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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1888 | 1 |
| 1889 | 1 |
| 1891 | 2 |
| 1892 | 8 |
| 1893 | 6 |
| 1894 | 5 |
| 1895 | 9 |
32 stories matching humbl
- The True Cost of Building a Home in 1889 Seattle
While real estate developers and contractors debated the rising cost of labor and imported building supplies, one carpenter showed that a home could be built for a mere $150.
- Diva vs. The Property Man
A backstage spat at a local theater reveals the off-stage antics of an amateur dramatic troupe.
- The Populists and the 'Single Tax' Movement in Disarray
An account of the Populist party's executive session, featuring internal finger-pointing and failing funds.
- The Self-Taught Mechanic and the Frictionless Dream
A Seattle man is betting his future on a patented axle design, hoping to trade sawmill work for the life of an inventor.
- The Humble Origins of an Orphanage in Kitsap County
Rev. I. Tollefsen shares his vision for the Martha and Mary’s Orphans’ Home, established on eight acres of land in the wilderness of Dogfish Bay.
- The Great Black Diamond Sewing Bee
In an era before high-tech entertainment, an industrial mining town turned a humble church fundraiser into a test of domestic skill—and a hilarious, needle-pricking contest for the men.
- The Machine Behind the Water Bonds
Tacoma laborers are being fired for speaking out against a water plant sale, while reformers fear an election rigged by saloon-bought votes.
- A Muddy Victory at Madison Street
On a rain-soaked field, the Seattle football team slogs through the slime to defeat Tacoma in a gritty, mud-caked exhibition.
- The Last of the Pioneer Wagon Train
Nancy Biles, who led a 150-person wagon train across the Cascades in 1853, dies in Seattle.
- The Pioneer Potter of Lake Union
Before high-rises dominated the shore, a small-scale artisan operated a humble pottery studio near Lake Union, hoping to turn local clay into a lasting industry.
- The 1892 Race for Seattle: A City in Construction
As Seattle geared up for the 1892 mayoral election, local candidates debated debt, expansion, and the 'moral' cleanup of the city while the railroad industry reshaped the landscape.
- The Tight-Fisted Legend of Snohomish
John Burns, a legendary pioneer of Snohomish, lives in a humble shack while owning half the town’s main street.
- The Transformation of Seattle's 'Pencils'
A beloved local street vendor and Civil War veteran receives a surprise wardrobe upgrade from a local merchant, sparking a reflection on Seattle's unique local legends.
- The Struggle for the Curb: Seattle's 1892 Market Fight
A local letter to the editor highlights the class divide between city planners and the peddlers struggling to feed the city's residents.
- The Chain Letter That Worked the Christian Endeavor List
A Seattle post-office box asked for dimes for a 'crippled girl'—and for every recipient to copy the letter to two friends.
- When Seattle's Taps Ran Dry, One Citizen Took the City to Task
A resident of the city's eastern heights petitions the Seattle City Council over empty pipes, fire risk, and water bills—with sarcasm aimed at every authority from City Hall to the White House.
- A Kenton Picnic Speech and the Justification of Native Displacement
At a Kenton picnic, Judge Orange Jacobs cast pioneer survival as historical necessity and used dehumanizing rhetoric to defend the displacement of Native Americans.
- The Tragedy of a Miner’s Search for Work
A desperate father leaves his Seattle family to seek mining work, only to be found dead under a trestle.
- The Great Dayton Train Race
A Union Pacific engineer tried to humble a rival line, but ended up in a high-speed showdown to win local political favor.
- Two Famous Authors on Tour — and Haweis Fires His First Shot at Ingersoll in Seattle
The Rev. H. R. Haweis and the explorer George Kennan lecture to overflow crowds at St. Mark's and the Seattle Theater, but the city gets a piece of history: Haweis's reply to the great agnostic was written here, in two days, at a local minister's suggestion.
- The Fight Over Washington's Capitol: A Governor, a Professor and a Press War
As the state's new capitol building is designed, Seattle and Tacoma papers pound the selection commission with charges of favoritism — and Gov. McGraw's defenders fire back.
- The Surprise Nomination of a Seattle Banker
John H. McGraw reluctantly accepts the Republican nomination for governor after King County delegates refuse to let him withdraw—selling a self-made banker as the antidote to ward politics.
- The Plot to Lock Up a Witness: How Greed Tried to Silence a Pioneer
William De Shaw, a respected Seattle merchant and witness to a will worth millions in British Columbia, was nearly committed to an insane asylum by land speculators who wanted his testimony silenced.
- From a Blacksmith Shop to a Million Members: Seattle's AME Centenary
Rev. Allen W. Whaley traced 100 years of African Methodism from a Philadelphia blacksmith shop to a global church—and named the race prejudice that forced its founders out.
- Seattle's Chinese New Year: Fireworks, Debt Settling, and a Tartar Emperor
Local Chinese merchants celebrate the new year with fireworks and a week of festivities, while manager Woo Gen voices his opposition to the ruling Tartar dynasty.