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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1861 | 2 |
| 1872 | 1 |
| 1880 | 2 |
| 1883 | 1 |
| 1888 | 1 |
| 1892 | 2 |
| 1893 | 6 |
| 1895 | 3 |
| 1903 | 1 |
19 stories matching bequeath
- The Ghost of the Yesler Will
Henry Yesler, Seattle's pioneer mogul, left behind a vast fortune and a city convinced he bequeathed it all to them—but the document is missing.
- A Final, Sudden Act
A Tacoma resident died suddenly while in the act of signing his last will and testament, which was noted for its extreme brevity.
- The Passing of a Pioneer Merchant
James Crawford, who helped build Seattle's mercantile reputation, dies at age 46 after a struggle with consumption.
- The Estate That Outran Its Will
A New York inheritance officer comes to Port Townsend to sort out Ansel White's estate, where a will written before the money arrived may leave dozens of cousins fighting over a fortune.
- The Battle Over Stubblefield’s Will
Arkansas heirs launch a second equity suit to dismantle a $151,000 charitable trust intended for orphans and widows.
- Washington Territory Declares Loyalty to the Union
Legislators in the newly formed territory pass formal resolutions condemning secession and the proposed Pacific Confederacy on the eve of the Civil War.
- Territorial Legislature Declares Allegiance to the Union
As the clouds of civil war gather in the East, the Washington Territorial Legislature takes a firm stance for the preservation of the national Union.
- The Minister and the Saloon
A fiery Memorial Day sermon calls out the city's corrupt politics and the vice rampant in the very shadow of Seattle's churches.
- The Tangled Web of the Yesler Estate
A legal battle over the fortune of Henry L. Yesler spirals into a web of missing deeds, conspiracy charges, and high-stakes courtroom drama.
- The Tragedy of a Guardian's Greed
A sick pioneer's recovery is threatened by the revelation that his own brother, who managed his affairs, billed him for everything from streetcar fares to tobacco for horses.
- The Unrest of the American Dollar
A 1880 editorial from the Seattle Intelligencer examines the nation's obsession with wealth accumulation and its hidden costs to the soul of a young nation.
- The Ghostly Return of Mr. Folliott
A Seattle husband returns from a harrowing journey in India to find his 'widow' has remained faithful—despite the local gossips who were eager to see her remarry.
- The Mystery of the Two Wills
After the death of Jennie McHugh Brown, two conflicting wills emerge, leading to a complex legal battle over her estate.
- The Secret Benefactor of a Struggling Seattle Teacher
A modest schoolteacher discovers that her late aunt, a wealthy woman she hardly knew, had been paying her bills in secret long before the surprising terms of her will were revealed.
- A Captain's Fortune and the Daughters Who Couldn't Prove They Were Family
Washington's supreme court threw out a contest over the $500,000 estate of Port Blakely mill man William Renton because the claimants could not show they were adopted.
- A Woman, a Stolen Boy, and a Vow to 'Cut Old Good's Heart Out'
Mrs. James C. Gibbs is arrested in Denver with her nephew Johnny Barrow — she says she rescued him from a heartless guardian; Seattle says otherwise.
- The Rise and Lonely Fall of Spokane's Richest Man
Banker Anthony M. Cannon, who helped build Spokane from a cabin by the falls, dies broke and bereaved in a New York hotel — days after a secret second marriage made him tabloid prey.
- The Old Man’s Last Stand: A Father’s Flight from Greedy Heirs Ends in a Sheriff’s Chase
P.V. Thorpe, an elderly pioneer fleeing false rape accusations and property theft by his son and son-in-law, was arrested for carrying a revolver in Seattle—only to be vindicated when the truth about his family’s blackmail scheme came to light.
- The Missing Will That Would Have Given Seattle a Library
Henry Yesler's widow and two doctors are arrested, accused of burning a will that left the pioneer's fortune—and his mansion—to the city.
Also about this, in other words
- A Bequest for Orphans Caught in Legal Limbo
Local community leaders push to settle a will contest that threatens the establishment of the Stubblefield home for indigent widows and orphans.
- The Real Estate Inheritance Marriage
When a Seattle man's son passed away, he left his property to his father, in trust for his widow—with a clause insisting they live under the same roof. The result was a local wedding that defied convention.
- The Donation Claim That Ended in Murder—and Took Decades to Settle
A federal land ruling near Sumner untangles decades of inheritance, foreclosure, and a killing tied to a donation claim first filed in 1853.
- The Dollar Deed: How a Husband’s ‘Gift’ to His Wife Cost Him His Land Claim
In a dispute over who settled first on public land, the Register of the Olympia Land Office ruled that W.S. Fish could not claim priority because he had technically transferred his donation claim to his wife for just one dollar.
- The Price of Debt in 1877 Seattle
Foreclosure notices reveal the rapid shift in property ownership as King County land was liquidated at the courthouse steps.
- The Widow and the Will: A Legal Battle Over the Ebey Donation Claim
After the death of Isaac N. Ebey, the courts faced a complex dispute between his widow, his children, and an unexecuted will, testing the limits of land ownership in the Washington Territory.
- The Unfilial Gift: A Father's Regret
An elderly farmer, swayed by sentiment, signs over his land to his daughter and son-in-law, only to be cast into the kitchen and ignored.
- The Deed Was Too Generous: Yesler's Estate Sues to Take Back a Slice of Seattle
A forgotten 1892 complaint by Seattle's founding figure is revived by his administrators, who say a mutual mistake gave away too much of the Yesler donation claim.