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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 3 |
| 1860 | 1 |
| 1861 | 3 |
| 1862 | 3 |
| 1863 | 1 |
| 1872 | 8 |
| 1876 | 11 |
| 1877 | 6 |
| 1878 | 2 |
| 1880 | 1 |
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| 1884 | 5 |
| 1885 | 7 |
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| 1887 | 6 |
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| 1889 | 12 |
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| 1891 | 11 |
| 1892 | 26 |
| 1893 | 21 |
| 1894 | 36 |
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| 1898 | 3 |
| 1899 | 7 |
| 1902 | 1 |
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271 stories matching donat
- Seattle’s Yesler Donation Claim Goes on the Auction Block
An administrator petitions to carve 86 lots out of Sarah B. Yesler’s donation claim to settle an estate drowning in debt and taxes.
- A Pioneer's 40-Year Fight for Land the Indian Wars Took
Isaiah W. Bryant's 1895 petition traced how he fled his White River donation claim during the 1855-56 war, lost his savings, and waited decades for the land office to act.
- The Dollar Deed: How a Husband’s ‘Gift’ to His Wife Cost Him His Land Claim
In a dispute over who settled first on public land, the Register of the Olympia Land Office ruled that W.S. Fish could not claim priority because he had technically transferred his donation claim to his wife for just one dollar.
- The Bid to Bring Whitworth College to Seattle
A committee from the Chamber of Commerce scrambled to secure land donations in 1899 to woo Whitworth College to relocate, pitting Seattle neighborhoods against Tacoma’s industrial waterfront.
- The Donation Claim That Ended in Murder—and Took Decades to Settle
A federal land ruling near Sumner untangles decades of inheritance, foreclosure, and a killing tied to a donation claim first filed in 1853.
- A Landmark Ruling for Donation Land Claims
The federal government establishes a precedent for canceling land claims after a Puyallup Valley settler failed to live on his property.
- Will Walla Walla Lose a Noble Charity?
A critical donation is needed to secure the Stubblefield Home, but local leaders are debating who should foot the bill.
- Council Spars Over Land for Stubblefield Home
Walla Walla's city council debates a contentious land donation to secure a charitable legacy amid pressure from rival town Pendleton.
- The Stubblefield Estate Gift
Walla Walla business leaders scramble to close the funding gap to secure the Stubblefield home.
- The Hidden Stakes in Seattle's Founding
A legal dispute over Dr. David Maynard’s 640-acre donation claim reveals the overlooked property rights of his late wife, Lydia A. Maynard.
- Green Lake Builds a Temperance Hall Out of Cordwood and Muscle
In less than two months, the brothers of Good Templars Lodge No. 200 raise a two-story hall at Green Lake with donated lots and lumber bought with 'legal tender' issued from the mint of muscle.
- Olympia’s Capitol Fight: Donate the Land or Lose the Statehouse
A late-night Senate debate over the new state capitol turned on eleven acres, a $150,000 land scheme and whether Olympia should pay to keep the building—before the bill passed to applause.
- The Evangelist’s Plea: Saving Seattle’s 'Fallen Women' with a House of Refuge
Rev. Crittenton packs the Armory to raise funds for a Florence Crittenton Mission, exposing the grim economics of prostitution and the desperate need for a local shelter.
- The Great Seattle Land Grab: How the Maynard Donation Claim Stalled City Growth
A legal dispute over the Catherine Maynard Donation Land Claim reveals the messy, high-stakes battle for ownership of Seattle’s central waterfront in the late 19th century.
- Seattle's Audacious Bid for a Fresh-Water Harbor
In 1890, boosters promised that a ship canal from Lake Washington to Puget Sound would cut docking costs, defeat wood-boring teredo worms, and hand Seattle the world's cheapest harbor.
- The Unemployed Built a Co-op That Served 10,000 Meals in 34 Days
In the winter of 1894-95, 130 jobless Seattleites pooled donations and odd jobs into the Industrial Co-operative Society—and reported a $52.10 balance.
- A Missing Lawyer, a $350 Deed, and the North Olympia Land Scheme
With Attorney D. P. Ballard absent, Olympia lawyers are tracing suspicious transfers in a platted addition—land already sold to dozens of owners, now used as security for a $4,000 mortgage.
- A Christmas Auction That Fell Short—and a Mother Sent Home
Donations expected to bring $600 fetch only $158.40, but the Bureau of Associated Charities still outfits 100 families and buys a destitute mother a ticket to Kansas City.
- Ballard’s Big Bid for the Great Northern
A town of 200 citizens gathers to discuss a high-stakes proposal to bring the railway's car shops to their shores.
- The New Rail Connection to Moscow
A rail expansion project promises a 'magnificent boom' for the towns of Pullman and Moscow, fueled by land donations and rapid construction.
- County Funds Blocked for Stubblefield Charity
A legal opinion warns that Walla Walla County cannot donate public tax dollars to a private, non-controlled, multi-state charitable trust.
- The Struggle to Become a Citizen and a Tradesman
A legislator argues that the Donation Land Law is forcing tradesmen into failed farming careers, harming the region's economy.
- The Rapid Rise of the Kennewick Valley Club
Valley farmers organize, design, and break ground on a new clubhouse in less than two weeks, planning to complete the project with donated labor.
- A Free Kindergarten Wants the Old South School—and the City's Horses Out
The Free Kindergarten Association asks for the old South School building, now the city stables, promising donated labor and materials—but the school board cannot muster a quorum to answer.
- The Christmas Dinner That Filled a Seattle Hall With 275 Children
At the Salvation Army barracks, donated roast beef, candy bags and two tinsel trees gave waterfront and hillside children a holiday feast in 1893.