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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1872 | 2 |
| 1876 | 2 |
| 1877 | 3 |
| 1884 | 1 |
| 1885 | 1 |
| 1886 | 2 |
| 1887 | 2 |
| 1888 | 1 |
| 1889 | 5 |
| 1890 | 1 |
| 1892 | 4 |
| 1893 | 1 |
| 1894 | 4 |
| 1895 | 4 |
| 1903 | 3 |
| 1904 | 2 |
| 1908 | 1 |
| 1909 | 3 |
| 1910 | 1 |
| 1915 | 1 |
| 1916 | 1 |
| 1928 | 1 |
46 stories matching rip
- 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 Saw Cut Through His Brain. Seattle Doctors Watched Him Live.
Horatio Stetson's head was nearly split in two by a rip saw at a Seattle mill. Thirty-six hours later, he was talking, moving his limbs, and astonishing the physicians at Providence Hospital.
- The Waterfront War: Railroads Clash Over Seattle Tide Flats
A long-standing right-of-way dispute between the Great Northern and the Oregon Improvement Company turns physical as crews rip up tracks at the foot of Washington Street.
- Ten Inmates Crawl Through City Jail Roof
A dozen prisoners rip the roof off the city jail, leading to a night of escapes, returns for more whiskey, and public mockery of the facility.
- Violent Windstorm Shreds Walla Walla County Infrastructure
A sudden, shifting gale rips roofs from elevators and destroys miles of railroad sand fencing across the valley.
- A Ferry Before the Ferry: The Fight to Replace Open Boats on Admiralty Inlet
Whidbey Islanders were crossing to Port Townsend in open rowboats through tide rips and chopping seas. Local merchants and an island resident with $4,000 wanted piers, a steamer and a regular route.
- The 'Vanity Fair' Lottery Scandal
When a Seattle game of chance faced accusations of fraud, the proprietor was forced to defend his honor in the pages of the local press.
- Vigilante Violence on the Tacoma Waterfront
A man is tarred and feathered by a mob of 'beachcombers' in a brutal display of frontier lawlessness.
- 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 Roslyn Mine Disaster: A City Rallies for the Bereaved
When an explosion ripped through the Roslyn coal mines in May 1892, Seattle’s civic leaders mobilized an immediate relief effort for the families left behind.
- The Women Who Stormed the Police Chief’s Office
In 1885, a group of Seattle women, frustrated by official corruption and the unchecked influence of saloons and gambling dens, launched a moral crusade to demand a new Chief of Police.
- The Sewer Scandal: A Whistleblower’s Warning
City Engineer Thomson testified that he repeatedly warned officials against using sub-standard, 'rotten' brick in Seattle’s sewer construction, only to be ignored as the project fell into corruption and mismanagement.
- The Electric Quack of the Arlington Hotel
An elderly traveler narrowly escapes a predatory ‘doctor’ who attempted to encase her in ‘electric’ metal shields under the guise of a miracle cure.
- The Unceremonious Ejection of Dr. Mary Walker
A historic account of how a pioneering physician was forcibly removed from a women's meeting for her unconventional dress and manner.
- Winter Gale Batters the Coast
A ferocious storm claims the lives of two men, one drowning off Coos Bay and another killed by a falling sign in Hoquiam.
- Washington State's 1910 Political Shake-up
A wave of progressive 'Insurgent' Republicans swept the primaries in 1910, routing the party establishment and shaking the confidence of federal power brokers.
- The Shadowy Break-in at the Hotel Bay View
A representative of the Independent Telephone company reports a suspicious burglary of his room, exposing a fierce battle for a local utility franchise.
- Dynamite in the Dark: A Great Northern Car Is Blown Apart
A locked dynamite car was opened and detonated near Newport, and detectives suspected disgruntled construction workers. No one had a clue.
- He Tore Up the Railroad Track, Then Flagged Down the Train
In 1877, a King County farmer named John Ross ripped up Seattle Coal & Transportation Co. rails to force a right-of-way dispute into court — then warned the locomotive before it reached the break.
- The Great Seattle Brick Heist
A local contractor chartered a tugboat to chase down a steamboat captain who allegedly stole a scow full of brick over a payment dispute.
- The Old Union Flag
A group of Seattle schoolboys preparing for a dance discovered a historic, weather-beaten Union flag—triggering a local effort to preserve the banner that once flew over the Civil War-era Union League.
- The Night Colfax Built an Opera House
A secret crew of Spokane masons raised the walls of a new theater in a single night—while the town's electric lights conveniently failed.
- The Fruit Orchard Purge of 1916
As fruit growers in the Yakima Valley panic and rip out their orchards to plant alfalfa, one local paper warns that the cycle of boom and bust is as predictable as the rising sun.
- Building a City on Sagebrush and Ambition
As 1890 dawns, a North Yakima editor reflects on a year of rapid growth, fire, and the relentless quest for the state capital.
- Prison Guard Shoots Inmate in Jute Mill Fight
A convict is wounded during a prison brawl after guards are ordered to use live ammunition to stop frequent fighting.
Also about this, in other words
- The Orphan’s Plea: A Poem That Moved Seattle to Tears on Decoration Day
As the city honored Civil War dead with solemn processions and speeches, a young girl’s grief over her father’s unmarked grave brought the Grand Marshal to tears.
- A Tragic End in a Vacant Lot
A well-known local man takes his own life after a struggle with mental distress and addiction.
- Holiday Tragedy on the Road
A Memorial Day outing turns to terror when a runaway team leaves a mother injured in a wire fence collision.
- The Collapse of a Parting Speech
A surprise party for a departing resident ends in a slapstick moment when his chair gives way.
- The Tragedy at the Arcade Saloon
A well-known Seattle boarding house keeper ends his life, leaving behind a young daughter and a legacy of property, marking a grim moment in the city's growth.
- A Saw Blade, a Slipped Foot, and a Surgeon's Race to Save a Worker's Arm
A worker's foot slipped against a circular saw, severing the artery and nerve in his right arm; doctors ligated the artery and stitched the nerve.
- A Tragic End for a Lovestruck Youth
After his romantic advances were rejected, a Tennessee man took his own life in Port Angeles.
- A Marriage Cut Short by Tragedy
A young bride dies suddenly on her second wedding anniversary, triggering a callous rumor mill that the press quickly works to correct.