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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 3 |
| 1859 | 2 |
| 1861 | 1 |
| 1862 | 1 |
| 1872 | 1 |
| 1883 | 1 |
| 1891 | 6 |
| 1892 | 4 |
| 1893 | 1 |
| 1894 | 2 |
| 1895 | 2 |
| 1903 | 1 |
| 1909 | 5 |
30 stories matching commit
- A Wife's Testimony Was Enough: Supreme Court Reverses Divorce Denial
The Washington Supreme Court ruled that a wife's own account of cruelty and habitual drunkenness could justify a divorce, reversing a lower court that had dismissed Nellie Lee's case.
- ‘Rule or Ruin’: A Territorial Lawmaker Turns on Governor Stevens
Confined to his room with a cold, a member of the Washington Territorial Legislature answers his critics — defending his right to name the governor's unpopular appointees and accusing a ruling clique of trying to shut the rest of the territory up.
- The Capitol Riots: How a Bribery Scandal Shook Washington’s First Legislature
In the halls of Olympia, Republican lawmakers turned on each other with fists and threats over a U.S. Senate seat, exposing a brazen attempt to buy votes that disgraced the young state.
- The Ghost Rumors of Indian Conflict
Territorial officials mobilize as panic spreads across Puget Sound following unsubstantiated reports of violence.
- The Judge, the Revolver, and the Impeachment Petition
A former judge tells Olympia that Judge W. W. Langhorne drinks on the bench, bullies lawyers, and has threatened to shoot him — and asks the House to remove him.
- The Capital Crisis of 1861
A fiery letter to the editor captures the volatile politics of Washington Territory, as Pierce County residents accused the legislature of a 'corrupt bargain' over the location of the capital.
- The Fourth of July in Olympia at the Height of the Civil War
A fervent address by Elwood Evans calls for absolute loyalty to the Union as the Territory celebrates the nation’s independence during its 'most tearful trial.'
- Triple Tragedy at Three Lakes
A night watchman murders his former wife and teenage daughter after she refuses his plea to remarry, then turns the weapon on himself.
- Olympia Residents Organize Volunteer Force Amid Bellingham Bay Fears
Following reports of violence between Indigenous tribes and settlers at Bellingham Bay, local citizens gather at the Olympia courthouse to form a militia and demand government action.
- Scandal at the State Capital
A political exposé details how legislators used committee clerkships as patronage bribes to maintain illicit affairs, resulting in a public divorce case.
- 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.
- The Political Brawl at the Territorial University
A scathing editorial from 1872 exposes a 'Klux clan' of government officials caught in a web of corruption, bribes, and public dishonesty.
- The Ship Canal Double-Cross at the Democratic Convention
Seattle's delegates went to Olympia ready to die on the canal plank. Their own campaign manager had already sold them out.
- A Territorial Judge, a Killing, and a Governor's Bad Appointment
A grand jury has charged Judge E. C. Fitzhugh with murder in the death of Andrew Wilson, turning a territorial appointment into a test of Governor Stevens's judgment.
- Tacoma Tries to Halt the State Capitol
Tacoma's Chamber of Commerce calls Olympia's new capitol a waste in hard times, but lawmakers vote down a bill to stop the work.
- The Suicide Machine: An Olympia Pioneer's Meticulous Last Act
A 70-year-old bachelor rigged a gun, a bench and a string in his shed, left a note on a blackboard, and arranged his own death with chilling precision.
- Can a Railroad Cut Timber on Public Land?
Judge Hoyt rules on the definition of 'adjacent' lands, a decision with major implications for Northern Pacific’s expansion in Washington Territory.
- Tragedy in Olympia Following Domestic Dispute
A young man takes his own life after his wife refuses to live with him due to his alcohol use.
- Washington’s Insurance Commissioner Fights Impeachment With 60 Pages and a Statute of Limitations
J. H. Schively answers all 26 articles with denials, jurisdictional objections, and a request to bar 17 senators — then points the blame at his predecessor.
- The Special Agent's Plea for Peace
Michael T. Simmons, newly appointed Indian Agent, calls for an end to liquor sales and unauthorized violence in the Puget Sound region.
- The Supreme Court Stops a Judge From Sending Yakima County the Stenographer’s Bill
A superior court judge tried to force the county treasury to pay for trial transcripts. The state Supreme Court said no—and used a rare writ to stop the warrants before they became county debt.
- Olympia Moves to Outlaw the Insanity Defense — and Gag the Press on Murders
With the 1909 session half gone, Washington's legislature advances local option and an anti-racetrack gambling bill, while a sweeping new criminal code would strip juries of the insanity plea and bar newspapers from covering homicides before trial.
- A Legislature in the Homestretch: Saloons, Gambling and a Fight Over Pledges
With days left in Olympia, Washington lawmakers weigh local option, an anti-racetrack law, a sweeping criminal code and a bill aimed at unions and suffragists.
- The Tragic End of an Eccentric Artist
A talented musician and former pupil of Liszt takes his own life at his ranch near Olympia.
- The Serial Husband of Thurston County
A young farmer faces divorce after a string of marriages to elderly widows, claiming he simply cannot resist their proposals.