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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1890 | 1 |
| 1891 | 3 |
| 1892 | 1 |
| 1893 | 6 |
| 1894 | 4 |
| 1895 | 8 |
| 1909 | 1 |
24 stories matching defalc
- A Railroad Land Agent’s Half-Million-Dollar Hole in Spokane
Paul Schulze’s defalcation as Northern Pacific land agent grew to $400,000–$500,000, with a Spokane syndicate trying to protect its property.
- City Engineer Axes Staff Amidst Financial Crisis
A local corruption scandal involving a 'defalcation' leaves the city unable to pay for essential infrastructure, forcing layoffs in the engineer's office.
- The Trusted Deputy and the Missing $900
Island County's longtime deputy treasurer is found short in his accounts; his old chief quietly makes the county whole.
- The $1,500 Hole in Clallam County's Books
A second look at Clallam County's accounts turned up altered figures, a $1,500 shortage and bondsmen who refused to keep paying. The treasurer was arrested.
- Grand Jury Probes Almshouse Construction and Ex-Treasurer
A grand jury is convened to investigate the alleged criminal 'steals' involving the city treasurer and the construction of the new county almshouse.
- Scandalous Politician Drowns in Anacortes
A prominent Seattle Republican dies while boarding a steamer, leaving behind a legacy of real estate speculation and a massive public deficit investigation.
- Defending a Local Leader from Slander
The Post-Intelligencer defends L. H. Booth against accusations of financial corruption tied to his past work as a public official.
- The $10,000 Military-Fund Scandal That Seattle’s Elite Wanted Buried
Former Adjutant General Ortis Hamilton confessed to lavishing public military money on Hazel Moore. She says the committee investigating the shortage is avoiding her because her testimony would implicate five of Seattle’s most prominent men.
- The Mystery of the Missing Check
A deep-seated accounting discrepancy involving former City Treasurer W. L. Ames leads to calls for a formal investigation and legal action.
- The Bank of Coupeville Collapse
A disgraced bank manager is returned to face justice after his reckless dissipation leads to an $11,000 shortfall.
- The Great City Treasury Looting
As Seattle officials scramble to extradite a disgraced city treasurer, a deeper web of corruption, secret loans, and grand jury investigations emerges.
- City Hall Scandal and the 'Kid's' Crusade
A contentious legal battle over an embezzling city treasurer pulls the Mayor into the line of fire.
- The Doctor Wasn't Who He Said He Was
Found dead along the Northern Pacific tracks near Olympia, Dr. C. S. Smith was unmasked by his own will as S. C. Thompson, an Iowa county treasurer who had fled a defalcation in 1872.
- A Massive Accounting Deficit at City Hall
Former City Treasurer Isaac Parker is found liable for over $11,000 in missing public funds following a years-long legal effort by the city.
- A Shortage Behind the Prison Walls, and a Legislature Out of Time
A joint legislative committee grills the penitentiary directors at Walla Walla over the missing funds of a defaulting official, while senators privately admit the session will end before the truth comes out.
- The Respectable Olympia Doctor Who May Have Been a Missing Iowa Treasurer
After Dr. S. C. Smith died in Olympia, an old army comrade wrote to ask whether the beloved physician was really Dr. S. C. Thompson, who vanished from Leon, Iowa, in 1872.
- The Comptroller Was Right: Seattle's Ex-Treasurer Pays Back $4,017
Willis R. Ames spent two years insisting the city's books were wrong. This week his bondsmen wrote the cheque — and the paper trail runs through a second treasurer who later absconded.
- 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.
- The $14 Hole in the Newsboys’ Treasury
Seattle’s newsboys demanded an accounting from their union treasurer, sang through the chaos, and threatened to take the missing money back out of his jeans.
- King County's Bond Fight Ends With a New Treasurer—and a Demand for an Audit
After J.W. Maple fails to perfect his bond and Dr. Mitten resigns, commissioners appoint chief deputy John Riplinger and promise scrutiny of the treasurer's books.
- Seattle’s 'Reform' Government Promised Clean Streets and Low Taxes. Two Years Later, the Bill Came Due.
A furious 1894 editorial accuses the Democratic city administration of breaking every campaign promise—keeping Whitechapel open, protecting gambling, and cutting day laborers while salaried officials kept their pay.
- The Treasurer’s Bond Had a Hole in It
Seattle’s treasurer-elect filed a $90,000 bond, but wives’ names were penciled in, signatures were missing, and one backer wanted out.
- The Treasurer Who Vanished, Then Wrote Home From Puget Sound
An Iowa county official disappeared in the 1870s. After his death, his family gathered at the Olympia Hotel to settle an estate—and letters revealed a hidden life, a bank failure, and a real-estate boom he hoped would make restitution possible.
- The Party Says Not Guilty—and Cheers the Man It Removed
Seattle Democrats put their scandal-scarred administration on trial at Haake's Hall, buried a First Ward delegate fight, and sent David E. Durie into the mayor's race while J.M. Wolfe got the ovation.