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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 9 |
| 1858 | 10 |
| 1859 | 14 |
| 1860 | 6 |
| 1861 | 22 |
| 1862 | 14 |
| 1863 | 4 |
| 1864 | 3 |
| 1872 | 24 |
| 1876 | 89 |
| 1877 | 73 |
| 1878 | 46 |
| 1879 | 3 |
| 1880 | 28 |
| 1882 | 15 |
| 1883 | 116 |
| 1884 | 62 |
| 1885 | 126 |
| 1886 | 82 |
| 1887 | 80 |
| 1888 | 66 |
| 1889 | 198 |
| 1890 | 31 |
| 1891 | 164 |
| 1892 | 373 |
| 1893 | 372 |
| 1894 | 385 |
| 1895 | 404 |
| 1896 | 1 |
| 1897 | 14 |
| 1898 | 31 |
| 1899 | 99 |
| 1900 | 12 |
| 1902 | 8 |
| 1903 | 180 |
| 1904 | 157 |
| 1905 | 15 |
| 1907 | 6 |
| 1908 | 57 |
| 1909 | 165 |
| 1910 | 38 |
| 1911 | 27 |
| 1912 | 8 |
| 1914 | 34 |
| 1915 | 30 |
| 1916 | 55 |
| 1917 | 30 |
| 1918 | 9 |
| 1923 | 15 |
| 1924 | 19 |
| 1925 | 8 |
| 1928 | 2 |
| 1929 | 1 |
3,840 stories matching report
- The Paper Blizzard That Ate Washington's Budget
A senate committee blames vague printing laws and verbose officials for a $52,000 deficit—and says thousands of reports are destined for the junk dealer.
- The Great Merger: How Two Kennewick Newspapers Died to Save the Town
In April 1914, the Courier and the Reporter merged into the Courier-Reporter because a town of 2,000 people couldn't afford two papers. It was a stark lesson in economic consolidation.
- The Fish That Confessed: A Sturgeon’s Warning to a Sweeping Reporter
In this bizarre piece of 1876 satire, a newspaperman encounters a talking sturgeon at the market who reveals he is a reincarnated swindler, warning the reporter that frauds become fish after death.
- Three Bickering Land Departments, Millions in Tide Lands, and a Demand for Answers
A state land commissioner admits the tide-land situation is 'chaotic in the extreme' and calls for a no-whitewash legislative probe — warning that divided authority is an open door to corruption.
- A Town on Trial: Sprague Fights Back Against Strike Rumors
As the 1894 railroad strike roils the nation, Sprague residents and its National Guard troop deny reports of lawlessness and mutiny, insisting their town is peaceful and loyal.
- Olympia Bought a $1,500 Sewer Map Critics Called Worthless
A letter to the editor accuses the city council of buying a stranger's sewer plan without scrutiny—complete with a harbor reservoir already condemned in San Diego.
- 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.
- The Judge Escapes the Legislature—For Now
Damning reports on Judge W. W. Langhorne reach the House, but lawmakers postpone impeachment and hand the case to the Supreme Court.
- Fire Limits, Flying Switches and a Fifty-Year Franchise: One Evening at Newport's City Hall
In a single session the council moved to outlaw frame buildings downtown, chased street grades on three avenues, turned back a second telephone exchange, and heard that trains were nearly killing people at the Fourth Street crossing — three times in one day.
- The Board of Health Weighed Closing Every School in Seattle
Scarlet fever was moving through the city's classrooms in May 1895, and the men who ran public health argued over whether to send thousands of children home for six weeks — and whether parents could be trusted to report the sickness at all.
- Ten Gales, Three Lost Schooners, and a Widow Who Wasn't
A Seattle seal hunter back from eight months in the North Pacific describes a season that swallowed whole crews — and explains why he'd rather kill seals with a spear than a gun.
- Almshouse Report Blames Commissioners for Defective Construction
A committee investigation reveals gross negligence and poor construction at the new county almshouse, prompting calls for a grand jury probe.
- The People vs. the Railroads: Olympia Debates a Rate Cap
While the Capitol fought off adjournment, a bill to cap passenger and freight rates reached the floor of the Washington House — with Populists demanding an up-or-down vote and railroad men asking for more time.
