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1. The Plagiarism Scandal of the Walla Walla Poet

   A local Tacoma salesman is publicly shamed after allegedly passing off someone else's verse as his own.

   May 23, 1893The Seattle Post-IntelligencerTacoma, Pierce CountyScandal

2. The Poet and the Plagiarized Verse

   A Tacoma man discovers his own lines in a Henry Wadsworth Longfellow poem, sparking a debate over the poet's 'clipping' habits.

   Jul 22, 1892The Seattle Post-IntelligencerTacoma, Pierce CountyStrange But True

3. The Unchecked Power of a Federal Official

   A federal official at the Seattle land office, known for his hot temper and suspicious treatment of settlers, escapes a serious perjury investigation with only a slap on the wrist.

   Aug 4, 1888The Seattle Post-IntelligencerFront Street, Seattle, King CountyFollow the Money

4. The Funeral Faux Pas

   A daughter’s confusion during a somber Seattle funeral creates a moment of awkward levity in the midst of mourning.

   Aug 25, 1888The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyStrange But True

5. The Poet-Waiter Who Drowned in Seattle Harbor

   C. W. Chantrell came from a noble French family and carried a love poem in his pocket. He died broke, alcoholic, and alone on the steamer Idaho—and Seattle's coroner called it an accident.

   Sep 19, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyStrange But True

6. The Great Tacoma Water Steal

   Citizens and council members clash over alleged bribery and misappropriation of funds in the city's purchase of a water system.

   Nov 23, 1893The Seattle Post-IntelligencerTacoma, Pierce CountyFollow the Money · City Hall

7. The Salmon Slump of 1894

   A historic overproduction leaves Seattle's fishing industry in a cold, stagnant market.

   Apr 28, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyBoom & Bust

8. The Proposed 'Professor of Maternity'

   A state legislator introduces a bill to create a 'Chair of Maternity' at the University of Washington, aiming to instruct female students in the 'duties of motherhood.'

   Feb 28, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerUniversity of Washington, Seattle, King CountyCity Hall

9. The Real Estate Poet of West Seattle

   In an era of aggressive land speculation, developers sold West Seattle not just as property, but as a vision of the Mediterranean transplanted to the Pacific Northwest.

   Jun 18, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerWest Seattle, Seattle, King CountyBoom & Bust

10. The Actress Who Became an Evangelist

    At Seattle's United Presbyterian Church, Edith L. Peake recounted a life of books, unbelief and stage acting before a Moody and Sankey revival changed her course.

    May 27, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyStrange But True

11. The Ballard Business Carnival

    Forty-five local firms were represented by young women in a grand march and drill that signaled a community's growth.

    Feb 4, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyBoom & Bust

12. The Stabber Died Under an Alias at the County Hospital

    Ten years after he stabbed a companion on the Lake Washington shore, a dying man at the county hospital was recognized as the same fugitive — still hiding behind the name George Rolsom.

    Mar 25, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyTrue Crime

13. The Wandering Minstrel of Puget Sound

    A profile of an itinerant street performer and songwriter, known as 'Fiddler Williams,' who became a familiar, if beleaguered, fixture of late 19th-century Washington city life.

    Jan 2, 1891The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyLocal Legends

14. The University Revolt of 1892

    A campus protest against mandatory military drills ends in a courtroom, where students face suspension and a professor takes to the chalkboard to mock them in verse.

    Feb 28, 1892The Seattle Post-IntelligencerUniversity of Washington, Seattle, King CountyCity Hall

15. The Woman’s Club Banquet That Defined Olympia’s Elite

    Six years after its founding, the city's most prominent ladies gathered for a 'horseshoe' dinner and silhouette presentation to celebrate their social influence.

    Mar 17, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerOlympia, Thurston CountyScandal

16. Seattle Lawyers Turn a Charity Baseball Game Into a Biblical War

    Rival teams of Courthouse Hill lawyers announced themselves Philistines and Jacobites, issued mock proclamations, and promised a 500-pound batter—all to sell tickets for the Associated Charities.

    Jul 31, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyNightlife

17. A City Turned Out to Bury George Heilbron

    In 1895, Seattle’s governor, mayor, judges, businessmen and laborers filled the First Unitarian Church for the funeral of a civic leader who had helped build the young city.

    Apr 9, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

18. Seattle Athletic Club Dazzles with 'Midwinter Night's Dream'

    A packed Cordray's Theater applauds a lavish amateur travesty of Shakespeare, complete with cross-dressing fairies and a floral tribute to the librettist.

    Jan 25, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyStrange But True

19. A Missing Man, a Dead Wife, and a Sewing Machine Full of Money

    Joseph Von Lingenau vanished after his wife died in childbirth. His friends fear murder; his neighbors remember a man coming apart.

    Aug 3, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyTrue Crime

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