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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 1 |
| 1877 | 1 |
| 1883 | 1 |
| 1886 | 1 |
| 1887 | 1 |
| 1888 | 1 |
| 1891 | 1 |
| 1892 | 1 |
| 1894 | 2 |
| 1895 | 1 |
| 1898 | 1 |
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| 1903 | 1 |
| 1904 | 1 |
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| 1911 | 1 |
17 stories matching ambigu
- A Missing Word Nearly Derailed Bellingham's First City Election
Washington's Supreme Court ruled that Whatcom and Fairhaven could hold a combined city election in December 1903, reading past a clerk's drafting error to honor the legislature's intent.
- A Female Clergyman Performs a Marriage
A rare historical wedding ceremony in Puyallup is conducted by a woman, the Rev. Mrs. Jones.
- The Speaker’s Gavel Clash
In the Territorial House, a subtle procedural error leads to a public confrontation over how legislation is truly passed.
- A.A. Denny Challenges Ambiguous Indigenous Voting Law
A territorial legislator objected to unclear rules for Indigenous enfranchisement, warning that local election judges would decide voter eligibility inconsistently.
- The Great Seattle Teacher Pay Cut of 1894
Facing public backlash, a school board director defends controversial salary slashes that hit the lowest-paid educators hardest.
- The Tragic Ambiguity of Annas Rogers: Suicide or Accident in Uniontown?
A young shepherd’s sudden death under mysterious circumstances has the small community of Uniontown (near Pullman) debating whether he took his own life or fell victim to a fatal mishandling of strychnine.
- The Man Who Cut His Hand to Save It: A Snohomish Logging Camp Tragedy
In the sweltering heat of July 1877, a laborer at Hollert’s logging camp suffered a gruesome accident that required immediate surgical intervention in town.
- The President Intervenes for Chinese Merchants
President Cleveland challenges Congress to reconcile the restrictive Chinese Exclusion Act with the reality of international trade.
- Congress Opens Puyallup Reservation Lands to Private Sale
A federal decision ends long-standing ambiguity, allowing the Puyallup people to sell or lease their allotted lands and subjecting the property to taxation.
- The Eight-Hour Law Loophole
Everett labor organizers challenge a new Attorney General interpretation that exempts state employees from the eight-hour workday.
- The Pig War's Lingering Ghost
Decades after the 'Pig War' nearly ignited a conflict between the U.S. and Britain, Colonel Granville O. Haller presents a historical accounting of the San Juan Island boundary dispute to the Washington State Historical Society.
- The Three-Way War: How Seattle’s Builders Are Trying to Stop the Bleeding
A national convention in New York reveals a desperate push for arbitration between owners, architects, and contractors—a conflict that is already tearing at the seams of Seattle’s construction industry.
- The Unladylike Triumph of a Determined Angler
A fishing trip turns into a chaotic, close-quarters wrestling match when a persistent angler finally secures her catch in an unconventional way.
- The Treasurer’s Bond Had a Hole in It
Seattle’s treasurer-elect filed a $90,000 bond, but wives’ names were penciled in, signatures were missing, and one backer wanted out.
- The Mayor’s Gambit: Humes Defers to Council as Seattle Sweeps Away Its Gambling dens
In a rare moment of unified reform, the City Council has ordered the closure of all gambling houses and restricted saloons in the business district. Mayor Humes, citing legal ambiguity over the saloon ordinance but promising strict enforcement against lotteries, leaves the fate of Seattle’s vice industry to the police chief.
- The Effigy in the Pine Tree
Charles Gloystein crossed Spokane County's Populists and woke to find himself hanged in straw. Then he vanished.
- The Dairy Commissioner’s War on Adulterated Food
A Washington dairy official warns that fake honey, poisoned candy, oleomargarine and brewers’ grain are cheating farmers — and demands stronger pure-food laws.