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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1859 | 1 |
| 1862 | 6 |
| 1872 | 1 |
| 1876 | 14 |
| 1877 | 7 |
| 1878 | 4 |
| 1880 | 1 |
| 1883 | 11 |
| 1884 | 6 |
| 1885 | 22 |
| 1886 | 8 |
| 1887 | 4 |
| 1888 | 3 |
| 1889 | 19 |
| 1890 | 3 |
| 1891 | 18 |
| 1892 | 43 |
| 1893 | 38 |
| 1894 | 46 |
| 1895 | 38 |
| 1898 | 3 |
| 1899 | 5 |
| 1900 | 1 |
| 1903 | 37 |
| 1904 | 35 |
| 1905 | 1 |
| 1907 | 2 |
| 1908 | 6 |
| 1909 | 50 |
| 1910 | 6 |
| 1911 | 4 |
| 1912 | 2 |
| 1914 | 5 |
| 1915 | 2 |
| 1916 | 5 |
| 1917 | 5 |
| 1923 | 3 |
| 1924 | 5 |
| 1925 | 2 |
472 stories matching licens
- The Price of a Circus: Seattle Council Fights Over 'Rubbing It All' for Big Top
In 1903, the City Council clashed over licensing fees for Ringling Bros., with one councilman arguing that theatrical companies already take enough money from the public.
- The License Law: Who Gets to Drink in Snohomish?
A new interpretation of the Territory's temperance laws gives local boards sweeping power to deny liquor licenses based on 'moral character,' effectively letting neighbors veto their neighbors' businesses.
- The Price of Vice: Tacoma’s License Inspector Admits Licensing Dives for Revenue
License Inspector John Glen defends the city's practice of taxing illicit saloons to fill the salary fund, drawing a sharp rebuke from the council's own internal contradictions.
- The High-License Gamble: Seattle’s 1886 Liquor War
Business owners threaten to shutter their doors in a high-stakes protest against the city’s new, aggressive liquor licensing ordinances.
- The Saloon at the Race Track
A legal battle over liquor licenses in the Duwamish precinct reveals the limits of civic power when faced with the relentless machinery of the law.
- Spokane City Council Cracks Down on 'Box' Saloons
In a move against the private partitioned rooms often associated with vice, the city council refuses to renew liquor licenses for establishments keeping doors on their booths.
- City Council Denies Liquor License to Infamous Proprietor
A contentious debate erupts over an application to open a saloon on Jackson Street, fueled by community protests and charges of operating a house of prostitution.
- The High License Battle
As Seattle debates the future of the liquor trade, the city's editorial voice warns that failing to support 'high license' regulation will only invite full prohibition.
- The Battle for the Bottle in White River Valley
A local saloon keeper’s bid for a liquor license sparks a standoff with temperance-minded residents and sets the stage for a landmark court battle.
- Tacoma Cracks Down on Gambling and Licensing
The city council pushes for reform by replacing a compromised license inspector and moving to suppress gambling.
- Seattle's Saloon Keepers Face the 'High License' Squeeze
As 1885 begins, the city cracks down on liquor sellers, leaving many owners struggling to pay their bonds—and prompting some to consider an honest day's work instead.
- The $250 Purse Nobody Could Spend
Walla Walla saloonkeepers pooled money to buy a friendly license ordinance. Then the councilman they thought was theirs voted the wrong way.
- Clark County's Country Districts Will Vote the Saloon Up or Down
A local-option petition puts license-or-no-license on the November ballot outside the incorporated towns—where only Battle Ground has a saloon.
- The Saloonkeeper's Legal Loophole
A Seattle business owner successfully challenged city regulators by arguing that a valid, unexpired license remains binding even after moving to a new storefront.
- The High License Debate
Cities across the Pacific Northwest are raising liquor license fees to curb the influence of 'low dens' and corrupt establishments.
- The Marriage License Court Battle
A young couple defeats parental interference in the local courts.
- Bremerton Saloon Owners Challenge City Hall
After the city council unilaterally revoked liquor licenses, local tavern keepers prepare to sue the town for damages.
- A Dry County, a Thirsty Town, and the January 1st Loophole
Ione voted on whether to license saloons weeks after the county unit went dry. The Anti-Saloon League's superintendent said the law forbade it — and produced out-of-state precedents to prove the town had to stay closed until 1911.
- Tacoma Breaks the Grip of 'Blood Money'
The city council votes to seize absolute control over saloon licensing to stop property owners from extorting payments.
- The Scandal of the South Aberdeen Saloon License
A concerned mother accuses city officials of corruption and moral failure for granting an illegal liquor license under the guise of charity.
- The High-License Fight of 1885
As Seattle grapples with the rise of saloons, local temperance advocates and city officials debate the 'high license' strategy to curb the city’s drinking problem.
- The Seattle Liquor Board's Battle for Moral Standing
A landmark 1886 legal challenge in King County forces a judge to define the limits of civic power when local officials refuse to grant a liquor license based on a claimant’s character.
- The Moral Gatekeeper: Snohomish’s New Battle Over Who Gets to Sell Liquor
A new state law requires liquor license applicants to prove 'good moral character,' turning county commissioners into judges of private virtue and sparking a fierce debate over who gets to define morality in the Territory.
- Lynden Votes to Go Dry
A landslide local election victory mandates the end of licensed saloons in the town for the coming year.
- Neighborhood Mobilizes to Block New Saloon
A massive community petition forces the city to deny a liquor license on Tacoma Avenue.