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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1892 | 1 |
| 1893 | 2 |
| 1894 | 1 |
| 1895 | 2 |
| 1899 | 1 |
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| 1904 | 31 |
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54 stories matching slot
- "My Office Cannot Be Used by Gamblers": Tacoma's Prosecutor Explains Why He Won't Touch the Slot Machines
County Attorney Campbell says he is ready to prosecute slot-machine men any day of the week — but not on a complaint carried in by a rival operator who wants the law enforced only against his competition.
- The $1,000 Bribe for Slot Machine Protection
Owners of 100 slot machines propose a monthly payment to the city for the privilege of operating under police protection.
- Tacoma’s Blindfolded Taxman
An investigation reveals how police collect secret 'fines' from gamblers and slot machine operators, turning the city into a partner in its own vice.
- The Shadowy Business of the Slot Machine King
A divorce trial involving a Tacoma slot machine operator reveals a hidden world of illicit gambling and domestic abuse.
- The Shadowy Slot Machine King of Tacoma
A brutal divorce filing exposes the secret owner of Tacoma's pervasive slot machine operations.
- The Slot Machine King's Secret Life
A brutal divorce trial exposes the illicit gambling empire and domestic violence hidden behind a Tacoma marriage.
- The Shadow Ledger of Tacoma’s Police
A secret cash book reveals how police collected 'fines' from gamblers and protected a slot machine monopoly.
- A One-Woman Crusade Against Gambling
Following a violent confrontation between her husband and a slot machine owner, an Everett church worker vows to clean up the town.
- The Slot Machine Whistleblower
A local man accuses the County Attorney of shielding a slot machine monopoly in Tacoma’s saloons.
- The Great Nickel Counterfeit Bust
A local slot machine monopolist calls in the Secret Service to stop a gang from minting slugs to cheat his own gambling machines.
- The Sluggers of Pacific Avenue
A saloon’s security force takes street justice into their own hands after a customer tries to cheat a slot machine with lead slugs.
- Twenty Inches of Snow Bring Seattle to a Standstill
A February 1893 blizzard blocks streetcars, freezes water pipes and threatens a coal famine, forcing schools to close and residents to melt snow for drinking water.
- The Battle for Tacoma's Soul: Gambling vs. Reform
As municipal elections approach, the city faces a stark divide between Mayor Campbell’s clean-streets policy and the push for a 'wide-open' town.
- The Open Town Tug-of-War
Tacoma police chief Maloney moves to shut down poker games even as slot machines proliferate in cigar stands.
- The Fortune-Telling Machines Banned
A Seattle judge rules that nickel-in-the-slot 'fortune-telling' devices are illegal gambling machines.
- The Ballot Box Was Too Full in Franklin
Populists brought witnesses to court to show that votes in Franklin precinct were pushed, shaken and crammed into an overflowing box—irregularity, they argued, even if not outright fraud.
- Everett's Election Fight Over Dance Halls, Slot Machines, and City Light
The Republican mayoral primary becomes one of Snohomish County's fiercest political fights, with candidates divided on the 'open town' question and on how carefully Everett should guard its light and water franchises.
- The Price of a 'Wide Open' Town
A citizen accuses the County Attorney of enabling a graft scheme that granted a single operator a lucrative monopoly on slot machines while allegedly shaking down other business owners.
- Tacoma’s Secret 'Fining' System
Mayor Wright and Chief Malony allegedly operated a shadow tax on gambling and vice, using fake names to funnel illicit profits through the city’s ledgers.
- The Slugger Monopoly of Pacific Avenue
A local slot machine monopolist deploys hired thugs to enforce his trade, leading to a public street fight and a day in court.
- Tacoma's Secret Tax on Vice
Under the guise of official business, the police department allegedly collected protection money from gamblers and slot machine operators with no public accounting.
- The Sheriff Under Arrest
In a bizarre legal tangle, the King County coroner arrests the sheriff for failing to enforce slot machine laws.
- Tacoma’s Mayor Denounces City’s Partnership with Vice
Mayor Campbell vows to end the 'social evil' and clean up city hall, rejecting political backroom deals that traded tolerance for revenue.
- The Great Seattle 'Slot' Debate
A local cable railway company threatens to abandon a major investment after the city council forces an impossible construction standard on their tracks.
- Spokane's Gambling Houses Prepare for the Midnight Deadline
As a strict new state law turns gambling from a misdemeanor into a felony, operators in Spokane debate the legality of pool rooms and slot machines.
Also about this, in other words
- Tacoma's Sudden Slot Machine Surge
After local cigar shops were flooded with gambling machines, the city revealed a secret arrangement to legalize and tax the devices.
- The Underground Economy of the Slot Machine
A Tacoma counterfeiting case reveals the grit of early 20th-century labor disputes and the petty warfare waged against the city's machine-room owners.
- The Three-Foot Loophole: A Clever Workaround for Tacoma's Gambling Ban
Tacoma's Olympic Club skirts police edicts by raising the floor three feet to technically evade gambling restrictions.
- The Nickel-in-the-Slot Return
Following a court ruling, Walla Walla's gambling machines reappear on city streets, leaving police and officials at odds over enforcement.
- The City Judge Outlaws the 'Good Luck' Machines
A Seattle municipal court ruling draws a firm line between gambling and trade, declaring machines that pay out in 'trade checks' to be illegal.
- A Slot-Machine Row Spills Across the Tracks
Two men working a saloon machine with slugs ended in a street fight, a freight-train escape attempt and $25 fines in Newport's police court.
- Kennewick Cracks Down on Gambling Devices
Following the state-wide ban on alcohol, the local prosecutor turned his sights on punch boards and slot machines in corner stores.
- The Automatic Entertainer's Divorce
A local husband defending a divorce suit reveals his unique business holdings in coin-operated slot machines and automatic banjos.