Research the archive
Narrow 25,724 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 |
|---|---|
| 1872 | 1 |
| 1877 | 1 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1879 | 1 |
| 1882 | 2 |
| 1883 | 13 |
| 1884 | 2 |
| 1886 | 1 |
| 1887 | 3 |
| 1888 | 2 |
| 1889 | 1 |
| 1891 | 6 |
| 1892 | 5 |
| 1893 | 7 |
| 1894 | 17 |
| 1895 | 4 |
| 1898 | 2 |
| 1900 | 1 |
| 1903 | 2 |
| 1905 | 1 |
| 1909 | 2 |
| 1910 | 1 |
| 1915 | 1 |
| 1916 | 4 |
| 1917 | 1 |
82 stories matching spragu
- Henry Sprague Died by Suicide in an Unfinished House
A young farmer in Medical Lake ends his life in the unfinished house he was building for his bride-to-be after she marries another.
- The Price of Apathy in the School Board Election
A surprise victory for J. A. Johnson over Rod Sprague reveals that local civic engagement hangs on the turnout of supporters.
- A Daughter's $750 Secret: Seattle Heiress Sues Her Father's Estate
Lucy Sprague says her father, a celebrated general, sold her Ohio inheritance when she was a child and kept the money—and the guardianship—hidden for decades.
- The Fugitive in the Mill
A murder suspect evades the law by slipping past witnesses in Sprague.
- A Town on Trial: Sprague Fights Back Against Strike Rumors
As the 1894 railroad strike roils the nation, Sprague residents and its National Guard troop deny reports of lawlessness and mutiny, insisting their town is peaceful and loyal.
- A Neighborhood's Battle Against Filth
Tacoma residents at 11th and Sprague demand city action to clear stagnant wells and sloughs breeding typhoid.
- A New Generation Honors the Civil War
The first Pacific Coast lodge of the Sons of Veterans is instituted in Tacoma, marking a shift in how the memory of the 'War of the Rebellion' is passed down.
- The National Guard Mutiny at Sprague
Washington militiamen refuse to break the Pullman rail strike, leading to their arrest and transport under guard.
- The Counterfeit Gang of Port Townsend
A local variety theater manager and his associates operated a secret 'mint' to flood the Puget Sound region with fake gold, but their scheme was dismantled after laundering operations stretched to Seattle, Tacoma, and Utah.
- The General Who Laid Out Tacoma
Maj. Gen. John W. Sprague—Northern Pacific superintendent, Tacoma's first mayor and a founder of its bank and chamber—died at 74, leaving a city he helped place on the map.
- The Tragedy of Louise Nelson
Abandoned by her lover and turned away by her family, a young woman from North Dakota finds herself alone at a rural Washington poor farm.
- Tragedy at the Dayton Crossing
A railroad crossing accident near Dayton claims the life of a Sprague man and leaves another seriously injured.
- Sprague's Railroad Shops Import 120 Workers—and Lose Others to Canada
As old hands quit for the Canadian Pacific, the Baldwin works send a fresh corps of machinists and engineers to eastern Washington.
- The Three-Way Split: How Bitter Feuds Carved Eastern Washington
In January 1891, the state legislature dissolved Lincoln County into three new entities—Grant, Big Bend, and remaining Lincoln—to settle a decades-long battle over county seats that once involved armed men holding courthouse keys.
- The Night They Burned the Bridges: Sprague Makes Its Stand
A mob stones the returning militia, torch-wielding strikers destroy trestles on both sides of town, and a governor wires back orders to 'use all force at your command' to disperse the rioters.
- A Cedar Tree Accident at Eighterle Prairie
A man suffers a broken leg while clearing timber near Spokane.
- The Hotel del Monte of the Northwest
Tacoma Land Company plans a massive, luxury seaside hotel to rival California's best.
- The Governor Who Stood Between Corporations and the Workingman
When railroads threatened to use militia to break a strike in 1873, Governor Elisha Ferry refused to deploy state power until the laborers were paid, carving out a legendary reputation for fairness.
- City Engineers Map New Path to American Lake
A new diagonal extension of 15th Street aims to bypass dangerous gulches and ridges, creating a direct route for travelers.
- The Churchgoer With a Murder Warrant Waiting
For three years, Sprague knew R. J. Howard as a trusted young man and Methodist probationer. Then a Lincoln County sheriff walked into Lewis' store and called him by another name.
- A Jailbreak, Stolen Horses, and a Bedside Capture Near the Canadian Line
Two fugitives from Sprague lead Okanogan officers on a chase to a cabin near Loomis—and are taken at gunpoint before they can reach British Columbia.
- The Social Cost of the 'Sporting Fraternity'
A debate sparks over whether local businesses truly benefit from the money railroad men lose to gambling.
- Quarantine Enforcement on Sprague Street
When parents failed to keep children with smallpox indoors, health officials forcibly removed the family to the pest house.
- The Unpaid Labor of Seattle's Waterfront
Court dockets reveal that a local businessman, M. McMillan, has been leaving his laborers unpaid for weeks of work on the Seattle waterfront, triggering a series of small claims.
- The Deal That Broke a Senator: Allen's Surrender to King County
Ex-Governor Moore recounts the pressure campaign that turned Senator John B. Allen from his allies and toward the King County faction—an insider's tale of patronage, loyalty and betrayal in Washington's early state politics.