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1. The 1893 Plan to Untangle Seattle’s Government

   A powerful city official wanted a stronger mayor, a one-house council, and fewer commissions—arguments Seattle still has today.

   Apr 17, 1893The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

2. A $100 Warrant and a City's Credit: Port Angeles Officials Push Back

   The mayor and clerk deny a Taxpayers' Union charge, defend a hurried trip to Seattle to pay bond interest, and produce an affidavit against a fellow councilman.

   May 13, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerFront Street, Port AngelesFollow the Money · City Hall · Scandal

3. Seattle's 1895 Warning: Secure Cedar River Water Before Private Speculators Do

   City Engineer R. H. Thomson says Seattle's overworked pumps cannot survive another summer and urges the city to buy the Cedar River watershed, dams and reservoir sites while it still can.

   Feb 24, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyFollow the Money · Boom & Bust

4. City Hall Showdown: Council and Reformers Clash Over Charter Revision

   A heated joint meeting of the city council and civic organizations debates whether to call a special election for a new city charter, with accusations of bullying and claims of wasted taxpayer money.

   Mar 14, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle City Hall, Seattle, King CountyCity Hall

5. 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.

   Mar 6, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle City Hall, Seattle, King CountyCity Hall

6. Ballard's City Attorney Skipped Court—and the City Paid a Debt Twice

   A $1,046 judgment forced Ballard to pay the same debt twice, prompting the mayor to demand an investigation into City Attorney Edmund Peters' neglect.

   Feb 7, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall · Scandal

7. A City on the Brink: Olympia’s 1891 Debt Crisis and the Fight Over Jobs

   Facing a constitutional debt limit, Olympia’s city council considers firing the deputy clerk, assistant city attorney, and city engineer—while a motion to revoke the street railway franchise fails by a tie.

   Nov 18, 1891The Olympia TribuneOlympia, Thurston CountyCity Hall

8. The Water Under Walla Walla

   As the city weighs Mill Creek against artesian wells, old-timers warn that riparian lawsuits could drown the project.

   Sep 24, 1903The Evening StatesmanMill Creek, Walla Walla, Walla Walla CountyFollow the Money · City Hall

9. A City Accused of Stealing Its Water by Night

   A rancher with an injunction, a mayor at the end of his borrowing power, and a reservoir that empties at dusk and fills by dawn: Tacoma's fight over Clover Creek water becomes a standoff between the city and the man who owns the creek.

   Mar 16, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerClover Creek, Tacoma, Pierce CountyFollow the Money · City Hall

10. Snohomish, 1898: A Ferry Claim Becomes a Booster's Dream City

    A promotional tour of the inland Puget Sound town traces its founding by I.C. Ferguson, its lumber and fishing wages, and the railroad that turned a river landing into a self-described city of homes.

    Apr 21, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSnohomish, Snohomish CountyWork & Pay · Boom & Bust

11. Two Plans, One Spring, and a $25,000 Holdup

    Walla Walla's council will let voters choose between a $191,000 pipeline up Mill Creek and a cheaper gravity system at Thomas Springs — but the editor suspects a land speculation scheme is baked into the ballot question.

    Oct 15, 1903The Evening StatesmanWalla Walla, Walla Walla CountyFollow the Money · Boom & Bust · City Hall

12. Olympia Bought a $1,500 Sewer Map Critics Called Worthless

    A letter to the editor accuses the city council of buying a stranger's sewer plan without scrutiny—complete with a harbor reservoir already condemned in San Diego.

    Nov 30, 1891The Olympia TribuneOlympia, Thurston CountyFollow the Money · City Hall

13. James J. Hill's Railroad Ultimatum to Seattle

    The Great Northern president tells Seattle's council he will build freight and passenger terminals 'right away'—if the city grants the track franchises he wants across the tide flats and South Third.

    Jul 15, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyFollow the Money

14. Tacoma's Water Was Cut Off by a Court Order—and the City Went Looking for Wells

    A judge holds Tacoma officials in contempt for ignoring an injunction over Clover and Spanaway creeks, forcing the city to shut off a major source and scramble for gulch water and Northern Pacific wells.

    Mar 12, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerTacoma, Pierce CountyFollow the Money · City Hall

15. Tacoma's 1909 Fight to Own Its Power

    On the eve of a city election, advocates urged voters to approve a $2 million municipal light and power plant—and warned the private power trust would lie to stop them.

    Jan 1, 1909The Tacoma TimesTacoma, Pierce CountyFollow the Money · City Hall

16. 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.

    Dec 31, 1891The Olympia TribuneOlympia, Thurston CountyFollow the Money · Boom & Bust · City Hall

17. Seattle's Fire Chief Accused as the Council Wrestles a Telephone Franchise and a Paving Bill

    Both houses of the city council meet late into the night: charges that Chief Hunt holds office under false pretenses, a twenty-five-year franchise for the Seattle Home Telephone Company, and a fight over who pays for the sick and injured.

    Jul 10, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle City Hall, Seattle, King CountyFollow the Money · City Hall

18. Seattle’s Post-Panic Pep Talk: Canals, Steel and Paved Streets

    On New Year’s Day 1895, Seattle’s mayor and aldermen promised economy, railroad terminals and a Lake Washington canal—and insisted the Panic of 1893 was finally fading.

    Jan 2, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerUnion Street, Seattle, King CountyBoom & Bust

19. New Whatcom’s Ledger Had a Credit Side, Too

    After a defalcation and the Panic of 1893, New Whatcom’s mayor and a local editor argued over whether the city was broke or merely bruised.

    Jan 7, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerBellingham, Whatcom CountyBoom & Bust · City Hall

20. Spokane Falls Council Tackles Charter, Cash, and a Dead Horse

    In August 1883, the Spokane Falls City Council met to discuss a new city charter, unpaid bills, street assessments, and the problem of a dead horse. The meeting offers a glimpse into the challenges of a growing frontier town.

    Aug 11, 1883Spokane Falls ReviewSpokane, Spokane CountyBoom & Bust · City Hall

21. The City That Couldn't Pay Its Bills: Seattle’s Fiscal Crisis and the Fight for Expansion

    Mayor Moran and Councilman Dane plead with citizens to understand why street paving is stalled and sewer plans are shelved—not from laziness, but because state law caps the city's debt just as the population doubles.

    Feb 1, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

22. Private Employment Agents Fight Back Against the City's Free Labor Bureau

    Accused of swindling job-seekers, a Seattle employment firm blames organized labor and a union-backed city bureau for a campaign to put it out of business — and dares the city to investigate.

    Aug 8, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyWork & Pay

23. Starvation Wages and a Broken Light Contract: Seattle's Lower House Erupts

    Delegates demand answers on Pike Street paving, city jobs parceled out by foremen, Kilbourne Avenue subcontracting, and the gas-electric company's failure to light the city.

    Feb 5, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyWork & Pay · Follow the Money · City Hall

24. The Ghost of a Civic Dream: Seattle’s Lost City Hall

    A century-old bequest for a grand municipal building sits unclaimed, as a local property owner laments the city's scattered, inefficient offices.

    Aug 26, 1888The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall · Gone Forever

25. The Ram's Horn: When Seattle Went to War With a Railroad Over Six Blocks of Public Street

    Boxed in by an injunction, Corporation Counsel Donworth finds a lawyer's loophole: let the Columbia & Puget Sound Railroad lay its rails, but serve notice that the city denies the right-of-way exists at all.

    Apr 16, 1893The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyFollow the Money

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