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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1888 | 25 |
| 1889 | 48 |
| 1891 | 15 |
| 1892 | 55 |
| 1893 | 81 |
| 1894 | 67 |
| 1895 | 116 |
407 stories matching rate
- The Railway Monopoly’s Grip Loosens
A local rail executive challenges a restrictive traffic contract, opening competitive freight rates for the region.
- Spokane Merchants Take the Railroad Monopoly Back to Court
Thirty-five Spokane merchants ask a federal judge to force the Northern Pacific and Union Pacific to obey an 1891 Interstate Commerce Commission order that found the roads were gouging the inland city.
- The Telephone Monopoly to Seattle: Don’t Print This
Seattle’s phone company keeps billing the old rates after the city council orders a cut, and its manager asks the press to keep quiet about it.
- Farmers vs. the Railroads: The $3-a-Ton Fight in Olympia
At a legislative hearing, Washington's grain growers demand a cap on wheat freight rates — while Northern Pacific warns the bill will come straight out of its working men's wages.
- The Great Grain Rate War
Legislators in Olympia spar over a proposed reduction in railroad freight rates, setting Eastern Washington farmers against the powerful railroad corporations.
- Northern Pacific Slashes Freight Rates in a Coast-to-Coast War
Seattle shippers get word that commodity rates from Chicago and the river cities will drop to match the Southern Pacific’s Sunset route.
- Walla Walla Farmers Take on the Railroads
Local farmers organize to challenge the Northern Pacific and Hunt system over unfair freight rates.
- The Insurance Cartel's War on Competition
Seattle underwriters clash over a 'non-intercourse' rule designed to force agents to abandon independent companies.
- The Year Queen Anne Kicked Until Its Fire Insurance Rates Fell
After a year of organized pressure, residents won 25 to 50 percent cuts—because an engine house finally persuaded insurers the hill was worth protecting.
- A Railroad Rate Cut Redrew the Northwest's Trade Map
The Northern Pacific's new freight tariff aimed to make Puget Sound the gateway for Eastern Washington and Idaho—shutting out St. Paul and San Francisco.
- Eastern Washington Farmers Question Canal Freight Claims
A local farmer challenges the Post-Intelligencer’s claim that a canal will lower freight rates, sparking a heated editorial defense on the economic future of the region.
- Railroad Men Pack a Tacoma Hall to Kill the Grain-Rate Bill
Seventy railroad employees — or, the P-I suspects, the roads themselves wearing workingmen's clothes — ask the Legislature to reject a bill cutting wheat freight rates. Their argument: lower rates mean lost jobs.
- The Steamship Fare War That Cut Seattle to San Francisco to $15
The Pacific Coast Steamship Company slashes cabin and steerage rates as a rival steamer forces a fight to the finish.
- The Iron King Comes to Town
James J. Hill, railroad magnate, plots the Great Northern's arrival in Seattle and the future of regional freight rates.
- The Ferry Monopoly Squeezing Kitsap County
Fruit growers in Olalla organized to fight a steamboat syndicate charging double for their passage.
- King County Lawmakers Want to Cut the Budget—and Railroad Rates
Ahead of the 1901 legislative session, King County’s representatives outline a shared agenda: slash state expenses, abolish useless commissions, lower railroad freight and passenger rates, and create a state grain inspector to protect farmers from brokers.
- Railroads Hike Lumber Freight Rates
Local lumber mills face an uncertain future as major rail lines announce a sharp increase in freight rates for shipments to the Midwest.
- A Ticket Muddle for the Militia
A breakdown in communication leaves local militiamen feeling spurned at the ballpark gates.
- King County Cuts Tax Rate
Commissioners reduce the county tax levy by two mills as property valuations drop across the region.
- Seattle's Laundries Form a Combine—and Put the Squeeze on Drivers
Every major laundry in the city unites to end price-cutting, fix a uniform rate schedule, and hold delivery drivers personally liable for the goods they carry.
- The Northern Pacific Bows to Regulation
After fighting state intervention, the Northern Pacific Railroad decides to comply with the Anderson Rate Bill to appease local farmers.
- The Fire Insurance Panic
Seattle insurance agents threaten to hike rates due to the city's dangerously narrow alleys.
- Washington House Passes Sweeping Freight Rate Bill
After a day of intense debate and amendments, the legislature moves to regulate railroad rates for farmers across the state.
- Champagne for the Lobby, Despair for the Farmers
Washington's Senate kills the Helm-Morgan freight-rate bill after railroad agents work Olympia, and the state's press calls it a corporate victory over the people.
- Tacoma’s Electric Light War
A private power company accuses the city of selling light below cost to drive it out of business—and of a local editor gagging the story because he runs his own hotel plant.