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42 stories matching blister
- The Great Dayton Fire: A Block of Ashes and a City’s Near Miss
On the night of April 2, 1882, flames consumed three blocks in downtown Dayton, Washington. While the town paid with its buildings, Seattle’s own fire department narrowly escaped disaster thanks to a single force pump.
- The Mob That Stole Justice in Seattle
A federal judge delivers a blistering rebuke to the Seattle vigilantes who lynched three men in January 1882, declaring that the lawless 'Committee of Safety' is a threat greater than the criminals they executed.
- The Father Who Wanted an Affidavit That the Flour Was Not Poisoned
Seattle's charity superintendent found William Emrich's family living in an old store without food or bedding, the children blistered by their father's poison fears. The case became a window into destitution, paranoia, and who deserved public aid.
- Twenty-Three Miners Died in a Nearly Undamaged Mine
Inspector Edmunds told a Seattle paper that the Blue Canyon explosion was one of the strangest disasters he had ever seen: the mine was barely damaged, yet 23 men were dead, most killed by concussion and gas.
- The Scandal of the Sandberg District
City council members launch a blistering investigation into a protected 'vice syndicate' they allege is forcing hundreds of women into a restricted district.
- The Trial of a Seattle Anti-Chinese Rioter
In 1885, a local judge delivers a blistering instruction to a jury, reminding them that the 'stranger and sojourner' are entitled to the equal protection of American law during a time of rampant xenophobic violence.
- Seattle Citizens Broke Ground on Their Own Railroad
How Seattle’s local investment and grit built a railroad when the Northern Pacific chose Tacoma.
- A Judge’s Crusade Against County Corruption
Whitman County Judge William McDonald issues a blistering order to the prosecutor, detailing long-standing allegations of jailhouse abuse, probate perjury, and illegal spending by commissioners.
- Ralph Beaumont Takes the Stage
Thousands gather at Pioneer Place to hear a blistering critique of corporate power.
- The 'Bullpen' at the Roslyn Mines
When the Northern Pacific Railroad imported scab labor to break a strike in 1888, the local Democratic convention issued a blistering condemnation of the 'armed police' used to coerce workers.
- The Unmaking of a Mayor: Corruption and Scandal in 1885 Seattle
Ahead of the municipal elections, the 'Post-Intelligencer' launched a blistering attack on the incumbent mayor, calling for his ouster over accusations of police negligence, gambling racketeering, and moral failings.
- The Great Land Grab: 1886 Democracy vs. The Northern Pacific
At the 1886 Democratic Territorial Convention in Tacoma, delegates launched a blistering critique against the Northern Pacific Railroad for failing its promises and seizing public lands meant for settlers.
- Seattle's 1894 Election: Corruption, Fraud, and the Fight for City Hall
As voters head to the polls, the Post-Intelligencer unleashes a blistering attack on the Democratic administration, alleging graft, forgery, and a machine determined to hold power at any cost.
- The Firing of a Labor Advocate
Organized labor in Washington wages war on the state labor commissioner after he fires a deputy who actually enforced the law.
- The Scandal of Surveyor General Henry
Dr. Anson G. Henry fights back against accusations of swindling the government and bribery in a blistering public defense.
- The 'Nursing Mother's' Temperance War
A leading clubwoman exposes the cynical branding of an initiative she claims would destroy Washington's prohibition laws.
- The Floating Poker Game Fleecing Klondike Gold Miners
Returning prospectors, heavy with gold and exhaustion, were systematically targeted by a professional gambling syndicate on the passenger steamers coming into Seattle.
- The Boss and the Mayor: Allegations of Graft in Walla Walla City Hall
The Evening Statesman launches a blistering campaign attack, accusing Mayor Hunt of illegal business dealings and cozy backroom deals with local bank executives.
- The Hunt Administration’s Budget Fiasco
The Evening Statesman launches a blistering critique of the city's fiscal mismanagement and the mysterious, unaudited expenses of the water department.
- The Chinese Question: Seattle’s Editorial War Over Labor and 'Vermin'
In October 1876, the *Seattle Daily Intelligencer* published a blistering editorial defending Chinese laborers while simultaneously dehumanizing them as carriers of disease, revealing the complex economic dependencies and racial tensions of early Washington Territory.
- The 'Scrawniest Things' on Second Street: A 1889 Fight Over Slum Housing
When the city's building inspector sought clarification on code, he triggered a blistering critique of the shoddy, dangerous 'rookeries' being erected in the shadow of the Great Seattle Fire.
- Trapped in the Snowy Labyrinth of the North Cascades
A Seattle prospecting party seeking a Skagit River mine nearly perishes in a brutal trek through Whatcom County’s mountain wilderness.
- The Political Battle for Washington’s Future
As Republicans rally in Olympia, party leaders McGraw and Winston defend their state financial management and launch sharp attacks against the rising Populist movement.
- The Devil's Range
A drunken seaman's terrifying hallucination on a Port Townsend stove.
- The Governor’s War on the Railroad Lobby
Governor Henry McBride calls out corporate influence in the Washington state legislature during a fiery speech to Whitman County farmers.
Also about this, in other words
- The 'Blasher' Walks: A Razor Fight in a Seattle Saloon Ends in Acquittal
William Robinson, known to police for carrying two or three razors, was cleared of slashing Alander Strom outside the Mint saloon—after witnesses convinced a jury he was the one being thrown out.
- The 'Plant Scurvy' Plague
A state official claims a revolutionary cure for orchard blights, blaming soil chemistry rather than disease.
- The Blight That Swept the Highlands
As pear trees wither overnight, local orchardists warn that only immediate, coordinated action can save the region's agricultural heart.
- The War on Orchard Blight
Kennewick orchardists travel to Prosser to learn how to save their trees from the ravages of fire blight and mildew.
- Orchardists Battle the Blight
District Horticultural Inspector Luke Powell warns local farmers against over-irrigating their young apple trees to prevent the spread of fire blight.
- The War on Rotting Spuds
A state agricultural expert warns farmers that the 1914 potato blight is more destructive than ever.
- The Unwelcome Guest in the Banana Crate
A Black Diamond baker discovers a live stowaway from the tropics in his pantry.
- The Bee and the Blight
Fruit growers grapple with the scientific reality that bees, essential for pollination, also inadvertently spread devastating fire blight.