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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1862 | 1 |
| 1876 | 4 |
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| 1887 | 5 |
| 1888 | 3 |
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91 stories matching desk
- The 'Immortal Cinch': Aberdeen's Schools Signed Away a Year of Chairs
In March 1892 the directors of Chehalis County's school district No. 5 promised to buy every desk and seat they would need for a full year from one Seattle furniture firm at prices that could never come down. The local editor read the contract and asked the one question nobody had answered: what did the district get in return?
- Tacoma’s Growing Pains: A New City Government Takes Root
Freshly inaugurated in 1887, Mayor Tawse calls for unity as the growing city navigates a contentious municipal transition and plans a massive Fourth of July celebration.
- The Library Hatchet Prank
An unknown intruder bypassed the Kennewick public library's security, but left with nothing to show for it.
- The Land Locators Who Left Town on a Fraudulent Fortune
A band of swindlers targeting Seattle settlers skipped town, leaving behind forged documents and a trail of broken promises that the law couldn't quite reach.
- The Bank Clerk Who Slapped the Boss
Josie Holmes, a local bank clerk, finds herself in jail for her role in a financial scandal, but her reputation in Seattle remains that of an indomitable figure who refused to bow to her corrupt employer.
- Suspicious Blaze Destroys Inglewood Schoolhouse
A rural schoolhouse on the east side of Lake Sammamish is lost to a fire that trustees suspect was deliberately set.
- The Teacher Who Saved the Schoolhouse
A quick-thinking teacher organized students into a bucket brigade to save a burning schoolhouse at Hughes' mill.
- The Boy Who Tried to Buy His Mother’s Freedom
When his mother was jailed for a minor offense, a seven-year-old Seattle boy arrived at the police station with two dollars and a heart-wrenching plea to take her place in the cell.
- The Indestructible Old Depot
Staff at the Northern Pacific depot continued their work unbothered even as a small fire broke out in their lunch counter.
- The Clerk Who Kept Her Marriage a Secret
A county auditor's office employee pulls off a stealthy holiday elopement, returning to her desk as a married woman without tipping off her colleagues.
- The Schoolhouse Lessons of Old Seattle
A reflection on the struggles of the country schoolmaster and the long-lost, innocent games of childhood in pioneer-era Washington.
- The Territorial Legislature Deadlocked
In early December 1862, Olympia's legislative session began in disarray, with power struggles over credentials and procedural maneuvering stalling the body's organization.
- A Father’s Hardship and the Telegram That Changed Everything
An overworked, weary business man contemplates his supposed failures until a birthday message from his daughter provides a new perspective on success.
- The Political Tug-of-War Over the Seattle Land Office
Intrigue in the Democratic party as factions struggle to relocate the federal land office from Seattle to Everett.
- The Crumbling Capitol Gets a Patch-Up
As legislators prepare for the 1893 session, the barn-like structure in Olympia receives a new roof and a desperately needed expansion.
- The Day the Students Dethroned Their Teacher
A classroom revolt in Waitsburg turns physical, leaving a respected educator humiliated and the school district in search of leadership.
- The Deaf-Mute’s Heartbreak: A Love Letter Written in Silence
When his fiancée left him for another man, a silent young man from Memphis found his voice through ink, delivering a scathing indictment of his rival to a Seattle city editor.
- A High-Stakes Land Battle in Seattle
Secretary Noble intervenes in a hundred-thousand-dollar timber land dispute involving Michigan General R.A. Alger.
- The Battle for the County Clerk's Desk
A public spat between M. C. Belle and W. S. Jenkins over whether the county clerk’s office is a bloated expense or a manageable public service.
- When the County Paid for Pauper Burials and Jailhouse Blankets
A look at the grim line items of Seattle's 1876 county budget reveals the mundane, often tragic, administrative costs of governing a frontier territory.
- The Ghost Town of Gray's Harbor City
An abandoned boom-town remains standing in silence, a monument to the reckless real estate speculation of the era.
- The $10,000 Practical Joke on Representative Judson
Legislators in Olympia pull a prank by forging a bill in the name of an unsuspecting Representative, only to have it officially recorded in the House journal.
- The School-Land Grab Bellingham Fought at the Governor's Desk
Protests flood the governor against a bill that would hand a valuable Bellingham Bay school section to the Dealy and Yostkins heirs — and leave the state with nearly worthless lieu land.
- Counterfeit Case Ends in Ink-Stained Chaos
A woman facing counterfeit charges turns a Tacoma courtroom into a battlefield, pelting the Secret Service chief with office supplies.
- The Waterfront Heist and the Chief’s Clever Ruse
A notorious 'beach-comber' terrorized Beacon Hill and Fremont, hiding stolen silverware in the mud under a dock until a detective’s staged ruse cracked the case.