Research the archive
Narrow 27,002 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.
Refine1 on
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1858 | 1 |
| 1862 | 1 |
| 1872 | 2 |
| 1876 | 15 |
| 1877 | 4 |
| 1883 | 2 |
| 1885 | 9 |
| 1886 | 2 |
| 1887 | 1 |
| 1888 | 7 |
| 1889 | 4 |
| 1891 | 4 |
| 1892 | 9 |
| 1893 | 9 |
| 1894 | 9 |
| 1895 | 14 |
| 1904 | 2 |
| 1909 | 1 |
96 stories matching made
- A High-Stakes Divorce and Property Battle
Catherine Philbrick files for divorce and moves to void property conveyances in the heart of Port Townsend.
- The Perilous Mistake of Captain Thomas Wilson
A small favor leads to a large legal headache when a Port Townsend steamer is accused of illegally transporting explosives.
- The Brutal Reality of Being 'Shanghaied' in Puget Sound
A survivor recounts the terrifying process of being drugged and forced onto a deep-sea vessel, exposing the dark side of local maritime labor practices.
- The Tragedy of a Wealthy Wanderer
After years of traveling from China to Alaska, a woman known as Ida Williams attempts to end her life in Port Townsend.
- The Waterfront Vigilante: A Seattle Harbor Scandal
A customs official and a boatman ambushed a crew of sailors returning to shore at Point Hudson, leading to a senseless shooting that left a seaman's life hanging in the balance.
- The Fall of Alaska's Deputy Marshal
Ralph A. Meyer, once a trusted federal officer in Alaska, passes through Port Townsend bound for six years in San Quentin — a cautionary tale of a brilliant career undone by embezzlement.
- The Bering Sea's Brazen Seal Poachers, as Told by a Port Townsend Captain
A sealing schooner back from five months in the Bering Sea describes a coordinated scheme of lookouts, false alibis and cached skins used to outwit the revenue cutters.
- Federal Request for Protection at Port Townsend
The Marine Hospital Bureau at Port Townsend expresses alarm over recent threats and requests a watchman to secure the facility.
- The Shadowy Traffic of the Northern Coast
Authorities mobilize as reports emerge of a vessel smuggling Chinese nationals and opium into the Pacific Northwest.
- The Tragedy of the Tug 'Mogul'
A young seaman from Maine loses his life in the waters of Port Townsend after a fatal fall from his vessel.
- A Port Townsend Lawyer Vanishes Without a Trace
Capt. George H. Jones, a constitutional convention delegate and Republican county leader, had been missing for days when his family's Puget Sound search came up empty.
- A Campaign Comes Ashore in Port Townsend
In 1876, Democratic candidates arrived by steamer to cannon fire and a cornet band, then packed Good Templars Hall for a night of speeches.
- Fire Destroys Port Townsend’s Marine Hospital
A defect in a flue triggers a blaze that consumes the upper floor and roof of the government hospital, forcing the evacuation of eighteen patients.
- The Jury's Defiant Verdict
A Port Townsend courtroom is stunned when a jury ignores the judge's instructions and acquits a defendant, leading to an immediate judicial rebuke.
- Fire Threatens to Move the Marine Hospital
A devastating fire at the marine hospital in Port Townsend sparks fears that the facility for disabled seamen will be permanently moved to Seattle.
- Steamship Tremont Collides in Heavy Fog
Dense fog leads to a collision near Marrowstone Point, stalling a major freighter's Pacific voyage.
- The Struggle for Safe Passage on the Sound
A local captain makes the case for mandatory pilotage to prevent costly shipwrecks in the foggy straits.
- Forty-Three Days of Gales, Then a Jury-Rigged Schooner Limps Into Port Townsend
Sails torn to ribbons and gear twisted, the three-masted schooner Buhne makes port after a voyage that should have taken three weeks and took six.
- Five Hours Adrift Near Marrowstone Point
A sudden shift in the wind leaves three sailors clinging to their swamped sloop for five hours in the cold waters off the Olympic Peninsula before rescue arrives.
- The Boiler That Killed Safety: How Neglect Nearly Sank the Oliver Walcott
A steamboat captain’s repeated warnings about a faulty boiler were ignored by department officials until the vessel burst into the dock at Port Townsend, leaving it stranded for repairs.
- The Customs Inspector Who Planned to Print His Own Money
A Port Townsend official's plaster-of-Paris counterfeiting scheme unraveled after his mistress went to police — then he caught a midnight boat for Victoria.
- Two Hundred Lives, One Closed Door: The Pacific Inquiry
Witnesses swore in Port Townsend that the steamer Pacific was rotten when she sailed. Now the very inspectors who certified her seaworthy are investigating her loss — in secret.
- The Night Fort Townsend Burned
A lamp explosion, a magazine full of cartridges, and a town’s fear that the Army would leave.
- The Unlikely Peace of the Port Townsend Wharf
A cat known for its hunting prowess inexplicably raises an enormous rat alongside her own litter of kittens.
- The Pilot’s Plea for Protection
A Puget Sound pilot is found cutting wood for a living because the lack of regulation has made the profession impossible to sustain.