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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1876 | 1 |
| 1886 | 1 |
| 1889 | 2 |
| 1892 | 3 |
| 1893 | 12 |
| 1894 | 9 |
| 1895 | 4 |
32 stories matching philbrick
- The Patent Scam That Ended With a Frenchman's Last $3
A Seattle detective's account of a fake invention scheme shows how confidence men worked—and how the law let the swindlers slip away.
- A Circular Saw Opened His Skull—and He Stayed Conscious
At the Stetson Post Mill on Commercial Street, engineer Horatio Stetson crawled under a rip-saw table to fix a belt. The saw caught his head, cutting through bone and into his brain, yet he never lost consciousness.
- A High-Stakes Divorce and Property Battle
Catherine Philbrick files for divorce and moves to void property conveyances in the heart of Port Townsend.
- Guns at the Polls: Seattle’s First Ward Primary Erupts in a Street Brawl
Sheriff Woolery and saloon man John Considine tried to seize a Republican primary by arresting the election judges; Chief Rogers and his police fought back with warrants, clubs and drawn revolvers.
- The Tragedy on the Jackson Street Trestle
An elderly man, fleeing police custody, fell through a gap in the wooden street bridge and plunged thirty feet to his death.
- The Man Who Fell for the Fire: A Tragic Winter Night in White Center
Edgar Philbrick, a 24-year-old laborer, was found frozen to death under a tree after wandering into the flames of a burning house. His story is one of the many tragedies that defined Seattle's early winter nights.
- The Raid on South Fifth Street
A police raid on a gambling party in Seattle’s Chinatown leads to a chaotic scene of fleeing patrons and two arrests.
- The City Dog Catcher Accused of Robbery
A laborer claims that a city official used a badge to impersonate a police officer and steal his savings from a rooming house in the Blackchapel district.
- The Judge Forgot the Evidence, and the Gambling Case Walked
Charles Shaw’s Union Club prosecution ended when the judge couldn’t recall Chief Rogers’ key testimony. The gambling furniture went out the door anyway.
- The Sad Tale of a Mail-Order Marriage
A romantic courtship by mail ended in divorce, a sheriff's sale, and a supreme court battle over a farm in Leland Valley.
- The City's Legalized Blackmail
A jury exposes the Seattle Police Department for shaking down women, proving that 'reform' administration was just a veneer.
- A Bullet Between Brothers
A shot fired from the darkness of a Yesler Avenue street at night narrowly missed two brothers standing in their upstairs home.
- The Plot to Rob Lou Graham
Police thwart a desperate plan by criminals to hold up the city's most famous madam for her diamonds.
- The City Clamps Down on Variety Theaters
Seattle authorities arrest variety theater owners for allowing singing in venues where alcohol is served.
- The Lock and the Bunko Men: How Two Hop Pickers Turned the Tables on a Seattle Con Artist
Richard Sullivan, a bunko man with a Tacoma headquarters, was convicted of petty larceny after swindling two Indian boys on the City dock.
- The Smallpox Ship at the Wharf
In September 1876, Port Townsend citizens met at the Old Court House to demand accountability after the steamer Dakota brought smallpox into their port.
- The Swindler with the Golden Brick
A local confidence man allegedly fleeced hotels and saloons by leaving behind fake gold bricks as temporary collateral.
- The Price of 'The Reform Administration'
A juror protests the Seattle municipal court's practice of fining sex workers as a de facto monthly licensing scheme.
- New Year's Eve Brawl Leaves Landlady Stabbed
A festive celebration at a Jackson Street boarding house turned violent when a dispute between two women resulted in a serious stabbing.
- Midnight Intruder Strikes Children's Home
A bold burglar is interrupted by the matron of a local children's home after being found standing at the head of her bed.
- John Lyner Re-Arrested in String of High-Profile Seattle Robberies
After being released for lack of evidence, a suspect in the theft of diamonds and watches is hauled back to jail on new charges.
- The Chief Says the Victims Were Drunk
Two men said they were robbed and ignored by Seattle police. Chief Enright answered with a saloon-to-alley account of drink, deeds, and a woman called 'Big Six.'
- The Unlucky Fate of a Runaway Teenager
After being detained by detectives, 16-year-old Lillie D. Cline faces institutionalization as local authorities attempt to force her back into a domestic role.
- Officer Reprimanded for Abusive Conduct
A Seattle officer faces the police board after breaking down a door and using profanity during a raid on a lodging house.
- A Slingshot, a Razor, and a Fight in a Dark Hallway
Two men who followed a laborer from a South Third Street saloon were identified after he fought them off and hailed help.
Also about this, in other words
- The Gold Brick Swindle
A small-town banker loses his life savings to a sophisticated confidence scheme involving a fake Indian and a worthless brick.
- A Brick in a Leavenworth Street Ends a Railroad Man's Life
An engine wiper is jailed at Wenatchee for the drunken-brawl killing of a Great Northern locomotive engineer who leaves four children behind.
- Police Smash Local Gambling Rings
A Saturday night raid targets the Peeler Block and the rooms near the People's Theater, netting three proprietors.
- The Dream of a 'Solid Block': Seattle's Early Real Estate Ambitions
Prominent business owners in late 19th-century Seattle collaborate to replace fragmented shops with a singular, uniform 'splendid block' of stone and steel, signaling the city's transition from pioneer town to burgeoning metropolis.
- The 'Gold Brick' King: How a Master Con Man Sold Copper to a Banker
A too-trusting Aberdeen banker, a man disguised as an Indian, and a forged letter from the San Francisco mint—the Seattle trial of the notorious swindler 'Rebel George' Knowlton.
- A Wild Chase Through the Streets of Pioneer Square
A suspected thief leads police on a gunfire-strewn foot chase from Yealer Avenue to the shadows of the Mug saloon.
- A Close Call on Washington Street
A carpenter’s spilled lamp sets a roof ablaze, only for an alert officer to stop the fire with a well-aimed kick.
- The City Hall Stumping Standoff
A citizen refuses to pay a surety bond for the 'privilege' of removing eight stumps from his own property.