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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1899 | 32 |
32 stories matching full
- The Madison Street Midnight Escape
A Seattle grocer skips town in the dead of night, leaving behind a shop full of unpaid bills and curious neighbors.
- The Tin Trust Betrayal: 2,000 Workers Left in the Dark
As Seattle celebrates commencement week and the Spanish-American War heats up, a massive industrial shutdown in nearby Duwamish leaves thousands of families without income.
- The Klondike Hangover: When Thousands of Prospectors Got Stuck in Seattle
Fresh off the gold fields, prospectors and tourists have flooded Seattle’s hotels and lodging houses, leading to a seasonal 'nuisance' of revelry and joblessness in the city center.
- The Sunnyside Canal Water Dispute
Farmers from the Dunkard colony in North Yakima square off against the government, demanding a fix for their water rights after a season of devastating crop failure.
- The Vaudeville Star and the Seattle Showdown
After her husband allegedly cheated her out of her share of a touring variety show, Blanche Norris took the business to court in Seattle—and won a $4,450 payout.
- The Copper Bubble of 1899
A classic 'get rich quick' advertisement disguised as financial journalism, peddling stock in a speculative Seattle mining company.
- The Boy Who Stole Gold Nuggets and Slept with Dogs
Eight-year-old Harold Hubbard burglarized a Seattle home, hid his loot under the sidewalk, and spent the night in a dog show—only to confess the next day.
- The Gold Rush That Never Was: Seattle’s First Wave of Klondike Dreamers
As the first steamers arrive from the Yukon with empty hands and full cargo holds, Seattleites prepare to follow them north, unaware that the gold rush is already over.
- The Horseless City
Seattle businessmen begin the race to bring the 'new motor machines' to the city's steep streets.
- The Unchecked 'Firewater' Trail
A rash of bootlegging and theft at the Lakeside saloon forces a local reckoning with the lack of law enforcement near Chelan.
- The Birth of the Seattle Stock Exchange
Promoters establish a new financial hub on the corner of First and Spring, promising a 'pure' exchange for the benefit of the city rather than the few.
- The Great Retail Panic of 1900
Facing a glut of inventory and the pressure of a 'flood-tide' of retail competition, a major Seattle department store launched a desperate, city-wide clearance event to move stock.
- The Dug-Eaters of the Yukon: A Philadelphia Man’s Starvation Story
H.C. Reifsnyder arrives in Seattle with a harrowing tale of survival on the Edmonton Trail, where his party subsisted on dog meat and dugouts after losing their provisions to the brutal wilderness.
- The Vanishing Agent: Duncan Inverarity’s Flight from Justice
A trusted local savings bank agent absconds with $1,500, leaving Seattle to evade arrest in Victoria.
- The Pioneer Who Couldn't Stay Put
Captain Charles Hopkins, a veteran of the Mexican War and early Seattle businessman, dies at his home on Terry Avenue. His life was a series of moves from San Francisco to Milwaukee to Portland, yet he remained one of the Northwest's most recognizable figures.
- The Grand Ambitions of the Denny Hotel
After nine years of fits and starts, one of the largest hotels on the Pacific Coast is finally set to open its doors in Seattle.
- Tragedy on Pioneer Square: A Young Woman’s Brush with Death
While visitors from Victoria watched the fireworks display on Pioneer Square, a stray firecracker ignited a young woman's clothing, leading to a harrowing struggle for survival.
- The Day the Kingston Died: A Steamship Collision and the Pilot’s Tale
Pilot Gatter recounts the terrifying moments when the steamer Glenogle collided with the passenger liner Kingston in Puget Sound, sending hundreds of feet of steel into the water.
- The Tragedy at Yesler Way: A Lawyer’s Death and a Woman’s Despair
In May 1904, prominent Seattle lawyer J. Wile was fatally shot by Miss Burke, who then took her own life in a rooming house near the waterfront.
- The Great Egg Heist: A Drunken Chase Ends in Laughter on Pike Street
When James Quinn grabbed a case of eggs near First Avenue, Officer Cameron gave chase with drawn revolver—only for the 'thief' to surrender with a request for a cigarette.
- The Grave Robbers of St. Mary’s: A Scandal in Portland
Rumors swirl that the body of a local widow was disturbed by 'outsiders' seeking a rumored cancer tumor, prompting doctors to deny the tale and friends to demand investigation.
- The Constable Who Preached Instead of Punched
In a small Washington town, one officer’s radical experiment in restorative justice is turning criminals into church members—and neighbors are taking notice.
- The City That Couldn't Float: Steamship 'Seattle' Breaks Down on Its Maiden Voyage
A mechanical failure leaves the vessel adrift in the Pacific, forcing a British tug to tow it home while passengers and crew endure a humiliating delay.
- The Quarantine of Tacoma: When a Hotel Became a Prison for Railroad Workers
In April 1898, a single case of smallpox in a Tacoma hotel triggered a massive quarantine that stranded dozens of railroad employees and paralyzed the city's transit network.
- The Great Nude Debate: When Seattle’s Church Ladies Tried to Save Their Living Pictures
A fundraising gala at Christ Episcopal Church descended into moral panic when vestrymen declared 'living pictures' (nude art) too scandalous for the pulpit, forcing a cancellation that left donors furious and ladies defiant.