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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1859 | 2 |
| 1862 | 1 |
| 1872 | 2 |
| 1876 | 9 |
| 1877 | 5 |
| 1878 | 3 |
| 1880 | 3 |
| 1882 | 2 |
| 1883 | 2 |
| 1884 | 3 |
| 1885 | 4 |
| 1886 | 2 |
| 1887 | 1 |
| 1888 | 4 |
| 1889 | 6 |
| 1890 | 1 |
| 1891 | 8 |
| 1892 | 7 |
| 1893 | 15 |
| 1894 | 11 |
| 1895 | 13 |
| 1899 | 2 |
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| 1904 | 5 |
| 1908 | 1 |
| 1909 | 8 |
| 1911 | 1 |
| 1912 | 1 |
| 1914 | 2 |
| 1915 | 1 |
| 1917 | 1 |
131 stories matching merci
- The Man Who Wouldn't Die: A Seattle Gallows Horror
In a gruesome spectacle that shook the young Territory of Washington, Francis Epps survived his own hanging by mere inches, crying for mercy as the crowd watched him dangle in agony before being cut down.
- The Vigilante Committee: Tacoma's Desperate War on Crime
In March 1902, Tacoma’s elite formed a secret society sworn to kill without mercy after police failed to stop a wave of robberies and murders.
- The Hangman's Verdict: John Thompson Convicted of Murder in Snohomish
A trial that captivated the entire Territory ends with a death sentence for a man accused of killing his friend during a drunken brawl over a card game.
- The Devil's Range
A drunken seaman's terrifying hallucination on a Port Townsend stove.
- The Price of a Manslaughter Verdict
A convicted man sentenced to twenty years after a jury trial that Judge Humes believed was lenient.
- The $210,000 Typo That Could Decide Who Owns Yakima's Water
A spelling dispute over 'affect' versus 'effect' in a North Yakima water franchise threatens to hand the city a fortune—or leave it at the company's mercy.
- The Tears of a Gambler
A notorious gambler facing prison time is denied a new trial and begs the court for mercy.
- The Long Road to Walla Walla
A Seattle man, protesting his innocence, is handed a 16-year sentence at the state penitentiary in Walla Walla.
- A Desperate Plea for Mercy in a Madison Street Assault
Despite the emotional pleas of a wife attempting to protect her husband, the victim of a brutal assault refuses to drop charges.
- The Case for Naming an Olympia Street After Judge Hewitt
A memorial sermon for a territorial judge becomes a plea to carve his name into Olympia's street map—and a meditation on what makes a public life worth remembering.
- The Price of a 'Better Life': A Sunnydale Convict’s Plea
A local man faces ten years in the penitentiary, raising questions about justice and the fairness of the county jail system in late-1880s Seattle.
- King County Democrats Begged for Mercy on the Lake Washington Canal
At the 1892 state Democratic convention, Seattle's delegates surrendered their instructions and let Pierce County humiliate them over the canal project—a defeat the Post-Intelligencer vowed voters would remember in November.
- Smallpox Secrecy at the Convent of Mercy
A Mother Superior faces trial and a fine for failing to report a case of smallpox within the Snohomish convent.
- The Swan of the Cascades
A rare and haunting encounter near the mountain pass ends in an act of Victorian mercy.
- The Lawyer Who Sold Out the Settlers
A local editorial exposes future President James Garfield’s role as a corporate attorney for the Northern Pacific Railroad, accusing him of betraying Washington Territory homesteaders to protect railroad land holdings.
- The Dentist’s Twisted Domesticity
A young bride files for divorce in Seattle, exposing a horrific cycle of abuse and control behind the closed doors of a prominent dentist’s home.
- The Beggar’s Plea: How an Old Man’s Tears Won a Judge’s Mercy
In a touching scene at the Snohomish County Courthouse, John Burner, a destitute laborer of 73 years, pleaded guilty to grand larceny not for greed, but because his starving family had no other way to eat.
- The Trial of Judge Wickersham: A Tacoma Scandal Over Land, Lies, and 'Delirium'
In February 1889, the trial of a powerful federal judge in Tacoma exposed a web of political corruption, land fraud, and sexual scandal involving a young woman named Sadie Brantner.
- The Waterfront War of 1891
A two-hour standoff between striking sailors and city officials paralyzes Port Townsend, leading to arrests and a near-riot.
- Two Men Asked to Test a Seattle Schooner. Then They Tried to Kill Its Captain.
A would-be buyer and his genteel companion lured Capt. Jud La Moure into Puget Sound, attacked him with a lead sounding weight, and demanded his gold watch—until he produced a hidden revolver.
- Firecrackers and Guard Duty for the New Year
As the Chinese community celebrates, the City Council forces them to pay for their own police watchmen.
- The Sister Superior Arrested for Concealing Smallpox
A Snohomish convent leader is captured in Seattle after fleeing authorities who sought her for hiding two sick patients during a smallpox outbreak.
- The 50-Year Marriage That Defied Poverty: A Spokane Woman’s Quest for Work
When a rural Washington couple faced ruin from debt and injury, the wife took a train to Spokane with nothing but her satchel and a fierce determination to earn her keep.
- The Shadow of the Gallows in Early Seattle
A crowded courtroom watches as a man is sentenced to hang for a murder on San Juan Island, marking a grim moment in the early administration of justice in Washington Territory.
- The Wild West of Washington Journalism
When the courts declared they had no power to punish libel, Seattle editors went to war with their pens—and their reputations.