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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1888 | 4 |
| 1889 | 7 |
| 1891 | 3 |
| 1892 | 6 |
| 1893 | 4 |
| 1894 | 9 |
| 1895 | 9 |
42 stories matching refresh
- Camp Murray Soldiers Arrested for Refreshment Raid
A group of guardsmen, frustrated by poor rations, caused a late-night commotion by raiding a local fruit stall, leading to mass arrests and a disciplinary crack-down.
- The Prohibitionists' Cold Water Jubilee
Temperance advocates marked Washington's birthday with a sober banquet in Seattle, raising hundreds for their cause.
- A Night of Whist and Crokignole in 1889 Seattle
A surprise party for Miss Fannie McKay at her family home on Fourth and Yesler offers a glimpse into the parlor social life of early Seattle.
- The Sudden Birth of Tacoma's Ice Industry
A chance encounter over a warm lemonade led to a major local business venture.
- A Musical Benefit for the African M. E. Church
The Merry Eight Club hosted a successful spring musical at Turner Hall to support the local Jones Street African Methodist Episcopal Church.
- Should Women Vote in Church?
A lively debate at Trinity Church in Tacoma explores the controversial question of women’s suffrage within the parish.
- The Church as a Public Refuge
Rev. Wallace Nutting argues that churches should be open 24/7, serving the city as community centers with drinking fountains and social services rather than just Sunday pulpits.
- A Salacious Scandal in Spokane
A local doctor sues a brewer and a theater owner for 'alienating' his wife's affections, leading to a series of prying legal interrogatories.
- Old Soldiers Take the Floor: Seattle’s Post-Civil War Fraternal Life
In January 1891, the veterans of the Grand Army of the Republic and their families gathered in the Hinckley Block to install new officers, a ritual of civic pride and remembrance in a rapidly growing Seattle.
- Five Thousand Seattleites Turned a Chamber-Music Festival Into a Social Event
O. E. Pettis’s three-night midsummer festival drew crowds, six concerts and hours of after-concert conversation—proof that music had become a civic occasion.
- The Greasy Pole Gambit: Seattle’s Summer of Slapstick and Sweat
On a sweltering July evening in 1889, thousands gathered at the foot of Madison Street not for politics or protest, but to watch three men fail spectacularly at climbing an oiled pole—a moment of pure, unadulterated civic joy.
- The Wild New Town of Penn’s Cove
Construction is booming at the head of Penn’s Cove as a new town rises, while residents grapple with a local scarlet rash and the arrival of a new real estate office.
- A Fraternal Greeting from Tacoma
The First Unitarian Society of Seattle welcomes its new pastor with a formal reception and a warm letter of solidarity from their sister church in Tacoma.
- The Unlucky Entrepreneur of Fourth of July
A man’s ambitious plan to capitalize on the holiday crowds turns into a street-side cautionary tale when his dray and goods go missing.
- The Hitching Post Fountain
A historic Seattle landmark, rescued from use as a stable hitching post, is restored to its purpose by the W.C.T.U. and the Good Templars.
- The Great Rain-Soaked Barbecue of 1889
A much-hyped political feast in Seattle ends in a pathetic drizzle, empty plates, and heated accusations of corruption between the Republican and Democratic parties.
- The Leap Year Proposal That Stole the Show
In 1896, a group of young women in Seattle’s mill district turned tradition on its head, organizing and managing their own social event to celebrate the rare calendar day.
- The Last Class at the Old U—and the Girls Win the Spade
In May 1895, the University of Washington’s Class of ’95 held its final class-day exercises in the original downtown building, with women delivering the spade orations for the first time.
- The Captain and the Bride of Puget Sound
A festive wedding at the corner of Ninth and Pine unites a prominent Seattle sea captain and a daughter of the Pacific Northwest.
- A Surprise Party in South Seattle
Neighbors and friends gathered for an evening of music and refreshments in South Seattle, a moment of local community building in 1889.
- The Grandest Affair of the Year: Knights Templar and Eastern Star Unite for New Year's Eve
Seattle’s elite gathered at Commandery No. 10 for a lavish installation ceremony, complete with Indian impersonations, sword presentations, and a feast that lasted until dawn.
- The Hotel That Built Tacoma Falls for a Brick Depot
Northern Pacific crews began tearing down the old Blackwell Hotel at the wharf, a weathered landmark that had sheltered early settlers, longshoremen and Chinese merchants, to make room for a modern passenger and freight station.
- Judge Glasgow Fines Lake Washington's Beer Sellers by the Barrel
Saloon keepers at Madrona Park and the Madison Street pavilion plead guilty, and the police court scales fines to their liquor bills.
- The Steam-Heated Ice Caves of Mount Rainier
A mountaineering party discovers the natural comfort of volcanic heat at 14,000 feet, sleeping in ice chambers kept warm by the mountain's own breath.
- Seattle's War on the Saloon 'Ladies' Entrance'
Aldermen want every drinker—and every woman—to come through the front door, arguing side doors lure respectable girls into saloon wine rooms.