete with fancy dancing and a contest for the oldest, ugliest, and most historic toys.
- Tacoma Tries to Sell Itself to a Visiting New Yorker
A New York Tribune interview with Charles S. Smith set off a Tacoma-Seattle inferiority complex: real railroads versus prospective ones, wheat and coal versus new blocks and fine homes.