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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1888 | 10 |
| 1889 | 24 |
| 1891 | 6 |
| 1892 | 16 |
| 1893 | 17 |
| 1894 | 17 |
| 1895 | 29 |
119 stories matching cheap
- Calls for a Ban on Immigration
A U.S. Senator proposes a sweeping one-year suspension of immigration, citing fears of disease and labor competition.
- The 'Smuggled Goods' Confidence Trick
Two men were jailed after attempting to sell cheap, domestically-sourced goods to the local postmaster under the guise of smuggled contraband.
- The Widow’s Silverware Swindle
A 'weeping widow' targets charitable Seattleites with a high-pressure sales scheme for cheap knives.
- The War on 'Fly-by-Night' Newspapers
A new legislative bill aims to stop cheap, unread newspapers from monopolizing municipal advertising contracts.
- The Lonely End of a Mission Lodger
A man identified as George W. King was found dead in a cheap Seattle lodging house, revealing the precarious lives of the city's vulnerable.
- University of Washington Students Revolt Against Campus Dining
A campus protest erupts as students challenge a restrictive new meal mandate and the poor quality of food provided by the university's janitor's wife.
- A Chicago Syndicate Wants a Refrigerator-Car Factory — and It Wants the Land for Free
A Chicago car builder tours Tacoma and Seattle touting a plant that could turn out up to sixty refrigerator cars a day, weighing Puget Sound lumber against Eastern iron — and letting it be known the syndicate is open to "propositions for donated sites."
- The Sawdust in Your Spice Cabinet
A Seattle newspaper exposé from 1888 reveals that the city's food supply was being systemically poisoned by greed, with sawdust in spices and grease in butter.
- The Salmon War: A 19th-Century Plea for Equitable Fishing
A sea captain argues that restrictive fishing regulations are designed to benefit luxury fur traders at the expense of the working class’s food supply.
- The 1888 Tariff Scramble: How Labor Markets Dictated Washington's Future
A historic dispatch from 1888 Seattle reveals how workers and manufacturing interests in the Pacific Northwest saw their livelihoods tied directly to the political tug-of-war over trade policy.
- Vigilante Justice in Carbonado
A group of townspeople took matters into their own hands when a tailor-shop swindler began fleecing locals out of their hard-earned money.
- The Coal Scramble
Anticipating a price hike, long lines of horse-drawn teams clogged the streets near the bunkers in a rush to secure cheaper fuel.
- The Feed Business Gamble
Local merchant J.J. Bogardus reflects on the high failure rate of Seattle’s feed and grain stores during the economic pressures of the early 1890s.
- Customs Officials Intercept Opium Shipment
Inspector John A. Plum uncovers a sophisticated smuggling operation involving opium hidden within a picture frame on a train bound for Montana.
- The Boom-Time Promises of Seattle’s 'Most Popular Addition'
In the spring of 1891, real estate developers peddled the dream of cheap housing and rapid growth along the new James Street car line, a precursor to the century of development that followed.
- The Great Seattle Land Rush of 1886
While the city's population surged, land agents flooded the newspapers with ads promising cheap fortunes in the newly platted additions of Seattle.
- The Great Navel Orange Price Crash
A sudden, massive drop in orange prices has local dealers outraged and bargain hunters swarming the market.
- The Duwamish Valley's Early Land Rush
While Seattle’s real estate market was heating up in 1889, developer W.W. Belvin was marketing 'three-acre tracts' in the Duwamish River Valley, promising proximity to town and fertile soil.
- The Anatomy of a Public Works Disaster
Engineering testimony reveals how cheap, porous bricks and massive inefficiency turned city sewer projects into money pits.
- The Fire Commission Rejects a Faulty Engine
Seattle fire commissioners break ranks with the city council, condemning a new engine as cheap and unreliable.
- The Intellectual Con Artist of the Fife Hotel
A well-dressed man claiming to be the former secretary to Sir John Macdonald flees Tacoma after leaving behind a trail of worthless checks.
- Tacoma Beats the Electric Company in Court and Keeps Selling Cheap Light
A Pierce County judge ruled the city may supply its own electricity — and that the private Commercial Electric Light Company has no right to shut down a competitor whose prices are simply too low for it to match.
- The Fight Against Mortgage Taxes
The Chamber of Commerce warns that taxing mortgages will drive away capital and hurt economic development.
- City Council's Library Investigation Called a Political Stunt
The Post-Intelligencer defends the library commissioners against a toothless investigation initiated by Delegate Lyon.
- The City’s Strawberry Obsession
A local glut of strawberries has upended the market, left bakers with half-empty pie tins, and frustrated fruit merchants.