Research the archive
Narrow 22,457 newspaper stories by words, years, place, newspaper and subject. See when and where they ran, then download what you find.
Put a phrase in quotes ("rent strike") or leave a word out with a minus (strike -baseball). Old scans misspell names, so when little is found, near-spellings are offered.
Refine1 on
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1903 | 12 |
12 stories matching con
- The Con Man Who Sold the Seattle Circus
A clever swindler fleeced the city's elite by selling them on imaginary contracts for a Ringling Brothers circus that was never coming to town.
- Con Men Target Ranch Owner With Locked-Box Poker
A Spokane County farmer loses his life savings in a classic confidence scheme involving a locked box and a mysterious stranger.
- The 'Lumberman' Who Swindled Seattle's Elite
A smooth-talking con man gains the trust of the city’s fashionable society before vanishing with thousands in unpaid debts.
- The Portrait Swindle
A crafty con artist used a local shop's reputation to fleece dozens of Seattle residents with a fake photo-enlargement scheme.
- The Miracle Cure Con Man
A visiting 'philanthropist' who claimed to cure alcoholism was feted by city officials before being unmasked as a fraud.
- The Silver-Haired Widow of the Palouse
A charming con artist charmed her way into the best homes of Colfax, only to be undone by a stolen set of hotel silver.
- The Miracle Cure Con-Man
A supposed benefactor who won city council acclaim for his 'alcoholism cure' is arrested for fraud.
- The Postal Forger Targeting Local Merchants
A crafty con artist is raising the value of small money orders with chemicals, and authorities are warning shopkeepers to stay vigilant.
- Walla Walla Rallies to Secure Stubblefield Home
Walla Walla leaders convene to secure a charitable bequest, requiring $10,000 to be raised within weeks to establish a local home.
- The Post Office Con-Artist
Authorities warn merchants of a sophisticated swindler operating across Washington by altering post office money orders.
- The Sad Tale of a Funeral Con
A man in mourning clothes successfully swindles a local funeral director out of three dollars under the guise of grieving for his dead wife.
- The Funeral Grifter of North Yakima
An undertaker is conned out of five dollars by a man feigning the grief of a widower.