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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 14 |
| 1858 | 1 |
| 1859 | 7 |
| 1860 | 7 |
| 1861 | 15 |
| 1862 | 20 |
| 1863 | 8 |
| 1864 | 3 |
| 1865 | 2 |
| 1871 | 2 |
| 1872 | 21 |
| 1876 | 55 |
| 1877 | 62 |
| 1878 | 40 |
| 1879 | 6 |
| 1880 | 15 |
| 1882 | 10 |
| 1883 | 70 |
| 1884 | 42 |
| 1885 | 87 |
| 1886 | 51 |
| 1887 | 52 |
| 1888 | 36 |
| 1889 | 116 |
| 1890 | 23 |
| 1891 | 106 |
| 1892 | 198 |
| 1893 | 246 |
| 1894 | 264 |
| 1895 | 226 |
| 1898 | 7 |
| 1899 | 39 |
| 1900 | 10 |
| 1903 | 100 |
| 1904 | 63 |
| 1905 | 10 |
| 1907 | 4 |
| 1908 | 20 |
| 1909 | 89 |
| 1910 | 12 |
| 1911 | 17 |
| 1912 | 8 |
| 1914 | 18 |
| 1915 | 17 |
| 1916 | 34 |
| 1917 | 22 |
| 1918 | 2 |
| 1922 | 1 |
| 1923 | 7 |
| 1924 | 1 |
| 1925 | 4 |
2,290 stories matching act
- Legal Strategies Against the Geary Act
While the Six Companies prepare a constitutional challenge to the Chinese Exclusion Act, some factions within the community choose to comply to avoid deportation.
- The Struggle for Water and Land
Senator Paris Gibson warns that current public land laws benefit speculators over families, urging a return to the Homestead Act to prevent the West from becoming a territory of landlords.
- A Territorial Power Struggle
A scathing critique of the Acting Governor's unilateral removal of a Capitol Commissioner.
- The Whole Thing
A heated clash between a city councilman and the acting mayor erupts over procedural power struggles.
- A Ruling on the Geary Act
Commissioner Emery issues a new interpretation of Chinese Exclusion, ordering deportation based on the failure to register under the Geary Act.
- The Great Hunter’s License Fiasco
A Spokane judge strikes down a state hunting law, labeling it a 'fearful and wonderful piece of work' riddled with drafting errors.
- The Great Vaughn’s Stage Mystery
A stage performer’s escape act at the Acme theater creates a local stir, prompting a skeptical investigation.
- The Path to Statehood: Washington Territory Prepares for Union
Congressional mandate sets the stage for a constitutional convention, marking the end of territorial status and the beginning of Washington as a state.
- The Centennial Lottery Gamble
In 1876, the Washington Territorial Legislature authorized a public lottery to fund a wagon road across the Cascade Mountains, marking a desperate and creative approach to frontier infrastructure.
- The Lottery That Wasn't: A Commissioner's Moral Standoff in 1876 Seattle
While the county board approved a gambling license for Val Wildman to fund a road project, one commissioner filed a formal protest, declaring the legislature's authority void and refusing to legitimize vice.
- The Day the Territorial Supreme Court Killed Women's Suffrage in Washington
In a landmark test case from May 1902, Judge Sash ruled that the Organic Act of Washington Territory only granted voting rights to males, effectively striking down local efforts to enfranchise women.
- The Court Could Make Commissioners Act—But Not Tell Them How
A mandamus bid to split Martin's Creek precinct fails, with Judge Lichtenberg ruling the board already acted within the law.
- The Knights of Labor’s Bold Bet: Criminalizing the 'Blacklist'
Seattle’s labor leaders draft a radical bill to make it a felony for employers to force workers out of unions.
- New Federal Law Targets Chinese Residents
A harsh new congressional act forces Chinese laborers to prove their identity and secure certificates of residency or face deportation and hard labor.
- The Day Women Lost the Vote in Washington
A legal technicality regarding the wording of a territorial act effectively stripped Washington women of their hard-won voting rights in 1887.
- The Battle for the Capitol Library
Acting-Governor Henry McGill blocks the removal of the Territorial Library to Vancouver, citing conflicting laws and an ongoing federal dispute over the Seat of Government.
- Seattle's Chinese Community Resists Mandatory Registration
Local merchant groups and the Chinese Six Companies instruct laborers to defy the Geary Act until the Supreme Court rules on its constitutionality.
- The Shadow of the Chinese Exclusion Act
Three men arrested under the 1882 Exclusion Act face deportation despite claims of residency; Judge Hanford declares the legal rights of Chinese laborers effectively suspended.
- City Hall Showdown Over Suspended Police Chief
Acting Mayor Miller faces a public outcry and political embarrassment after failing to produce charges against Chief Jackson.
- The Seat of Government Stays Put
The Supreme Court of Washington Territory voids legislative attempts to relocate the capital from Olympia to Vancouver.
- The Supreme Court Defies Its Own Constitution
A legal dispute over Walla Walla land reveals how Washington State wrestled with the transition from federal territory to sovereign statehood.
- The First Victim of the Habitual Criminal Act
A repeat offender from Seattle faces a potential 28-year sentence under Washington’s new 'habitual criminal' law.
- The Divorce That Recalled Acting Governor Laughton's 'Spicy Regime'
Mrs. Marshall K. Snell's divorce exposed her husband's intimacy with his typewriter—Miss Bertha Denton, once the acting governor's private secretary.
- The Switchmen's Dilemma: A Fight for the Eight-Hour Day
Mayor D.W. Lawler details why railroad workers are rejecting mandatory arbitration under the Erdman Act, arguing it strips them of their power to strike while leaving them trapped in unfair conditions.
- Federal Relief for Failed Homesteaders
A new act of Congress allows pioneers who lost their land to try again if the initial failure was truly beyond their control.