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112 stories matching dirt
- The Wild West of Seattle Grading
In the late 1880s, Seattle’s haphazard street construction and 'dirt-moving' contractors left the city a muddy, confusing, and financially murky landscape for residents and letter carriers alike.
- The Trench That Became a Grave
Two workmen narrowly survive a catastrophic sewer trench collapse on Eighth and Marion, saved only by the quick, heroic actions of their fellow laborers.
- The Boy Who Vanished Into the Dirt
A contractor’s chilling account of a six-year-old who fell into an open trench and was buried alive—only to be dug out just in time.
- The City Moves Dirt: Tacoma’s Infrastructure Expansion
Crews begin work on a significant new sluicing line to clear debris from the U.P. tunnel, doubling down on civil works to connect the city grid.
- The Case for Overalls and Mud
A mother asks for fashion advice for her nine-year-old, prompting a spirited editorial defense of childhood liberty and dirt-stained play.
- The Fight for Point Defiance
A concerned citizen accuses park superintendent Nelson Bennett of using 'railroad and not park ideas' to destroy the natural beauty of Point Defiance.
- Tragedy at the N.P. Depot
An unidentified man is struck and killed by a dirt-hauling freight engine near the Northern Pacific depot.
- Kennewick's Street Improvement Fiasco
After building roads with dirt and sand over oiled gravel, the City Council calls in an expert to fix the crumbling infrastructure.
- A New Industry for Seattle
Local tannery entrepreneurs plan a wool-scouring plant to capitalize on the Pacific Northwest's 'finest water' and slash shipping costs.
- The Great Seattle Scrub-Down
Facing a growing crisis of 'filth, dirt and garbage,' the City of Seattle threatens strict enforcement of sanitation ordinances to clean up the heart of downtown.
- The Town's Stagnant Puddles
Ritzville's streets are so poorly graded that rainwater collects in unhealthy, persistent pools, raising concerns for public sanitation.
- The Great Mud Puddle: Seattle’s Drainage Nightmare
A massive sinkhole at the corner of Main and Colfax streets has turned a vital thoroughfare into a swamp, threatening the city's infrastructure and hygiene.
- Gold in the Wenatchee, but the Miners Were Told to Leave
Pearson's party returns to Steilacoom after Indians warn them off the new gold fields; a handful of dirt shows a dollar's worth of gold.
- The Great Seattle Street-Cleaning Decree
A desperate 1888 city ordinance threatens property owners with fines if they fail to scrub the filth from their sidewalk frontages.
- The City’s First Big Job: Who Will Build Madison Street?
Seattle Mayor Thomas D. Sealth issues a call for contractors to pave the city's most important new artery, signaling a shift from dirt trails to urban infrastructure.
- Inspectors Went Looking for Faults and Found a Model Railroad
State railway commissioners ride the new Idaho & Washington Northern out of Newport expecting to file complaints, and come home praising everything down to the telephone box at every switch.
- A Landslide Buries the Great Northern’s Steam Shovel at the Falls
A sudden slide knocks the big iron machine out of commission; a wrecker from Hillyard hauls it free for repairs.
- The Anti-Chinese Laundry Campaign
Local newspaper editors in 1888 openly called for the displacement of Chinese laundry workers, framing their exclusion as a 'great need' for the town.
- Lumber Manager Halts Harbor Dumping With Injunction
An injunction suit against jetty contractors highlights the conflict over river dumping in Grays Harbor.
- The Great Sluicing Failure
A municipal engineering project designed to clear the Union Pacific tunnel construction site ends in a clogged pipe and embarrassing failure.
- The Unwelcome Discovery at the Foundry
While excavating for a new skeleton for the foundry, workmen unearthed a human skull and long bones, a grim reminder of history beneath Seattle's industrial soil.
- The Hidden River Beneath University Street
When Seattle’s early engineers paved over a local creek, nature fought back during the autumn rains.
- A $100 Bribe and a Lifetime Pass: Seattle's Streetcar Scandal Erupts in the Council Chamber
Alderman J. Eugene Jordan accuses Union Trunk Line president K. F. Wittier of trying to buy his silence—then the board turns on itself.
- Fatal Landslide Near Richmond Beach
A foreman is buried alive after returning to a construction site to retrieve his coat as the earth gives way.
- Trapped in the Mine: A Paralyzed Miner Sues for Damages
After a cave-in at the Seattle Coal and Iron Company mine, Victor Anderson seeks justice for his life-altering injuries.
Also about this, in other words
- Mud, Drains, and Municipal Neglect
With city infrastructure in disarray, a local editor calls for a better approach to grading, drainage, and basic sidewalk maintenance.
- Walla Walla Residents Demand Relief From Muddy Streets
An editorial calls for a city street-cleaning department and paved or graveled roads to address months of muddy, impassable streets.