- The Taxpayers' League vs. The Railroads: A Battle for Fair Valuation in Columbia County
In May 1903, local citizens and tax experts challenged the massive capitalization of the Oregon Railway Navigation Company, arguing that its true value warranted a higher tax assessment to fund public services.
- Seattle and Tacoma Nearly Came to Blows Over the Ship Canal
At the 1892 Democratic state convention, King County's demand for a canal plank turned the floor into a shouting mob — and the vote flipped twice in a single night.
- The Fashion Reporter's Dilemma: Keeping Secrets in the Social Column
A Seattle newspaper correspondent reflects on the moral tightrope of reporting on local scandals while trying to maintain the trust of society figures.
- The 'Other' America: How Seattle's Elite Feared the 'Unassimilable' Masses
A January 1889 federal report on immigration warns that new arrivals are too different to become citizens, fueling calls for exclusion just as Seattle prepares for its own explosive growth.
- The Silver Fight That Split Washington's Republicans
A packed Spokane convention picked judges and congressmen, then turned on a single plank: whether the party would demand free silver.
- The Land Office Money That Never Reached the Books
Register Isaac W. Smith accuses Receiver Selucius Garfielde of holding land-claim payments on private deposit and refusing to account for them—an 1861 public audit fight in Washington Territory.
- The First Teachers’ Institute: A Battle for Seattle’s Soul
In September 1872, the Territory’s top educators gathered in Seattle to debate everything from corporal punishment to the role of women in teaching, laying the groundwork for public education in Washington.
- The Seal Pup Wars: A Local Naturalist vs. The Smithsonian’s ‘Sense-Keeper’
James G. Swan, a long-time Neah Bay resident and customs inspector, challenges Henry W. Elliott’s decades-old claim that newborn fur seal pups sink like stones, offering eyewitness testimony from Captain Elijah McAlmond that they swim.
- Queen Anne parents ask where the $25,000 school levy went
A delegation from the Queen Anne district told the school board it had both the money and the legal duty to build a schoolhouse on the hill. The board conceded the need, blamed the county treasurer's books, and referred the whole thing to committee.
- A Bolt Out of a Clear Sky Passes Inches From a Sleeping Man
Lightning hits the flagpole of the Walla Walla Athletic Club on West Alder at seven in the morning, tears a hole in the roof, rips an American flag down through the building — and leaves manager S. S. Bettman untouched in his bed.
- The Free-Water Fight and the 'Idle Single Men'
A proposal to give the Seattle Industrial Co-operative Society free water for two months set off a council debate over poverty, manhood, and who deserved public help.
- The Washington–Idaho Line Was Never Quite Where Everyone Thought It Was
A congressional committee moving to re-mark the boundary publishes a surveyor general's confession: the 1873 line zigzagged as much as a degree and a half off course, was measured with link chains, and stopped short when the crew quit to save their own lives.
Also about this, in other words
- A Senate Report Exposes the National Guard's 'Go-As-You-Please' Spending
A military deficiency report finds the Washington National Guard has escaped civil control and wasted money, including $1,000 for each election of Adjutant General O'Brien.
- The Seattle Panic of 1888
A grand jury report warns of a secret 'International Workmen’s Association' conspiracy to seize Seattle's property and industry.
- The Fight for Accurate Election Reporting
A local editor slams rival newspapers for their abysmal, inaccurate coverage of the primary election returns.
- The Mayor's Report Card
The Post-Intelligencer critiques Mayor Ronald's annual message, specifically challenging his claims regarding police success and municipal debt.
- Report from the Mines
A troubling inspection report highlights dangerous conditions, black damp, and worker injuries across King County coal mines.
- The Treasurer’s Secret
Tacoma city officials clash over financial transparency as a local treasurer refuses to disclose where public funds are being deposited.
- The Senate’s Betrayal: A Treaty That Gave Away Seattle’s Future
A scathing Senate report warns that the new fisheries treaty with Britain surrenders American fishing rights and invites foreign control over Pacific waters.
- City Council Clashes Over Polluted Water Reports
A health officer's report alleging city water contamination sparks a heated confrontation with a city commissioner.