Research the archive
Narrow 27,002 newspaper stories by words, years, place, newspaper and subject. See when and where they ran, then download what you find.
Put a phrase in quotes ("rent strike") or leave a word out with a minus (strike -baseball). Old scans misspell names, so when little is found, near-spellings are offered.
Refine
Show the numbers
| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 1 |
| 1876 | 1 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1880 | 1 |
| 1882 | 1 |
| 1883 | 1 |
| 1885 | 1 |
| 1889 | 1 |
| 1892 | 4 |
| 1894 | 1 |
| 1895 | 1 |
| 1903 | 1 |
| 1904 | 1 |
16 stories matching sobrieti
- The Troubles of Mike Murphy
A wealthy Tacoma businessman faces legal scrutiny for his personal habits as police weigh the cost of sobriety.
- The Temperance Crusade Comes to Olympia
A prominent attorney argues for a 'Maine Liquor Law' to suppress the liquor trade in Washington Territory.
- A Tragic End in the Louvre Saloon
A lonely newcomer finds a desperate end in Tacoma, leaving behind only letters from a sister and a failed promise of sobriety.
- The False Slander of Captain Mulcay
A shipping captain's reputation was nearly destroyed by a malicious, unverified rumor sent to San Francisco agents during a difficult labor shortage.
- The Day Seattle Stood Still: A Sunday of Sobriety and Silence
In November 1876, the city’s saloons closed their doors for a rare day of peace, while the newspaper editor noted with relief that there were no fights to report.
- The Sketch That Sobered a Father
A young artist's chance drawing of a child watching over his intoxicated father becomes a catalyst for family redemption.
- The Great Seattle Newspaper Boycott of 1885
When local liquor interests tried to silence the press for advocating Sunday sobriety, the community drew a line in the sawdust.
- The Drunken Theft at the Cadwell Building
A laborer finds his sobriety and his money have both vanished in a late-night scuffle.
- The Council's Saloon Charity
Aberdeen’s city fathers are accused of legal gymnastics by granting a liquor license under the guise of helping a struggling mother.
- The Wife Who Took Control of Her Husband’s Sobriety
A hardworking Seattle woman uses the law to force her dissipated husband into recovery, declaring she will build a better home while he is locked away.
- The Temperance Preacher and the Heavyweight Champion
When gospel temperance evangelist Francis Murphy visited a Tacoma theater to convert prize fighter John L. Sullivan to sobriety, he found the champion as stubborn as his reputation.
- The City’s ‘Losings-Bank’: A Temperance Sermon on Economic Ruin
In an 1881 sermon at Plymouth Church, a local minister argues that Seattle’s rampant saloon culture—not market forces—is the primary engine of financial instability.
- The Skating Rink Panic of 1892
When a local major tried to shut down a Tacoma skating rink after a scandal involving his stepson, the local press defended the rink as a space for social independence rather than a den of iniquity.
- The Victorian Quest for the Century Mark
In 1878, Seattleites were offered advice on reaching age 100 through 'tranquility of mind' and the avoidance of potato starch—a stark reminder of the era's medical optimism.
- The Chief Knew Seattle’s Dance Halls Were Selling Beer. He Had One Question.
A Post-Intelligencer investigation found liquor flowing openly in variety theaters despite state law and police orders—then the police chief asked reporters whether it was true.
- Single Tax vs. the Saloon: A Seattle Debate on Land, Liquor, and Power
At Freed's Hall, Henry George's followers and Prohibitionists argued over whether taxing land or banning drink could break the grip of monopoly and the whisky trust.