Research the archive
Narrow 25,688 newspaper stories by words, years, place, newspaper and subject. See when and where they ran, then download what you find.
Put a phrase in quotes ("rent strike") or leave a word out with a minus (strike -baseball). Old scans misspell names, so when little is found, near-spellings are offered.
Refine1 on
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1858 | 4 |
| 1859 | 7 |
11 stories matching command
- Two Governors, One Island, and a War Called Off by Letter
Gen. W. S. Harney writes to Queen Victoria's man at Victoria to explain why United States infantry are dug in on San Juan; Gov. James Douglas writes back hoping no 'collision' follows. The boundary quarrel that became the Pig War, in the principals' own words.
- A Yakama Chief Falls as the Territory's Indian War Ends
Col. Wright's campaign is declared over; Owhi is shot near the Snake River, and the Herald celebrates executions and hostages as peace.
- Steilacoom Empties Its Garrison for a Near-War on San Juan Island
On Aug. 9, 1859, soldiers and two brass cannon left Steilacoom aboard the steamer Julia to reinforce Capt. Pickett’s tiny command, as the U.S. and Britain edged toward war over a boundary and a pig.
- The Winter War Blueprint: An 1858 Campaign to Subdue the Tribes
A field letter from the Indian war in Oregon and Washington urges the Army to occupy the Colville Valley, cut off Indigenous trade, and expel missionaries and Hudson’s Bay Company employees.
- San Juan Islanders Draw a Line in the Salish Sea
At a packed meeting in the little town of San Juan, American settlers pass defiant resolutions against the Governor of Vancouver Island and thank the U.S. troops sent to hold the island — an early scene in the boundary standoff remembered as the Pig War.
- A Chief Seized at Fort Bellingham
Acting Governor Mason's requisition sends soldiers after Kitup and Nelson; a visit to the Indian agent ends in a scuffle, an escape attempt, and a military arrest.
- The Similkameen Gold Rush
A government expressman brings word of a new, lucrative gold strike in the Similkameen region, sparking excitement and fear of a dangerous, ill-prepared rush.
- The Wharf, the Steamer, and the Grudge
A Puget Sound steamer damages Steilacoom's private wharf; the repairs are made, but the landings become a running feud between a steamboat captain and the town.
- Col. Wright's Column Drives Spokane Fighters Across the Plains
An 1858 campaign report describes a running fight on the Spokane Plains—and the violent logic of dispossession behind it.
- A Miraculous Escape on Puget Sound: Two Steamers Collide Near Steilacoom
The steamer Northerner and a second vessel met suddenly on the water in October 1858, crushing the little steamer’s bow and nearly sending its captain into the Sound.
- A Frontier Fourth: Cannon, Troops, and a Ball in Steilacoom
On July 4, 1859, Steilacoom turned out for a warship salute, a military review at Fort Steilacoom, a reading of the Declaration of Independence, and an evening ball.