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1. A Mountain of Coffins: Franklin Buries Its Miners

   After a mine fire killed 37 men, the coal town of Franklin held a day of funerals—five graves at Black Diamond, three Italian miners on a hillside, and widows whose grief doctors feared would kill them.

   Aug 27, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerFranklin Cemetery, Black DiamondWork & Pay · Disasters

2. The Great Welcome: Seattle Plans a 'Rousing' Ovation for Returning War Heroes

   Mayor Humes and city officials rally behind a public subscription to fund fireworks, banquets, and even a mock battle at Lake Washington to greet the Washington Volunteers returning from Manila.

   Apr 29, 1899The Seattle StarLake Washington Park, Seattle, King CountyCity Hall

3. Walla Walla's Water War: Springs, a Bank, and a $250,000 Bond

   In December 1903, an editorial backed Councilman Glasford's plan to use Thomas Springs rather than buy bank-owned ranch land or bond for Mill Creek water.

   Dec 3, 1903The Evening StatesmanWalla Walla, Walla Walla CountyFollow the Money · City Hall

4. A Gavel, a Roar, and a Populist Ticket Born in Chaos

   King County's People's Party convention at Turner Hall turned into a shouting, proxy-fighting, faction-splitting marathon—and buried Dr. J. Eugene Jordan and Jack McDonald on the way to nominating a ticket.

   Sep 7, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

5. A Railroad the Valley Needed—and Another Year of Waiting

   Federal regulators ordered a fresh hearing on the Wenatchee Southern, infuriating Central Washington growers who said poor transport was costing them millions.

   Mar 30, 1923White Bluffs SpokesmanWenatchee, Chelan CountyBoom & Bust

6. The Day Washington Was Born: A City Holds Its Breath

   As the nation celebrates statehood, Seattle gathers in a packed hall to hear speeches on liberty, land fraud, and the future of the 'Queen City.'

   Feb 23, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

7. The Rifle War: Knights of Labor vs. Mine Owners in Newcastle

   A bitter feud between rival labor unions in King County erupts into armed conflict, with rifles smuggled from Seattle to support striking miners.

   Jan 22, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerNewcastle, King CountyWork & Pay

8. The Day Seattle Shut Down: Sailors, Longshoremen and the First Labor Day

   Banks, courts and public offices closed for the first time in the city's history, 2,500 people packed Pioneer Place for a 36-minute tug-of-war, and a labor orator told the crowd that good wages are the engine of everyone's prosperity.

   Sep 4, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyWork & Pay

9. Two Plans, One Spring, and a $25,000 Holdup

   Walla Walla's council will let voters choose between a $191,000 pipeline up Mill Creek and a cheaper gravity system at Thomas Springs — but the editor suspects a land speculation scheme is baked into the ballot question.

   Oct 15, 1903The Evening StatesmanWalla Walla, Walla Walla CountyFollow the Money · Boom & Bust · City Hall

10. The 1909 City Hall Power Grab That Tacoma Voters Were Told to Stop

    A fiery Times editorial urged citizens to pack the council chamber against charter amendments it said would gut civil service, raise council pay, and hand city jobs to political loyalists.

    Feb 11, 1909The Tacoma TimesTacoma, Pierce CountyCity Hall

11. Governor Hay Wants to Appoint, Not Elect, Washington's Officers—This Labor Editor Says No

    A proposal to make state offices appointive sparks a fierce defense of the direct primary and the people's right to choose their own officials.

    Apr 22, 1909The Labor JournalOlympia, Thurston CountyCity Hall

12. A Michigan Orator Packs the Armory and Rides Down the Populists

    Roswell G. Horr brings the Republican gospel of protection and sound money to a standing-room crowd in Seattle — and turns the free-silver men in the hall into the evening's comedy act.

    Jun 10, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyFollow the Money · City Hall

13. A Senate Candidate Brings Home the Bacon

    Congressman John L. Wilson stops at Seattle's Butler Hotel to tout federal money for Washington—and admit he wants the Senate seat.

