Research the archive
Narrow 27,002 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.
Refine1 on
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 1 |
| 1872 | 13 |
| 1876 | 60 |
| 1877 | 29 |
| 1878 | 20 |
| 1880 | 13 |
| 1882 | 10 |
| 1883 | 46 |
| 1884 | 24 |
| 1885 | 47 |
| 1886 | 33 |
| 1887 | 33 |
| 1888 | 25 |
| 1889 | 71 |
| 1890 | 3 |
| 1891 | 22 |
| 1892 | 124 |
| 1893 | 160 |
| 1894 | 180 |
| 1895 | 192 |
| 1896 | 1 |
| 1897 | 1 |
| 1898 | 2 |
| 1899 | 32 |
| 1902 | 2 |
| 1903 | 16 |
| 1904 | 7 |
| 1909 | 8 |
| 1914 | 1 |
| 1916 | 1 |
| 1928 | 1 |
| 1929 | 1 |
1,179 stories matching caus
- The Delicate Sensitivity of Seattle’s Fire Alarm
An accidental rock throw reveals how fragile the city's early fire alarm infrastructure truly was.
- The Women's Vote Gets Its Own Newspaper
Washington's Equal Suffrage Association launches 'Votes for Women,' a monthly that will follow the cause from Seattle to the far corners of the earth.
- Seattle's Sewers Were Cracking All Over Town — and the City Engineer Blamed the Dirt
A furious letter writer insists the pipes broke not from 'percussion' but from the very worst kind of trench work — and points the finger straight at the man in charge.
- The Mayor's Power to Fire: Seattle's Removed Police Commissioners Fight for Their Jobs
J. G. Niggle and E. G. Cheasty argue that Mayor Byron Phelps removed them without notice or hearing—and that the city charter requires cause, not whim.
- The Unexplained Death of a Millman
A healthy man collapses in a Seattle office building, but two autopsies fail to reveal why.
- A Damning Verdict on Steamboat Safety
Following the sinking of the steamer Josephine, a King and Kitsap County grand jury finds the vessel's destruction was caused by 'gross negligence' and a failure to enforce maritime safety.
- The Great Fire on Washington Street: A Narrow Escape from Ashes
A blaze in the upper story of a building near Pike Street threatened to consume Seattle’s growing commercial district, but the quick arrival of the fire engine saved the day.
- The Story Flora Sullivan Chose to Tell
After a suicide attempt at Seattle's Columbia House, Flora Sullivan wanted it known that her husband was not the cause—another man was.
- The Silent Fisherman of West Point
A fisherman is discovered dead in his boat near the lighthouse after a freak accident.
- The Price of the Prize Ring
A well-known local prizefighter collapses and dies in the ring at a Seattle performance hall after a brutal exhibition match.
- Seattle's Mayor Overreached: Judge Langley Voids the Police Commission Firings
The mayor's summary removal of Police Commissioners Niggle and Cheasty was null and void, the court ruled, leaving Chief Rogers in charge and the city's police leadership in limbo.
- Seattle Labor Calls the Franklin Mine Inquest a Whitewash
The Western Central Labor Union demands prosecution over the Franklin disaster, saying the men were killed through company carelessness—and votes to press for a permanent labor headquarters.
- Waterfront Mattress Factory Destroyed by Fire
A late-night blaze gutted the George S. Lenders Bedding Company plant, causing $6,000 in damages.
- The Futility of Policing Morality
An 1877 editorial from the Puget Sound region challenges the effectiveness of prohibitionists attempting to legislate temperance via 'paper petitions.'
- Post-Fire Sanitation: The Fight for a Healthy Seattle
Following the Great Seattle Fire of 1889, local physicians and concerned citizens publicly debated the city’s primitive sewer systems, warning that decaying waste in the 'burnt district' threatened a public health crisis.
- The Election of 1885: A Glimpse into Seattle's Growing Pains
As Seattle prepared for a municipal election in the summer of 1885, city officials published formal notices for a contest to fill leadership roles, highlighting a city governed by ward-based representation during a pivotal era of expansion.
- Midnight Blast at a Chinese Laundry
A loud explosion near South Sixth and Washington Street sends Seattle police on a frantic manhunt for a mysterious bomber.
- Homeowner Battles City Over Street Ditch
W. H. Gleason sues the City of Seattle for $1,000, claiming a city-sanctioned ditch blocked access to his Washington Street rentals.
- A Close Call on Yesler Avenue
A fire sparked by a porter's clumsy accident in a saloon basement is extinguished by a quick-thinking fire commissioner before it could threaten the neighborhood.
- The Mayor Fired Him; He Says the Charter Says Otherwise
Ex-Police Commissioner E. C. Cheasty asks a judge to overturn Mayor Phelps’s removal, arguing City Hall ignored the charter and punished him for a political vote.
- The Newspaper Owner Who Disavowed His Own Editorial
Francis Murphy reads L.S.J. Hunt’s letter to a Seattle crowd, disowning the Post-Intelligencer’s anti-temperance editorial and sending $200 for the cause.
- The Battle for the Ballot Gains Momentum
As Washington suffragists organize for victory, they look to Idaho as a model and report a surge in female voter registration in Seattle.
- The Tragic Passing of Nettie Dinsmore
A beloved Seattle teacher succumbs to typhoid fever, revealing a grim public health warning for the city.
- The Land is Moving Beneath the Mills
As Seattle's waterfront expansion struggles against unstable geology, a sash and door factory is forced to shutter as the hillside slips toward the bay.
- The Day Seattle’s Streets Became a Minefield
In September 1876, the city’s main commercial artery was so full of potholes and water that officials warned it would become 'deplorable' before winter set in.