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73 stories matching statist
- The World's Fair Statistical Fiasco
King County scrambled to prove its economic worth to the Chicago World’s Fair commission, while local officials grumbled about the impossibility of gathering honest numbers from suspicious business owners.
- The Tariff Struggle Against Steel Monopolies
New government statistics reveal a massive spike in iron and steel imports, challenging the power of domestic trusts to set prices.
- The Campaign to Exclude Chinese Workers
In 1885, a newly formed committee of Seattle citizens launched an aggressive effort to purge Chinese labor from the city, circulating petitions to prevent property owners from leasing to Chinese residents.
- The Great 1910 Census Padding Scandal
Across Washington state, towns are inflating their populations with ghosts, hobos, and unborn children to secure their status.
- Seattle's Schools Burst at the Seams as the City Booms
In 1893 the school board scrambles for classrooms, defends high-school education, and counts the cost of keeping up with a fast-growing city.
- The Wool Boom in Yakima
New statistics reveal that Yakima County dominates the state's sheep industry, holding nearly half of Washington's total flock.
- The Last-Week Jam in Olympia: Liquor, Primaries and a Budget Nobody Counted
With the 60-day session expiring, Washington's lawmakers settle local option, rewrite the primary ballot, kill the initiative and abandon the joint budget committee — leaving taxpayers to foot a three-mill levy.
- The Taxpayers' League vs. The Railroads: A Battle for Fair Valuation in Columbia County
In May 1903, local citizens and tax experts challenged the massive capitalization of the Oregon Railway Navigation Company, arguing that its true value warranted a higher tax assessment to fund public services.
- The Battle Over the Ballot Box in Seattle's First Ward
As local politicians traded barbs over an uptick in voter registration, the 'Post-Intelligencer' dismisses claims of fraud, pointing to the city’s rapid post-fire growth as the true cause of the numbers.
- Labor Unions and Lawmakers Craft Policy
Local labor leaders and the King County delegation meet to push for a progressive agenda, including a bureau of labor statistics and public printing.
- The Bureaucratic Fight Over Death and Birth
A standoff between Washington state health officials and local physicians over whether doctors should be required to report vital statistics without pay.
- The Great Sheep War: Seattle’s Political Flocks and the Independent Goats
A satirical letter to the editor uses a bizarre allegory of sheep herds and wild goats to critique Seattle's political parties, corporate wolves, and the emerging independence of women in public life.
- The Brutal Statistics of Poverty in 1880
A report in the Seattle Daily Intelligence uses cold, hard data to argue that the 'reproduction of capital'—human life—is threatened by the crushing weight of poverty and labor conditions.
- Washington’s Hidden Bounty: The Oat Capital of 1889
Newly released federal statistics highlight the massive agricultural potential of Washington Territory, crowning it as the nation's premier producer of oats.
- The City Lays the Foundation for its Future
On the Fourth of July, 1894, Seattle gathered between Lake Union and Lake Washington to lay the cornerstone of the University of Washington's new main building.
- The Salvation Army’s Plan to Turn a Kitsap Farm Into a Lifeline for Seattle’s Unemployed
With a 250-acre bequest near Sidney and a crowded food-and-shelter depot at Weller and South Third, the Army proposed a co-operative farm, woodyard and prison-gate brigade to put hundreds of jobless men to work.
- The Warden Fights Back: Prison Labor, Jute Sacks and a Seattle Newspaper Scandal
Accused of selling prison-made sacks to middlemen and brutalizing convicts, Walla Walla’s warden answers his critics with a detailed defense—and a challenge to inspect the prison.
- The Fight for the First Workers' Compensation Law
A labor advocate makes a passionate plea in Olympia for a state-managed fund to support injured workers, framing it as the only path away from corporate exploitation and legal poverty.
- The Threat of Slave Labor in Washington
A local writer warns laborers that the introduction of enslaved people into the territory could crash wages and destroy the dignity of free labor.
- Tacoma’s Electric Light War
A private power company accuses the city of selling light below cost to drive it out of business—and of a local editor gagging the story because he runs his own hotel plant.
- The $275,000 Plan to Dredge Olympia Into a Deep-Water Port
In 1892, a federal engineer proposed cutting a 12-foot channel through two miles of tide flats so ocean steamers could reach Fourth Street. The price tag was $275,000—and a bet on Olympia’s future.
- The Great Hose Heist: How a Seattle Fire Department Was Almost Scammed by a New York Manufacturer
A peculiar dispute over fire equipment reveals the cutthroat world of late-19th-century municipal procurement, where agents played cities against manufacturers and warrants were used as currency.
- Seattle Moves to Create a Municipal Employment Office
City council members propose a public bureau to connect laborers with jobs, citing a desire to improve employment conditions.
- The Human Cost of Industry
Reflecting on four months of Washington’s landmark workmen’s compensation law, the Journal argues that safety, not just payout, must be the priority.
- The Legislative Tangle in Olympia
Washington's 1923 legislative session is paralyzed by competing agendas from farmers, labor unions, and corporate lobbyists.
Also about this, in other words
- Union Man Appointed as County Road Supervisor
Thomas C. Fleming names carpenter and labor leader Steve Mitchell to a key county road position, signaling political influence for Everett workers.
- The Tax Man’s Efficiency Drive
Assessor A. H. Wheaton attempts to modernize property tax record-keeping to save the county thousands.
- Taxpayers' Union Declares War on County Spending
Prosser-based citizens group demands cuts to health and horticultural budgets, targeting local officials over alleged waste.
- The Alarmist Officer
A Seattle patrolman's attempt to slack off duty by pulling a fake fire alarm led to a public scandal and the end of his career.
- The Expert Turns Farmer
A county agriculturalist who has spent three years advising local farmers decides to test his own theories by homesteading land.
- The Single Tax Movement Hits Ritzville
Dr. B.F. Longstreet brings the economic theories of Henry George to Adams County, sparking a new local political organization.
- The Saloonist and the Building Inspector
A prominent local businessman attempted to bypass city fire ordinances to construct an illegal addition for his saloon, exposing alleged official corruption at City Hall.
- The Political Hustle for Tacoma's Streets
As the Commissioner of Public Works lobbies for a raise for the Street Superintendent, political maneuvering behind the scenes suggests that Scott Snyder is the favored candidate for the lucrative city post.