Research the archive
Narrow 22,457 newspaper stories by words, years, place, newspaper and subject. See when and where they ran, then download what you find.
Put a phrase in quotes ("rent strike") or leave a word out with a minus (strike -baseball). Old scans misspell names, so when little is found, near-spellings are offered.
Refine
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1861 | 1 |
| 1864 | 1 |
| 1876 | 5 |
| 1877 | 3 |
| 1878 | 4 |
| 1882 | 1 |
| 1883 | 3 |
| 1884 | 5 |
| 1885 | 7 |
| 1886 | 3 |
| 1887 | 6 |
| 1888 | 6 |
| 1889 | 13 |
| 1890 | 1 |
| 1891 | 8 |
| 1892 | 28 |
| 1893 | 26 |
| 1894 | 6 |
| 1895 | 2 |
| 1899 | 3 |
| 1900 | 1 |
| 1903 | 21 |
| 1904 | 4 |
| 1905 | 1 |
| 1909 | 8 |
| 1912 | 1 |
| 1915 | 1 |
| 1916 | 1 |
| 1917 | 2 |
172 stories matching inmat
- The Poor Farm Inquiry
After an elderly inmate accused his manager of serving poor food, the county commissioners arrived for a surprise lunch inspection.
- Hard Labor on the Hill
As the Seattle county jail hits capacity, the sheriff puts inmates to work clearing brush on the city's hills.
- The Sad State of McNeil Island
A former inmate calls for books to replace the monotony of prison life.
- Prisoners to Raise Game Birds for Benton County
In a state-run program at the Walla Walla penitentiary, inmates are building a game farm to repopulate Chinese pheasants across Washington.
- The Jailbreak Plot That Rocked the County Jail
A notorious gambler and blackmailer led a group of dangerous inmates in a scheme to seize the jailer and escape through the steel tank.
- Brutality Uncovered at the Soldiers' Home
Following an investigation, the state board of control fires a hospital steward accused of subjecting elderly, vulnerable veterans to inhuman conditions.
- Ten Inmates Crawl Through City Jail Roof
A dozen prisoners rip the roof off the city jail, leading to a night of escapes, returns for more whiskey, and public mockery of the facility.
- Narrow Escape from St. Mary’s Inferno
A Kennewick woman survives a harrowing hospital fire in Walla Walla that leveled the historic building.
- Tales of Torture at McNeil Island Penitentiary
A newly released prisoner brings harrowing allegations of medical neglect, forced labor, and death to the attention of Seattle officials.
- Sold at Fifteen, Then Shut Out: A Walla Walla Nurseryman's Daughter Ends Up in the County Poor Farm
Sixty-five, penniless and 'bent and weary,' Alice Hess writes from the Spokane County poor farm asking whether the law can force her wealthy Whitney relatives — a nurseryman, a Big Bend doctor, a sitting legislator — to keep her alive.
- A Week of Tragedy in Pierce County
A string of suicides, murders, and accidents shocks Tacoma as a young student and an asylum patient end their own lives.
- The Great Escape Attempt at the King County Jail
A desperate dig through the ceiling of a Seattle jail cell ends with the sheriff turning fire hoses on the inmates to quell the chaos.
- A Deadly Toast in the Waterfront District
A young woman is found poisoned in a Seattle lodging house after a violent argument with a suitor over her refusal to live with him.
- The Unlikely Redemption of a Prison Inmate
After eighteen months of hard labor, a Seattle convict wins his freedom through an overwhelming petition of support from his community and even the victims he robbed.
- The Struggle for a Child in a Tacoma Tenderloin
A teenage girl’s infant becomes the center of a dispute among the inmates of a red-light district boarding house.
- Scandal at the Orting Soldiers' Home
The commandant of the state home for veterans faces a morals charge brought by an inmate.
- A Drunk Man, Two Women, and a $170 Lawsuit Against a Tacoma Saloon
F. E. Ellison says two women working at the Globe saloon-hotel rolled him while he was drunk. The proprietor says he is not responsible.
- Police Raid Hidden 'Fan Tan' Parlor
Officers storm a fortified gambling den in an alley between Yesler and Washington, arresting eighteen men in a late-night sweep.
- The Looming Crisis at the State Penitentiary
Washington's state prison faces overcrowding and inadequate facilities as the inmate population outpaces projections, forcing guards to rent rooms in town.
- Police Raids Falter in Jury Trials
A string of acquittals for women charged with running disorderly houses highlights the gap between police ambition and courtroom evidence.
- Delirium Tremens in the City Jail
A man suffering from severe alcohol withdrawal sparks a violent disturbance at the city jail.
- Orting’s New Soldiers’ Home Is Running on 47 Cents a Day
Forty-six veterans—including a father who lost three sons at Antietam—are already living at the state’s new home, which needs a federal per-resident allowance and a library.
- The Condemned Murderer Who Ran the Jailhouse Court
Thomas Blanck, awaiting execution for murder, was unanimously elected to preside over the county jail's prisoner-run tribunal—complete with fines, lashes, and a Bible in his cell.
- Tragic Accident on the Tracks at Wilkerson
A deaf woman, known as an inmate of a 'disreputable house,' is struck and killed by a runaway box car while walking on the railroad tracks.
- The Price of Public Health in 1892
A saloon owner sues the City of Seattle after a smallpox quarantine destroys his business and stock.
Also about this, in other words
- An Infernal Machine on the Tracks
A dangerous, home-made bomb was discovered on the streetcar tracks in Seattle, chilling a city already tense from labor agitation.