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177 stories matching riot
- The Seattle Press Defends its Role During the Anti-Chinese Riots
An editorial response to outside critics claiming local newspapers incited the February 7th expulsion violence.
- The Coal Creek Massacre: A Coroner’s Inquest into the Battle Between Knights of Labor and Mine Owners
In January 1890, Seattle Sheriff Cochrane deployed militia to Newcastle to suppress a miners' strike. When a riot erupted at Coal Creek, one man was killed and ten arrested. The subsequent coroner's inquest revealed a chaotic scene where union men claimed self-defense against armed mine owners, while the sheriff dismissed the Knights of Labor as 'too excitable.'
- Eight Hundred Armed Men, Two Dead: The Coal War the Guard Rode All Night to Stop
In the summer of 1891 the Green River coal towns of Franklin and Gilman armed themselves into rival companies. When the shooting started, a deputy sheriff wired Seattle for troops — and the colonel marched before he had orders.
- The Newcastle Mine Riot
A bitter dispute over a 'breast' of coal at the Newcastle mines escalated into a violent confrontation between the Miners’ Union and the Knights of Labor, leaving one man dead and many injured.
- The Mob That Tore Seattle Apart
Court testimonies from the 1886 anti-Chinese riots reveal a city in the grip of a violent, organized crusade to forcibly expel its Chinese residents.
- The Governor’s Plea for Order During the Anti-Chinese Riots
Governor Watson C. Squire issues a stern warning against the vigilante violence sweeping across Puget Sound in 1885.
- The Riot and the 'Queen City'
Mayor Henry Yesler recounts the dark days of the 1886 anti-Chinese riots and the subsequent rise of the 'Home Guards' in Seattle.
- The Riot-Scarred Streets of 1886
A critical look at the Seattle City Council’s tepid handling of the anti-Chinese riots, as the city struggles with the legacy of mob violence.
- Labor Organizer Accuses Judge Burke in 1886 Seattle Anti-Chinese Riots
A labor organizer confronts a political candidate over his role in the 1886 Seattle riots and the killing of a protester.
- Seattle Denounces Corporate 'Pinkertonism'
Thousands gather at Pioneer Place to protest the use of armed private forces against labor, following the violent Homestead Riot in Pennsylvania.
- The Franklin Miners' Riot and a Bullet in a Corset
A trial over a labor-related shooting in Franklin reveals a harrowing account of guards targeting women from a moving train.
- Riot in Port Townsend: Citizens vs. Sailors on the Verge of Violence
A tense standoff erupts as local citizens arm themselves to prevent Coast Seamen's Union members from boarding the steamer Sumatra, leading to arrests and imminent bloodshed.
- The Newcastle Riot: When Labor Turned on Labor
A preliminary examination reveals the chaotic morning of the Newcastle strike, where a mob of Knights of Labor marched to stop non-union miners from working—and ended up shooting at them.
- The Battle for Seattle's Soul
On the eve of a contentious city election in 1886, two rival political factions clashed at the Opera House, setting the stage for a fight over the future of labor, law, and the anti-Chinese riots.
- The Ghost of the Seattle Riots
A labor organizer confronts senatorial candidate Thomas Burke over his role in the 1886 anti-Chinese expulsions, challenging the sanitized historical narratives of his political campaign.
- A Chinese Student's 1929 Speech Named the Racism Washington Tried to Forget
At the University of Washington's Cosmopolitan Club, Wesley Kai Hwa Kwang catalogued a century of anti-Chinese violence — including the 1885 killings in Squak Valley and the burning of Tacoma's Chinatown — and asked a white audience to account for it.
- The Riot That Never Happened
When tensions over Chinese labor threatened to boil over in 1885, Seattle’s civic leaders scrambled to maintain order, fearing the influence of 'vagabonds and thugs' seeking chaos.
- Memorial Day Protest Stirs Veterans' Ire
A clash over memory and patriotism erupts in Seattle when labor activists equate the 'martyrs' of the Haymarket and Ludlow riots with war veterans.
- Academic Chaos at Pullman
A rebellious professor attempts to hijack a legislative committee's visit to the state agricultural college, leading to a near-riot.
- The Governor's Telegram: How the Militia Was Called Out to the King County Coal Fields
Colonel J. C. Haines lays out the paper trail behind the 1891 deployment of National Guard troops to the coal towns of Gilman and Franklin — and the labor war that nearly became a dawn battle.
- Col. Patrick Henry Winston Bolts the Populists — and the P-I Pounces
The Post-Intelligencer gleefully dissects Patrick Henry Winston's letter renouncing the People's Party, calling it less a conversion than the squirm of a politician who has run out of options.
- Spokane Strike Riot Defendants Win a September Trial
Three men accused in the July 5 strike riot and another charged with obstructing a deputy marshal will be tried in Spokane this fall.
- The Mob, The Military, and the Riot at the Seattle Wharf
In February 1886, a citizen-led campaign of forced expulsion against Seattle’s Chinese residents spiraled into a violent confrontation, triggering a week of martial law and armed conflict in the streets.
- The Siege of Seattle: Governor Squire’s Martial Law
A fiery defense of the 1886 imposition of martial law during the anti-Chinese riots, arguing that civil authority had collapsed under the pressure of the mob.
- The Minister Who Faced Down the Mob
How a local pastor stood against the 1886 anti-Chinese riots and became a target of the city's fury.
Also about this, in other words
- Police Called to Quiet Basketball Riot
Neighbors of the high school gymnasium grew so frustrated by the deafening roar of a basketball game that they summoned a policeman to restore order.
- The Riot at the Agricultural College
A call for police intervention after students mobbed the incoming college president and a regent.
- The Riot of 1886: Seattle’s Dark Chapter of Exclusion
A state-sanctioned mob forces Chinese residents from their homes, leading to martial law and a bloody confrontation at the wharf.
- Baseball Riot Erupts After Tacoma Loss
A post-game brawl at the local ball grounds spiraled into chaos, leaving one officer assaulted and local fans scuffling with a Black barber who attempted to intervene.
- Race Riot Erupts in Opera Alley
A domestic dispute over smoke turns into a mob confrontation between a Black household and local Italian residents.
- The Anti-Chinese Riot Echoes in Local Politics
Working-class candidates rally against the city's elites and the presence of Chinese laborers, reigniting the fury of the February expulsions.
- The Madison Street Park Riot
Seattle baseball fans fight, claw, and crush each other to catch a shutout victory against Tacoma.
- A Fistfight at City Hall
A political dispute in Spokane turns physical, landing councilmen and a street commissioner in a public brawl.