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1. A Bank President Accused of Looting His Own Vault

   Deputy Internal Revenue Collector James P. Gleason says he bought $10,000 in Commercial National Bank stock on promises that turned out to be worthless—and that H. W. Wheeler used a mortgage company to hide the assets.

   Mar 27, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSuperior Court of Washington for King County, SeattleFollow the Money

2. Blacklisted on the Waterfront: Northern Pacific Punishes Strike Leaders

   After the 1894 railroad strike, a Northern Pacific superintendent admits the company will not rehire “strike leaders or agitators” — and one ex-switchman says the boycott follows him even to a steamship wharf.

   Aug 28, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerTacoma, Pierce CountyWork & Pay

3. The Horse Whisperer of Armory Hall

   Professor O. R. Gleason packs the Armory with his controversial, high-stakes horse-taming exhibitions.

   Feb 10, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyStrange But True

4. The Income Tax Comes to Seattle: Men of Means Ordered to Report

   Deputy Collector S. P. Gleason is preparing to summon about 100 Seattle-area individuals and corporations for sworn income returns under the new federal tax.

   Jan 30, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

5. Homeowner Battles City Over Street Ditch

   W. H. Gleason sues the City of Seattle for $1,000, claiming a city-sanctioned ditch blocked access to his Washington Street rentals.

   Dec 6, 1892The Seattle Post-IntelligencerWashington Street, Seattle, King CountyBoom & Bust

6. Brawls Erupt Outside a Pioneer Square Billiard Hall

   A night of violence in Seattle’s waterfront district leads to a messenger boy and a laborer fighting on the sidewalk.

   Apr 24, 1893The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyNightlife

7. Balloted Until Dawn: How Seattle Democrats Finally Picked a County Chairman

   A King County Democratic committee deadlocks past 3 a.m., reconvenes, and crowns John Collins after midnight — then the losers promise the fight is far from over.

   Aug 31, 1892The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

8. The Library Was Closed Because the Landlord Wouldn't Turn Up the Heat

   In 1895, Seattle's public library shut its doors over a $25 balance, unpaid rent, and a landlord who promised warmth 'in the spring.' City Council considered a rescue.

   Mar 5, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

9. The Brutal Efficiency of the Newsboy's Union

   When the newsboys couldn't keep order during their meeting on Yesler Wharf, the president and his officers resorted to canes to restore discipline.

   Feb 17, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyWork & Pay · Strange But True

10. A Penny War on Second Avenue: Newsboys Arrested After a Boycott

    Two newsboys were charged with stealing from a Cherry Street news stand after a fight over the retail price of the weekly World.

    Mar 6, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyWork & Pay

11. The Ward Clubs Revolt Over Delegate Math

    Republican ward clubs across Seattle split over how county convention delegates were apportioned—and who got to name the primary judges.

    Aug 11, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

12. Squatter Killed in Massive Railroad Slide

    A catastrophic hillside failure near Monroe Street buries part of a shantytown; a local man is missing and presumed dead.

    Mar 17, 1916White Bluffs SpokesmanMonroe Street, Spokane, Spokane CountyHousing & Rent · Disasters

13. Pay for a Job That Wasn't There: Seattle's Employment-Agency Scam

    A city council committee heard workers describe paying fees to G.W. Crane's employment office and arriving to find no jobs, with agents accused of splitting fees with contractors.

    Aug 11, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyWork & Pay

14. City Council Wrestles a 50-Year Streetcar Franchise Into Shape

    A committee debate over percentages of gross earnings reveals how Seattle gave away its transit future one clause at a time.

    May 19, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyFollow the Money · Boom & Bust · City Hall

15. The City Hall Shake-Up: Seattle's 1885 Anti-Corruption Campaign

    Tensions boiled over at the Seattle Municipal Convention as delegates rallied to purge city leadership and demand a stricter, reform-minded administration for the growing territory.

    Jul 1, 1885Seattle Daily Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

16. City Hall Showdown: Council and Reformers Clash Over Charter Revision

    A heated joint meeting of the city council and civic organizations debates whether to call a special election for a new city charter, with accusations of bullying and claims of wasted taxpayer money.

    Mar 14, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle City Hall, Seattle, King CountyCity Hall

17. The Rent Was Due: A 15-Year Lease and a $3,886 Bill

    Sarah Woodward, executor of Henry S. Woodward’s estate, sued Gustave Winehill over a Maynard’s Plat lease—asking for back rent, double rent and possession of the property.

    Feb 16, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyHousing & Rent

18. The Saloon Men Who Saved a Logger from a Pauper's Grave

    When Frank Johnson died at the county farm, his old friend Tommy Jones called on Seattle's saloon keepers to give him a proper burial in Lake View.

    Mar 30, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyNightlife

19. Bushwhackers in the Puyallup Woods: How the Pullman Strike Became a Criminal Manhunt

    A federal grand jury indicts a Northern Pacific clerk for threatening to draw locomotive fires, while Sheriff Matthews finds rifles and a shotgun used to ambush passenger trains near the Puyallup reservation.

    Jul 13, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerPuyallup reservation, Tacoma, Pierce CountyWork & Pay · True Crime

20. The City of Vancouver Helps Seattle Rebuild

    A neighboring city responds to Seattle's devastating fire with a generous donation of $500.

    Jul 18, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall · Disasters

21. The Opium Smuggling Ring of Pike Street

    A failed nurseryman and a former grocer are arrested in a desperate scheme to smuggle opium in Seattle, orchestrated by a local 'fast young man.'

    Jan 29, 1892The Seattle Post-IntelligencerPike Street & 3rd Avenue, Seattle, King CountyTrue Crime

22. A Variety Theatre, a Bundle of Testimonials, and the Preachers Who Wanted It Shut

    Seattle's theatrical impresario John Considine fights for a Spokane theatre license against a gallery full of clergymen — and answers them with a who's-who of Seattle's leading names vouching for his honor.

    Jan 25, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSpokane, Spokane CountyCity Hall · Nightlife

23. Seattle to Ottawa: Hands Off Alaska

    The Chamber of Commerce refused arbitration over Britain's boundary claims, warning that Canada was trying to take Alaska's harbors and the young city's northern trade.

    Apr 4, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyFollow the Money

24. The $14 Hole in the Newsboys’ Treasury

    Seattle’s newsboys demanded an accounting from their union treasurer, sang through the chaos, and threatened to take the missing money back out of his jeans.

    Mar 4, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyWork & Pay · Scandal

25. Candy, Land Claims and a 'Confidence Man': Arlington's Commissioner Hits Back

    George Morrell denies stealing ginger snaps and swindling settlers—then accuses his accuser of running an extortion racket with a Seattle police escort.

    Mar 9, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerArlington, Snohomish CountyCity Hall · Scandal

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