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211 stories matching barrel
- The Ship That Smuggled Opium: How a Legal Loophole Freed a Vessel and $13,000 in Penalties
Judge Hanford rules that the steamer *Walla Walla* is not liable for contraband found in its cargo because the master lacked knowledge of the smuggling, setting a precedent for common carriers.
- The Steamer That Smuggled Opium in Sauerkraut Barrels
A federal seizure of the Walla Walla reveals a shocking loophole: how Pacific Coast Steamship Company executives claim 'skid grease' shipments were actually opium, and why customs officials looked the other way.
- The Rolling Barrel That Killed a Cauter
In the early days of Seattle, a worker’s death was blamed on bad luck and heavy barrels—but it was likely the result of dangerous labor conditions that went unreported.
- The Unsung Genius of the Barrel
A deep dive into the history of an everyday object that the 1880s public took for granted, tracing its utility from Egyptian antiquity to modern Seattle.
- The $80,000 Cranberry Bog Behind the Ilwaco Beach
A state commissioner tours Pacific County's cranberry marsh — 1,600 acres, 7,280 bushels shipped to San Francisco, 200 pickers at fifty cents a bushel, and a company openly hoping to replace its Chinese crew with white labor.
- The Great Smuggled Salmon Caper
When federal agents boarded the steamer Idaho, they didn't just find barrels of fish—they found a desperate, high-stakes attempt to smuggle opium into the Pacific Northwest.
- Seattle's Barrel Factory Doubles Its Shifts — 'No Chance for Chinamen There'
The factory near Belltown boosts production to 4,000 barrels a day and hires about a hundred men and boys, all white, in a blunt public statement of racial hiring policy.
- The Opium Barrel That Shook Tacoma
A mislabeled shipment of 'sour krout' hides a fortune in smuggled drug, marking the largest seizure in the port's history.
- Industrial Accident at the Everett Waterfront
A deck hand is critically injured after a barrel of acid falls, highlighting the daily dangers faced by laborers on the docks.
- Tragedy at the Barrel Factory
A young worker loses his life in a horrific industrial accident at the Seattle Manufacturing Company.
- The Opium Smugglers of the Idaho
A federal investigation uncovers a massive scheme to hide contraband in the bilges and barrels of a Pacific steamship, revealing a deep culture of corruption in the Sound’s maritime trade.
- The Waterfront's First Industry Ends in Smoke
An abandoned barrel factory, once a symbol of Seattle's early industrial ambition, was destroyed by a fire lit by local children looking to warm up after a swim.
- The Quartermaster’s Arithmetic: Scrip, Pork, and Profiteering in Washington Territory
A detailed audit of Quartermaster General W. W. Miller’s books exposed inflated prices, unexplained payments, and scrip issued for vouchers the commissioners had already disallowed.
- A Million-Dollar Cement Mill Is Coming to the Pend Oreille
Backed by Lehigh Valley cement men, the Inland Empire Portland Cement Co. buys Sullivan Creek water and mineral rights and promises a 2,000-barrel-a-day plant—once the railroad reaches Metaline.
- The Juvenile 'Junk' Gangs of Seattle
Local business owners report a wave of petty thefts by children as young as ten, raising alarms about the city's future.
- The Captain's Peculiar Cargo
A maritime dispute reveals a ship captain’s bizarre refusal to transport freight after discovering a hidden shipment of 'stolen' or suspicious barrels.
- Tragic Hunting Accident Leaves Lake Captain Near Death
While loading his shotgun on Lake Sammamish, a local steamboat captain suffered a devastating injury that threatens his life.
- The Forest Empire That Built Washington
A sweeping 1900 survey of the state's lumber industry counted billions of feet of standing timber, 250 sawmills, and $7 million a year in wages—proof that the trees, not the cities, came first.
- The Smuggler's Hold in Port Townsend
A US Customs inspection reveals a secret cargo of sugar and pork, risking vessel forfeiture and perjury charges.
- Ship Strikes Seattle Wharf in Gusty Storm
A sudden gust of wind slams a ship into a Seattle wharf, destroying cargo and prompting a liability dispute.
- Puget Sound's Salmon Industry Still Dependent on Out-of-State Supplies
While Washington's salmon industry continues to grow, it relies heavily on Portland for barrels and packaging materials.
- The Night the Coal Ran: How a Company Outsmarted Strikers with Negro Labor and Winchester Rifles
In a brazen move to break the Koslyn coal strike, company managers smuggled in replacement workers from Illinois under cover of darkness, escorted by armed deputies who fired through the sleeping village of Seattle.
- Puget Sound Out-Sailed Every U.S. Port but New York in 1894
Customs records showed a young Washington district building an Oriental trade from scratch, even as falling wheat and lumber values masked the boom in raw tonnage.
- The Price of a Vote in Tacoma
Corruption and 'barrel' politics clash in a heated Republican primary, as anti-Bennett factions fight back against organized vote-buying.
- The Seattle Grocer Who Died Chasing Central American Trade
J. E. Chilberg clawed back from a fire, a failed corporation and a panic to build a Puget Sound steamship trade with Guatemala — then went down with the foundering Colima on the voyage that was supposed to secure it.
Also about this, in other words
- The Fight Against the Federal 'Pork Barrel'
Progressive candidate M. A. Peacock slams Congressman LaFollette’s vote on reclamation funding, warning it invites corruption into the Northwest's irrigation projects.
- A Sad Discovery Near the Barrel Factory
A German immigrant who arrived in Seattle to start a new life dies by suicide, leaving behind his wife and business worries.
- The Pork Barrel Standoff
Washington State’s Representative John L. Wilson stops a Texas infrastructure bill until the needs of the Northwest are recognized.
- A Gun-Toting Guard at the Liquor Store
A store owner hires a guard to protect his liquor supply, leading to a dangerous and accidental discharge of a firearm.
- The Eagle Mills Expansion
A major local manufacturer relocates to North Seattle, prioritizing a white, coin-paid workforce.
- An Accidental Blast at The Tanks
A bungled attempt to extract a stuck shell from a Winchester rifle triggers a chaotic runaway at a local camp.
- The Rusting Box Factory
A Seattle entrepreneur's attempt to reclaim machinery from a failed East Clallam factory is thwarted by the local sheriff.
- The Hay Thief, the Bathtub, and the Shotgun Out of Repair
A Westside barn alarm turns into a comic opera of nightshirts, a borrowed shotgun and one stolen bale of hay.