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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1899 | 41 |
41 stories matching offer
- The College That Could Have Been: Seattle’s Bid to Steal Whitworth
As Tacoma and Seattle compete for the relocation of Whitworth College, local boosters scramble to offer land and cash, revealing a fierce battle for civic prestige in the early 1900s.
- The Battle for the Post Office: Who Owns Seattle's Future?
As federal inspectors hunt for a site for a new U.S. Post Office, local property owners are scrambling to offer their buildings—revealing the intense competition for civic infrastructure and the high value of downtown real estate.
- The Bid to Bring Whitworth College to Seattle
A committee from the Chamber of Commerce scrambled to secure land donations in 1899 to woo Whitworth College to relocate, pitting Seattle neighborhoods against Tacoma’s industrial waterfront.
- The Wild West World's Fair That Never Was
Before the 1909 A-Y-P Exposition defined Seattle's rise, city boosters were already jockeying to turn the town into a national stage for regional agriculture and industry.
- The Klondike Nightmare: A Millionaire’s Niece Returns Broken
After chasing gold in the frozen north, a woman with family connections to Chicago wealth returns to Seattle penniless and ruined in health, offering a grim warning to other hopeful prospectors.
- The Knight in Blue: Officer Grant’s Chivalrous Knife Work Saves a Tacoma Lady
When a piece of lace tore during the Christian Endeavor convention, one Seattle policeman didn't just offer sympathy—he offered his pocketknife and a bow.
- The Doctor Who Walked Away: Dr. Lockhart’s Shocking Resignation from Medical Lake Asylum
The superintendent of the state's notorious mental health facility has tendered his resignation, ending a tenure marked by controversy and leaving the board scrambling for a successor.
- A Banker’s Private Fleet for Returning Soldiers
When the government failed to bring Washington's volunteers home from the Philippine-American War, a local multi-millionaire stepped in to charter ships for their return to Puget Sound.
- The Trust’s Empty Wallet: How Monopolies Are Starving Seattle’s Hotels and Stables
As giant combines fire thousands of traveling salesmen to boost profits, the ripple effect hits local businesses hard—yet consumers see only higher prices.
- The Copper Bubble of 1899
A classic 'get rich quick' advertisement disguised as financial journalism, peddling stock in a speculative Seattle mining company.
- The Fight to Protect Seattle’s Tap Water
A century ago, city engineers were already sounding the alarm about protecting the Cedar River watershed from industrial development and pollution to ensure a clean supply for a growing city.
- The Unwanted Devotion of 'The Indian Kid'
A popular actress at a Seattle theater seeks police protection from a fan whose obsession escalated from flowery letters to threats of suicide and murder.
- The Only Safe Trust: Chauncy M. Depew’s Warning to Seattle Investors
Railroad magnate and former Senator Chauncy Depew tells a Seattle audience that the government must regulate trusts, predicting that 'rotten' companies will fail while others are placed on a proper basis.
- The Struggle for a Seattle World's Fair
Promoters for a Seattle exposition are already hitting walls as they debate locations and worry about the structural integrity of the Armory Hall.
- The Candy That Killed: A Postal Clerk’s Tragic Mistake in Seattle
In May 1904, Assistant Postmaster W. H. Metralfe died after eating candy given to him by a stranger at the Seattle station, sparking an investigation into motive and madness.
- The Price of Tracks: Seattle’s Early Transit Struggles
Before the region was a sprawl of connected highways, the Seattle City Council engaged in a fierce debate over a new electric rail franchise, pitting public leverage against corporate expansion.
- The Forty-Year Stranglehold: Seattle’s Streetcar Franchise Fight
As promoters push for a massive consolidation of the city's transit lines under a 40-year franchise, local editors warn that handing over public infrastructure to private syndicates is a dangerous gamble for a rapidly growing metropolis.
- The Great Tacoma Brake-Man Mystery: Was It a Brutal Assault or a Tragic Accident?
Railroad officials and witnesses in Tacoma are debunking the claim that brakeman Cook was beaten by a robber, pointing to a bridge strike as the likely cause of his skull fracture.
- The Great Seattle Streetcar Franchise Fight: Why Short Leases Save the City
As city councilors debate a controversial 40-year lease for street railway operations, The Seattle Star argues that short-term concessions are the only way to prevent corporate greed from strangling public transit.
- The 'Servant Girl' Stigma: A Century-Old Labor Crisis
An editorial from 1899 examines why American women shun domestic service in favor of office work, even when domestic positions offer higher stability.
- The Great Butter Fraud: Seattle’s First Taste of Food Safety
A local grocer is fined for selling imitation butter, while city inspectors uncover a wave of adulterated vinegar and baking powder in retail stores.
- The Ice That Wasn't: A Steamship Captain’s Tale of Frozen Lake Chelan
In the mild winter of 1907, a steamboat captain on Lake Chelan reported sailing through sheets of ice that shouldn't have existed. His account, initially met with skepticism, offers a rare glimpse into the unpredictable microclimates of the Washington interior.
- The Great Log Jam: A Man Survives a Frozen River Nightmare
W.H. McKern of Boston arrives in Seattle after a harrowing journey through ice-choked waters and frozen rail lines, offering a rare glimpse into the brutal winter conditions gripping the Pacific Northwest.
- Seattle’s Fourth of July Gets a Cash Injection: $5,000 for Fireworks, $300 for the Parade
As crowds from across Puget Sound descend on the city, the Fourth of July Committee has slashed its budget estimates to fund a 'big' celebration, appealing to residents for immediate donations to cover the shortfall.
- The Great Seattle Hoax: How a 'Captain' Fooled the Press with a Phantom Ship
A con artist named Captain John Brown sold a wild tale of a treasure-laden voyage to a local newspaper for $10, only for customs officers to discover the vessel didn't exist.