Research the archive
Narrow 25,688 newspaper stories by words, years, place, newspaper and subject. See when and where they ran, then download what you find.
Put a phrase in quotes ("rent strike") or leave a word out with a minus (strike -baseball). Old scans misspell names, so when little is found, near-spellings are offered.
Refine
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1858 | 1 |
| 1861 | 1 |
| 1864 | 1 |
| 1872 | 3 |
| 1876 | 20 |
| 1877 | 7 |
| 1878 | 3 |
| 1880 | 4 |
| 1882 | 6 |
| 1883 | 30 |
| 1884 | 10 |
| 1885 | 14 |
| 1886 | 3 |
| 1887 | 9 |
| 1888 | 11 |
| 1889 | 70 |
| 1890 | 10 |
| 1891 | 41 |
| 1892 | 37 |
| 1893 | 36 |
| 1894 | 38 |
| 1895 | 44 |
| 1898 | 3 |
| 1899 | 10 |
| 1900 | 2 |
| 1902 | 2 |
| 1903 | 18 |
| 1904 | 16 |
| 1908 | 4 |
| 1909 | 15 |
| 1910 | 2 |
| 1911 | 1 |
| 1912 | 1 |
| 1914 | 1 |
| 1915 | 1 |
| 1916 | 3 |
| 1917 | 1 |
| 1925 | 2 |
481 stories matching brick
- The Clay Under Seattle Built a Million-Dollar Industry
King County clay works turned local deposits into firebrick, paving brick, sewer pipe and architectural terra cotta—winning federal tests and employing hundreds of men.
- Brick by Brick: Seattle Paves Pike Street
Four contractors bid to lay a brick surface from Front to Seventh, with the contract to be let this morning and the work rushed through before the rains — while labor can still be had cheap.
- Olympia’s Booster Year: Brick, Bridges and a 50,000-Person Promise
As 1891 closed, the capital city counted $3 million in new buildings, a record bridge, electric lights and new rail lines — and predicted 50,000 residents within a decade.
- The Great Seattle Brick Shortage of 1889
As Seattle rebuilt from the ashes of the Great Fire, a local brick supplier defended himself against accusations of price gouging, pinning the city's housing crunch on a simple lack of supply.
- The Great Tacoma Brick Famine
A supply chain crisis at a Renton monopoly grinds Tacoma’s infrastructure projects to a halt.
- Two Million Bricks and a Hundred Jobs for the Cascade Gateway
The Union Brick Works of Tacoma wins the Northern Pacific's contract to line the Stampede Tunnel in fire-baked brick — a regional infrastructure job that will keep a hundred men working through the summer.
- The Sewer Under Beacon Hill
After quicksand, floods and a costly detour, Seattle’s South Tunnel is weeks from completion—and somehow still inside its $100,000 budget.
- Defective Brick in the Courthouse? The Former Superintendent Says Yes
Former superintendent W. A. Rogers says the county courthouse contains defective brick that can be crushed by hand, disputing the county attorney's claim that only the architecture is at fault.
- Firing Up for the Building Boom
Veteran brick maker J.S. McAllister gears up to turn the Duwamish riverbank into the foundation for Seattle's next wave of construction.
- Seattle’s Streets Were Still Mostly Wood—Until the Brick Came
With 750 miles platted and only 106 improved, city engineers pushed permanent pavement on Union Street and dreamed of brick from local clay.
- Forty Thousand Bricks Rejected at the New Courthouse
Superintendent Rogers refused to let nearly 40,000 soft bricks from a Westside yard go into Olympia's new courthouse, warning contractors that the specifications would be enforced.
- The Town That Grew in Ninety Days—and Then Waited for the Railroad
In 1890, promoters carved Anacortes out of the Fidalgo Island forest, sold lots at galloping prices, and promised a transcontinental rail terminal. Two years later, the trains still stopped short and the company wharf was closed to the public.
- Seattle’s Housing Crisis: Brick by Brick, Room by Room
As the city races to build new brick structures on Second and Smith Streets, officials warn that even these new constructions won't be enough to stop rents from skyrocketing.
