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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1876 | 1 |
| 1878 | 1 |
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| 1883 | 1 |
| 1887 | 1 |
| 1888 | 1 |
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33 stories matching sophist
- The Tailor-Made Confidence Man
A clever grifter leaves a trail of unpaid bills and stolen suits across North Seattle.
- Customs Officials Intercept Opium Shipment
Inspector John A. Plum uncovers a sophisticated smuggling operation involving opium hidden within a picture frame on a train bound for Montana.
- The Perfect Counterfeit
Spokane police investigate a sophisticated operation producing high-quality gold fakes that fool local businesses.
- The Midnight Smuggling Ring at Oyster Bay
Customs officials track a clandestine operation smuggling Chinese laborers into Washington via the mudflats near Olympia.
- The Bunco Gang’s Wharfside Swindle
Two young women are fleeced by a sophisticated street-con artist on the Seattle waterfront.
- The Timber Land Swindlers of Seattle
A new arrival in Seattle narrowly escapes a sophisticated land scam operating out of the Seattle National Bank building.
- Horsemen Offer Reward for Caught Thieves
A sophisticated gang operating in Whitman County forces local stockmen to put up a $250 bounty for the recovery of stolen property.
- The Notorious Haytian Republic Seized in Seattle
A federal investigation into a sophisticated smuggling ring leads to the sudden impounding of a steamship at the Seattle waterfront.
- The Palace of God on Fourth and Spring
A grand architectural marvel marks the rise of the First Presbyterian Church from a tiny frontier congregation to a pillar of Seattle’s establishment.
- The Swine Swindle Sweeping the State
A state professor warns farmers against sophisticated livestock contracts that promise riches but leave them holding the bag.
- The Dentist and the Alleged Blackmailer
A patient sues her dentist for malpractice, while he claims she is a pawn in a sophisticated extortion scheme involving drug habits and family wealth.
- The Safe Crackers of La Conner
In a town unaccustomed to such violence, burglars blast open a general store safe, signaling a new era of criminal sophistication.
- The Gold Brick Swindle
A small-town banker loses his life savings to a sophisticated confidence scheme involving a fake Indian and a worthless brick.
- The Counterfeiters of Front Street
A keen-eyed local expert foils a pair of dubious transactions in a Seattle saloon, exposing a suspected ring of master counterfeiters operating in the Pacific Northwest.
- The Post Office Con-Artist
Authorities warn merchants of a sophisticated swindler operating across Washington by altering post office money orders.
- German Dignitaries Shocked by Seattle's Sophistication
Members of the German Imperial Commission visiting the World's Fair dismiss European rumors that Seattle is a lawless, wild frontier.
- The Butter Bandits of West Street
A bold group of petty thieves used a sophisticated 'sampling' scheme to systematically loot Seattle merchants.
- The Confidence Game of 1888
A victim of a brazen street robbery in Seattle describes how he was lured into a basement by a sophisticated crew of swindlers who posed as wealthy travelers.
- The Gold Brick Gang: How Seattle’s Smugglers Were Caught Red-Handed
A trio of young men ran a sophisticated counterfeiting ring out of their rooming house, selling fake gold bricks to unsuspecting merchants and bankers before being busted by detectives.
- The Forgotten Fight for Proportional Representation
In 1891, a Walla Walla thinker proposed a radical 'preferential system' to break the grip of party bosses and end the buying and selling of votes in Washington.
- The Confidence Game: How a Fake Order Stole from Seattle’s Own
A merchant in Waitsburg receives goods he didn't order, paid for by a 'Mr. Williams' who doesn't exist—revealing a sophisticated fraud ring targeting Pacific Northwest businesses.
- The Spokane Saloon Debuts
Fairhaven welcomes an elaborate new social club and billiard parlor, signaling the city's aspirations to match the sophistication of larger coastal ports.
- The Deadly Gift Sent to the Melodeon
A scorned woman in Seattle finds herself the target of a sophisticated homemade bomb disguised as a gift.
- The Confidence Man of Madison Street
A charismatic stranger built a house in Seattle, charmed local investors, and pulled off a sophisticated bank fraud that left the city stunned.
- The Real Estate Swindler Who Fooled Seattle
A smooth-talking con artist masquerading as an 'Eastern capitalist' swindled multiple Seattle banks by weaving himself into the city's booming real estate market.