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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1858 | 1 |
| 1872 | 2 |
| 1876 | 1 |
| 1877 | 4 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1886 | 1 |
| 1891 | 1 |
| 1892 | 1 |
| 1894 | 4 |
16 stories matching divest
- The Land Grab That Stalled Seattle’s Growth
A local editorial warns that the Northern Pacific Railroad’s hoarding of millions of acres is strangling settlement and development in Washington Territory.
- The Forgotten Wife at the Center of Seattle
Dr. David Maynard’s 1852 donation land claim, which comprises much of downtown Seattle, is tied up in a legal crisis over the validity of his divorce and the arrival of his first wife, Lydia A. Maynard.
- The Forgotten Wife of Seattle: Dr. Maynard’s Double Life
A landmark land dispute in 1872 reveals how the territorial government attempted to erase the existence of Dr. David S. Maynard's first wife, Lydia, to secure a donation claim for his second family.
- The Checkerboard Trap: How the Northern Pacific Railroad Hoarded Washington’s Land
An editorial in The Daily Intelligencer exposes how the railroad company used federal land grants to block settlers from claiming homesteads, leaving thousands of acres in legal limbo and stalling the growth of Seattle and Tacoma.
- The Great Land Grab: Tacoma Citizens Unite Against Northern Pacific’s ‘Squatter’ Tactics
In a packed hall at Reinig’s Hall, leading citizens condemn the railroad’s seizure of public lands and its attempt to claim hundreds of thousands of acres for a coal line that will never be built.
- The $100,000 Estate and the Indian Marriage That Seattle Forgot
A daughter claiming the estate of pioneer Franklin Mathias says her parents were married by Indian custom in 1867. A federal judge must decide whether that marriage—and her legitimacy—counts.
- The Great Canal Scheme Blocked
A judge strikes down a law that would have allowed private contractors to dig the Lake Washington canal and seize tide lands for profit.
- King County Commissioners Billed Taxpayers for 25,943 Miles—More Than the Earth's Circumference
A letter to the editor by F. F. Ames accuses the King County board of padding mileage, charging for trips to Olympia, and paying an unauthorized colleague from county funds—violating state law.
- The Railroad's Land Grab: How Northern Pacific Hoarded Snohomish’s Future
A local resident exposes the legal loopholes allowing the railroad to retain millions of acres in Western Washington, arguing that this concentrated ownership is strangling settlement and keeping land prices artificially high.
- The Mayor Fires a Police Commissioner to Save His Chief
Seattle's mayor removes John G. Niggle from the police board, accusing him of protecting prostitution and conspiring to oust Chief Rogers — then demands that two more commissioners resign on the spot.
- 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.
- The Bachelor's Ruse: A Victorian Love Game in Seattle
A lonely Seattle bachelor attempts to 'test' his ward’s character through a series of elaborate, scholarly letters, only to find himself the one being studied.
- The Mystery of the Man on Brannan Place
A brutal murder discovery in Seattle sends a shockwave through the city after a dock worker is found with his pockets turned inside out.
- The Maniac at the Opal Saloon
A hotel runner causes chaos after barricading himself inside a Third Street bar.
- A Miraculous Escape on Puget Sound: Two Steamers Collide Near Steilacoom
The steamer Northerner and a second vessel met suddenly on the water in October 1858, crushing the little steamer’s bow and nearly sending its captain into the Sound.
- A Frontier Exit Strategy
As one pioneer prepares to leave Snohomish for the East, his massive land divestment offers a snapshot of the region's early agricultural and industrial aspirations.
Also about this, in other words
- Another Attempt to Raise the Sunken Andelana
The Neptune Salvage Company is employing a new invention—a 'diving cage'—in a high-stakes effort to recover a ship that sank near the Puyallup River in 1899.
- The Deepest Diver's Eviction Dispute
A local court hears a malicious mischief charge against those who cleared out the home of a world-famous diver.
- The Salvage Diver Threatens Dynamite in Seattle Harbor
A wreckage contractor, locked in a legal battle over a sunken steamer, vows to use explosives to clear the waterway despite an injunction.
- Diver Paralyzed After Deep-Sea Shift
A professional diver working to clear the Seattle harbor is left paralyzed from the shoulders down after repeated descents.
- The End of the Black Diamond Dive
King County commissioners shutter a notorious dance house after neighbors provide damaging testimony about the resort's conduct.
- The Salvage Ship That Came to Raise Puget Sound’s Sunken Wrecks
A new wrecking schooner arrived in Seattle with a rubber-suited diver, hydraulic jacks and a plan to lift the sunken Mississippi and Warhawk from the Sound.