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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 1 |
| 1876 | 5 |
| 1877 | 3 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1880 | 1 |
| 1883 | 3 |
| 1884 | 4 |
| 1885 | 2 |
| 1886 | 1 |
| 1887 | 4 |
| 1888 | 1 |
| 1889 | 4 |
| 1892 | 6 |
| 1893 | 3 |
| 1894 | 3 |
| 1895 | 8 |
| 1899 | 1 |
| 1903 | 1 |
| 1905 | 1 |
| 1907 | 1 |
| 1908 | 2 |
| 1909 | 3 |
| 1910 | 1 |
60 stories matching raft
- The Morning a Tow Rope Nearly Cost Appel Bros. a $600 Raft
A launch propeller seized, the boom was waiting, and a raft of poles was suddenly drifting toward disaster on the Pend Oreille.
- The Boilers Came by Raft
A Spokane mining company sent heavy machinery 70 miles down the Pend Oreille on homemade rafts—and made Cusick by nightfall.
- A Near-Fatal Timber Run on the Snohomish River
A monster raft of lumber hits a snag, threatening the lives of a crew of settler-families near Snohomish City.
- A 10,000-Ton Cigar of Logs, 76 Miles Long End to End
Builders at Stella, Washington, were shaping a 638-foot cigar-shaped raft of timber for a risky tow to San Francisco—10,000 tons of logs that would stretch 76 miles if laid end to end.
- The Great 'Pulp' Boom of Seattle
While Seattle’s real estate developers were busy building the city, the local papers were fixated on an odd, failed experiment to tow a massive Canadian timber raft down the Pacific Coast to California—a project that ended in a floating, ocean-clogging disaster.
- A Log Raft Turns Deadly Off Decatur Island
Amos Plasket, a San Juan County resident, fell from a log into the water within yards of shore and drowned before he could be recovered.
- Tragedy on the Skagit
A young worker loses his life in a whirlpool while attempting to transport shingle bolts downriver.
- The River Giant: A Record-Breaking Log Boom
The steamer Beaver successfully navigated a massive log raft into the harbor, a logistical feat that left the waterfront stunned.
- A Cedar Raft, a Swollen River, and the Prospector Who Never Came Back
J. A. Hamm of Everett launched a homemade raft of four cedar logs onto the Skagit in July and vanished. His wife has heard nothing since, and those who know the river say no one could survive the run below Day Creek.
- The Salvage Diver of Elliott Bay
A local diver describes his successful, DIY operation to raise a sunken boiler from the depths of Puget Sound to sell for scrap.
- Log Rafts Choke the Stillaguamish, and the Steamboats Can’t Get Through
Residents along the river complain that booms of logs are sealing off navigation at the mouth; a federal engineer threatens prosecution if the loggers do not clear the way.
- Tragic Drowning at Strawberry Island
A civil engineer loses his life in the Columbia River despite the desperate, repeated rescue attempts of his colleague.
- The Night They Walked to an Indian Village: A Shipwreck Survivor’s Tale
After the steamer *Port Gordon* smashed against rocks near Destruction Island, four men survived a nightmare of broken lines and drowning comrades by building a raft from hatches—and then walking ten miles through the brush.
- Tragedy at Moore's Pond
Two young brothers perish in a drowning accident while their mother and a nearby observer look on helplessly.
- A Squall Off Chuckanut: The Mail Steamer Buckeye Goes Down
The steamer Buckeye capsized in Bellingham Bay in 1893, leaving passengers and crew clinging to a lifeboat and raft. All but one survived.
- A $50,000 Concentrator Heads Down the Pend d'Oreille
Machinery for a 200-ton ore concentrator is bound for Metaline, shipped through Newport and floated downriver on a homemade lumber raft.
- A Stanchion, a Log Raft, and Two Ships That Never Came Home
Wreckage found off Cape Flattery leads Port Townsend mariners to suspect a double collier disaster hidden in a tangle of drifting timber.
- Resuscitated from the Lake Union Depths
A milling company worker narrowly survives a terrifying drowning incident after a log turns under him in the freezing waters.
- The Pacific’s Lesson: Floating Decks and Real Sailors
A correspondent proposes turning steamer decks into life-rafts—and blames the wreck of the Pacific on owners who replaced seamen with freight handlers.
- The Mayor's Private Mill: A Conflict of Interest in Old Seattle
Mayor Henry Yesler, facing accusations of professional misconduct, attempts to lease city-owned facilities to his own timber business under the guise of municipal efficiency.
- The Skagit River Navigation Feud
Seattle editors slam federal engineers and local delegates for failing to properly fund or understand the realities of river navigation.
- The Last Hours of the Bark El Dorado
A harrowing account of a merchant ship's destruction in a fierce gale off the Washington coast, as told by one of the few men to survive the wreckage.
- Tragic Drowning at the Gas Works
A young immigrant from Illinois dies while attempting to move a raft of timber across the water.
- The Great Log Boom Break: 800,000 Feet of Timber Set Adrift
A catastrophic failure at Colman’s mill sent a massive raft of logs floating into Elliott Bay, threatening the territory's primary industry.
- The Strange Disappearance of George Clark
A local merchant vanishes from Steilacoom, leaving behind $5,000 in debts and unpaid laborers.
Also about this, in other words
- The Great Timber Heist: A Raft of Logs Vanishes from Snohomish Wharf
A massive shipment of lumber disappears from Jackson's wharf under the cover of a storm, leaving local merchants and the U.S. Mail steamer crew to pick up the pieces.