- The Brick Crisis: Why Seattle’s Boom Is Stalling Because of Empty Lots
An editorial warns that the city's rapid growth is being choked by a lack of commercial infrastructure, urging property owners to build or lease for development before capital flees to rival towns.
- The Great Seattle Brick Heist
A local contractor chartered a tugboat to chase down a steamboat captain who allegedly stole a scow full of brick over a payment dispute.
- The Swindler with the Golden Brick
A local confidence man allegedly fleeced hotels and saloons by leaving behind fake gold bricks as temporary collateral.
- The Battle for the Paving of Pacific Avenue
Tacoma business owners hash out a heated, two-hour debate over whether to use locally sourced fir blocks or imported vitrified brick for the city's main street.
- The Brick Blocks That Told Olympia It Had Arrived
In 1891, three pressed-brick buildings rose along Olympia’s business streets—and boosters read them as proof the wooden capital was becoming a real city.
- The Town That Grew on Nerve and Water Power
A visitor marvels at Spokane Falls in 1883, where brick blocks, a flouring mill and two colleges were rising on pure booster confidence.
- Seattle's Streets Were Made of Wood. The Fight to Pave Them Was On.
A City Council vote for brick on Pike Street signaled the end of makeshift plank roads—if Seattle could stomach the first cost.
- The Governor’s Brick Fortress: W.C. Squire Plans to Reshape Seattle’s Corner
As the territory transitions to statehood, Governor Squire announces plans for a massive new brick block on South Second and Main, signaling his permanent shift from territorial politics to local real estate development.
- The Great Tacoma Brick Boom: A City Building Itself Into the Future
As ten new brick structures rise on Water Street and real estate auctions fetch record prices, Tacoma’s leaders are betting big on a booming future—despite labor shortages and material scarcity.
- The Sewer Scandal: Seattle Engineer Fired for Refusing Corrupt Bricks
A political machine ousts City Engineer R.H. Thomson to bypass safety standards, sparking fears of city infrastructure collapse.
- Rising from the Embers: Ellensburg's Rapid Rebirth
After a devastating fire consumed the heart of the city in July 1889, the community transformed from a charred wasteland into a brick-fronted city in just two months.
- Seattle's Burnt District Rebuilds in Brick After 1889 Fire
Following the Great Seattle Fire, the city's burnt district transforms as brick blocks replace wooden ruins and the city plans for a modern infrastructure.
Also about this, in other words
- The Brick Renaissance: Transforming Seattle’s 'Tinderbox' Downtown
As Seattle began to outgrow its temporary wooden origins, local businessmen pushed to replace fire-prone wooden structures with modern brick blocks, signaling a new era of permanence and civic ambition.
- The Brick Revolution: Why Seattle’s Wooden Streets Are a Financial Trap
An editorial in the Seattle Intelligencer argues that the city's reliance on timber construction is holding back its prosperity, urging property owners to invest in fireproof brick buildings to secure higher rents and double their income.
- The Brick Block Mandate: Why Your Empty Lot is Killing Seattle's Economy
An editorial argues that refusing to build substantial structures on city land is a civic failure, urging property owners to construct brick buildings to retain tradesmen and attract new industry.
- A New Brick Landmark for Walla Walla
Columbia Lodge members approve plans for a $10,000 brick building, signaling a shift away from the city's older, wooden business architecture.
- Seattle's First Real Street Paving
A specimen half-block is laid on Commercial Street as a test to end the era of plank roads and mud.
- The Gold Brick Swindle
A small-town banker loses his life savings to a sophisticated confidence scheme involving a fake Indian and a worthless brick.
- The Bricklayer Shortage of 1888
As Seattle began its rapid expansion, contractors scrambled to find enough skilled labor to keep pace with the building boom.
- Turning Sawdust into Stone
An innovative German industrial method promises to transform Aberdeen's abundant sawmill waste into fireproof, durable building bricks.