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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1908 | 20 |
| 1909 | 21 |
| 1910 | 7 |
48 stories matching origin
- The Stakes That Hold a Town Together
A county surveyor re-marks Newport's original corners on Washington Avenue, untangling property lines and unblocking a hotel project.
- A Dog Wallowed in a Spring. Then Northport Struck Gold.
A ranch dog's muddy wallow exposed flake gold, touched off a Black Canyon claim rush, and gave Stevens County one of its strangest mining origin stories.
- Newport's Road Race for the Calispel Valley Trade
As rival towns lobbied for a $30,000 state road, Newport banked on a new railroad and steamboats to secure the rich valley's business.
- The Road Newport Was Promised—and the Colville Detour That Ate It
State Road No. 3 was supposed to run from Newport through Metaline and Northport to Orient. Instead, Newport’s share of the money went to surveys and improvements near Colville, leaving the lower river country with nothing but promises.
- Is Newport in Washington or Idaho? Surveyors Head North to Redraw the Line
A government party leaves Lewiston to retrace the Washington–Idaho boundary, and Newport may learn before election day which state it really belongs to.
- Fire Takes the Jay Gould Shaft House at Chewelah
A Friday-night blaze destroyed the mine's shaft house, its tools and cable, and the blacksmith shop — blamed on heat from the compost packed around the water pipes.
- A Stovepipe, an Open Safe, and $1,000 Gone
Fire takes the home and office of W. D. Starbird's sawmill south of Springdale — with the safe standing open and the ledgers inside it.
- The $210,000 Typo That Could Decide Who Owns Yakima's Water
A spelling dispute over 'affect' versus 'effect' in a North Yakima water franchise threatens to hand the city a fortune—or leave it at the company's mercy.
- A Dog's Bark Saves Sleeping Guests as Usk Hotel Burns
A pre-dawn fire consumed a Usk hotel in 1908, forcing guests to flee with little more than what they wore—and leaving the landlord's watch and money behind.
- Squatters on the Syndicate's Land: The Railroad Grant That Wouldn't Die
A state land cruiser found families settled on timber land now held by the Weyerhaeuser syndicate — all convinced the government would break the Northern Pacific's title and sell to settlers at $2.50 an acre.
- Kerosene and a Wind: Bossburg's Business Block Burned to the Ground
An arsonist's midnight fire wiped out nearly the whole business section of Bossburg, leaving only a hardware store and one small shop across the tracks — some $60,000 lost.
- The State Line Was Not as Solid as It Looked
A Newport property owner calls for a permanent survey of the Washington–Idaho boundary before confused surveys turn into an endless round of land litigation.
- Newport Left in the Dark as Town Council and Electric Company Deadlock
A standoff between the town council and Northern Electric leaves Newport without streetlights, prompting fears of crime and a possible new franchise.
- The Riverside Bar's Final Night
After a series of ownership changes and a police attachment, the Riverside bar is stripped of its stock and shuttered for good.
- Newport’s Booster Campaign
The local Commercial Club secures new members and funding to aggressively market the town's growth and resources.
- A Judgeship Fight and the Spirit of the Primary Law
A Democratic editor accuses two local politicians of scheming to defeat the nonpartisan primary and warns that voters are onto their "underground methods."
- The 1825 Millstones That Fed the Oregon Country Headed for Seattle
A Stevens County man sent the Hudson's Bay Company's oldest Pacific Coast millstones to the Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition, where they joined the state historical exhibit.
- A Dance, a Rock, and a Confession: The Kvalshaug Murder Plot
Charles Newcomb and Mrs. Kvalshaug admitted ambushing Martin Kvalshaug near his home after a dance, then firing five shots into his body. Newcomb said the plot began with the wife.
- The Washington–Idaho Line Was Never Quite Where Everyone Thought It Was
A congressional committee moving to re-mark the boundary publishes a surveyor general's confession: the 1873 line zigzagged as much as a degree and a half off course, was measured with link chains, and stopped short when the crew quit to save their own lives.
- Seattle's World's Fair Exceeds All Expectations
The Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition closed with record attendance, a profit for stockholders, and a lasting gift to the University of Washington campus.
- Winter Fire Destroys Cottage Near Old Town
A morning fire leaves a local family homeless, while a separate blaze claims a notorious dance hall just as its license expires.
- A Lamp Left Burning in the Kitchen Erases Cusick's Hotel and Store
The Ponderay Hotel and the Usk Mercantile Co. store burn to the ground an hour after midnight, and the town learns neither may ever reopen.
- Council Balks at Nearly $15,000 in Street Bids
Newport's council opened proposals for crosswalks and three street grades, then sent the whole package to committee after the low bids gave them sticker shock.
- Colville Boosters Redrew the Map, and the Taxpayers Paid for the Surveys
Northport cries foul after County Surveyor Clare Hunt moves the Newport–Metaline–Orient road off its original line, leaving a direct-route town side-tracked — and several thousand dollars spent on surveys that produced no road at all.
- A Locked Furniture Store and a Mattress Fire in Colville
Citizens broke in to haul out furniture while smoke filled the upper floors of M. C. Kelly's store; the blaze was stopped, but the damage outpaced the insurance.