    Sep 9, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerButler Hotel, Seattle, King CountyCity Hall

14. Torchlight, Two Bands, and a Canal: Lewis County Opens the 1892 Campaign

    Four hundred Centralia Republicans ride a special train into Chehalis, fill the opera house past overflowing, and cheer loudest for the Lake Washington canal.

    Aug 28, 1892The Seattle Post-IntelligencerChehalis, Lewis CountyCity Hall

15. The $12.50 Gold Rush: How a Railroad Rate War Flooded Seattle with Hope and Skepticism

    As Canadian Pacific slashes fares to half the price of American lines, local merchants debate whether the coming wave of homeseekers will build the city or break it.

    Mar 23, 1899The Seattle StarSeattle, King CountyBoom & Bust

16. The Senator’s Homecoming: A City Roars for Watson Squire

    Thousands line the Seattle waterfront as the Bailey Gatzert steamer arrives, carrying newly re-elected U.S. Senator Watson C. Squire home from Olympia in a spontaneous ovation of cheers, champagne christenings, and civic pride.

    Jan 22, 1891The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

17. The Railroad Lobby's Quiet Plan to Buy a Governor and Kill the Commission

    A Walla Walla editor warns that railroad interests will avoid an open fight over regulation by nominating a friendly, colorless candidate—then using him to veto the commission bill.

    Nov 27, 1903The Evening StatesmanOlympia, Thurston CountyFollow the Money · City Hall

18. The Man Who Built a Road on His Own dime

    While Seattle’s leaders debate and delay, a Walla Walla pioneer proves that private enterprise can conquer the wilderness where public funds fail.

    May 25, 1876Puget Sound DispatchSeattle, King CountyBoom & Bust

19. The Political Infighting Within Seattle’s Labor Movement

    A blistering letter to the editor exposes internal power struggles and corruption allegations within the Knights of Labor, revealing the fractious state of turn-of-the-century worker politics.

    Apr 4, 1892The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyWork & Pay

20. 'As Cold as a Barn': The Olympia Theater Fight That Spilled Into Print

    When the Tribune panned the Olympia Theater, the rival Standard accused it of kicking without reason. The rebuttal names icy dressing rooms, one-dollar seats and a manager in over his head.

    Oct 12, 1891The Olympia TribuneOlympia Theater, OlympiaNightlife

21. A Sixty-Mile Ditch and a Railroad Over the Mountains: Seattle Money Goes East

    Judge Lewis reports from Yakima: new banks, booming towns, and a plan by Seattle investors to reclaim 350,000 acres of desert with a canal — while 1,000 men push the Northern Pacific's Cascade Branch toward Snoqualmie Pass.

    Aug 17, 1883Seattle Daily Post-IntelligencerYakima, Yakima CountyFollow the Money · Boom & Bust

22. Who Should Keep Olympia's Money?

    On the eve of the 1891 municipal election, a dozen anonymous Olympians argued over the city treasurer's race, a regular nominee, a new brick block, and a saloonkeeper's ten-dollar joke.

    Dec 7, 1891The Olympia TribuneOlympia, Thurston CountyCity Hall

23. The Name That Never Was: How Washington Stole Its Identity

    A furious editorial in the Seattle Post-Intelligencer defends the state's name against a congressional proposal to rename it 'Tacoma,' arguing that the people’s attachment to their home is sacred.

    Jan 18, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

24. Olympia’s Capitol Fight: Donate the Land or Lose the Statehouse

    A late-night Senate debate over the new state capitol turned on eleven acres, a $150,000 land scheme and whether Olympia should pay to keep the building—before the bill passed to applause.

    Mar 8, 1893The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyFollow the Money

25. King County's Almshouse 'Vindication' Came With a Taxpayer Bill

    A committee appointed to investigate charges against King County commissioners billed the public for its own defense—including $10-a-day duty and a detective sent after a newspaper leak.

    Aug 31, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

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