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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 2 |
| 1860 | 1 |
| 1861 | 2 |
| 1862 | 1 |
| 1863 | 1 |
| 1864 | 1 |
| 1865 | 1 |
| 1871 | 1 |
| 1872 | 7 |
| 1876 | 15 |
| 1877 | 37 |
| 1878 | 25 |
| 1879 | 2 |
| 1880 | 14 |
| 1882 | 3 |
| 1883 | 18 |
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| 1885 | 34 |
| 1886 | 11 |
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| 1889 | 39 |
| 1890 | 11 |
| 1891 | 55 |
| 1892 | 133 |
| 1893 | 147 |
| 1894 | 156 |
| 1895 | 212 |
| 1897 | 1 |
| 1898 | 7 |
| 1899 | 18 |
| 1900 | 7 |
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| 1903 | 90 |
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| 1917 | 14 |
| 1923 | 4 |
| 1924 | 11 |
| 1925 | 5 |
1,315 stories matching file
- The Land Grab That Built Tacoma: How the Northern Pacific Railroad Stole Millions of Acres
A furious editorial in the Seattle Star exposes the Northern Pacific Railroad’s scheme to misappropriate public lands for a private coal line, arguing that the company is using legal loopholes to steal from settlers in King and Snohomish counties.
- The State Tried to Plat Their Islands
Brawley and Kinnear went to court to stop a state tide-land plat from turning 140 acres of Elliott Bay into lots and streets.
- The Morning the Land Office Doors Nearly Came Off Their Hinges
Dozens of men stormed the Olympia land office at 9 a.m. to file on a timber township worth a fortune — but the filings were a railroad's opening move in a legal war over the public domain.
- The Lake Washington Land Fight That Turned on a Cabin, a Railroad Claim, and 'Crazy' Miller
A decade-long homestead contest ends with William L. Miller keeping first claim—if he or his guardian can prove it within 90 days. His rival says the cabin was never really a home.
- The Tide Land Freeze: Ballard’s Waterfront Plats Go to Court
A judge restrains appraisers from filing supplemental tide-land plats as landowners, the state land commission and the county auditor fight over who controls the shore.
- Railroad Land Grab Defeated
A Supreme Court ruling halts the Northern Pacific Railroad's attempt to claim homesteaded lands in King and Yakima counties.
- Seattle's Waterfront Was Up for Grabs — and Everyone Filed a Claim
With the tide-land plats at last filed, hundreds of buyers have staked overlapping claims across Elliott Bay, and officials are predicting years of litigation over who really owns the shore.
- The Log-Jam Monopoly: Who Controls a Western Washington River?
When Joseph Doyle’s logs were trapped inside a private boom company’s platted stretch of the Skokomish River, he sued—and put the whole question of river monopolies and public waterways on trial in Shelton.
- The Great Timber Land Swindle
A Seattle man is held on $300 bail after a witness confessed to filing multiple fraudulent land claims using fake names.
- The Land Office Libel Suit
A North Yakima man faces criminal charges after accusing a former land register of orchestrating a fraudulent land claim.
- Speculation and Contests Arise Over Columbia River Sands
Long-neglected riverbank lands near the Snake River junction are suddenly subject to legal contests as settlers rush to file desert land claims.
- The Prosecutor Who Prosecuted Himself: How Aberdeen’s DA Ignored a White Mob’s Attack on Chinese Residents
When a mob drove Aberdeen’s Chinese community out of town and stole $550, the county’s prosecuting attorney charged the victims with libel instead of the perpetrators—sparking a furious editorial defense of civil rights in 1890.
- Saving the Archives from the Great Fire
Recalling the 1889 Great Seattle Fire, an employee recounts his desperate race to save the newspaper's historical files from the flames.
- The End of the Railroad Land Grab
A trio of government decisions finally ends the Northern Pacific's long-standing practice of seizing settler homes in Washington Territory.
- The High-Stakes Fight for Sunnyside Land
A legal battle over valuable desert land reveals a history of failed filings, rejected appeals, and government corruption in the Sunnyside district.
- 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.
- The 3,249-Acre Map That Laid Out Seattle’s Waterfront
In 1895, King County appraisers filed the first full plat of Seattle’s tide lands—reserving broad rail avenues, harbor blocks and a street grid that still shadows the modern waterfront.
- King County's Treasurer Missed His Bond Deadline. Then the Fight Began.
Elected treasurer Maple failed to file a legally sufficient bond by January 14, prompting a substitute appointment and a sharp editorial fight over forfeiture, sureties and the public's right to an investigation.
- The Mayor Fires Two Police Commissioners to Keep Blackchapel Shut
In a single day, Mayor Phelps removed two police commissioners, accused them of conspiring to protect a red-light district and oust Chief Rogers, and installed replacements before the House of Delegates could slow him down.
- The Decades-Long Battle for the McAleer Tract Ends in Court
After years of tangled legal claims, Judge Hanford rules against the McAleer heirs, clearing the way for new development on a large, vacant stretch of land once visible from the old Lake Washington cable cars.
- The Great Timber Land Heist
Federal investigators uncover a widespread scheme where syndicates used ‘fictitious names’ and paid off desperate men to seize Washington’s valuable timber lands.
- The Fight for Point Roberts’ Shoreline
A powerful fishing association is accused of manipulating land filings to secure a monopoly on the valuable tide lands, pushing out local competitors.
- The State Claims the Cedar River Timber
A last-minute state filing on timber lands near Cedar Lake leaves dozens of hopeful homesteaders empty-handed.
- The Diamond Palace Jeweler Who Vanished With the Stock
Simon Rumpf’s 'Diamond Palace' is placed in receivership after creditors allege he conspired to transfer his stock and then disappeared.
- The River That Would Light Seattle: Snoqualmie Falls Power Company Incorporated
In January 1893, a $2 million company filed articles to harness Snoqualmie Falls and wire electricity to Seattle—an early bet that turned a waterfall into urban power.
Also about this, in other words
- A Final, Sudden Act
A Tacoma resident died suddenly while in the act of signing his last will and testament, which was noted for its extreme brevity.
- A Bank President’s Arrest Leads to a Habeas Corpus Fight
Dr. W. P. Book, former president of the failed Aberdeen bank, is arrested in Seattle and released on $2,000 bond while his lawyers challenge the case.
- A Street Fight Over a Package of Meat
A man attempted to steal a package of meat off the steps of the Golden Gate building, only to face a vigorous drubbing from his victim.
- A Thief in the Night at the Bremer Home
A burglary attempt leaves a family home ransacked, leading to a warning for Olympia's citizens.
- The 'Dodo' in the Account Book
A wife catches her husband in a suspicious expense record, leading to a domestic misunderstanding over slang.
- The Hidden Mortgage Loophole
A new judicial ruling surprises attorneys and lenders by declaring that assigned mortgages do not need to be filed on record.
- The Steamer Glide Theft
A logger loses $400 in cash while traveling to Seattle, but the legal quandaries of searching passengers on a steamer lead to an awkward stalemate.
- Father Wades Through Fire to Save Five Children
A local fisherman braves a blazing home in Seattle to rescue his sleeping children as the kitchen collapses in flames.