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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 3 |
| 1858 | 1 |
| 1862 | 1 |
| 1872 | 2 |
| 1876 | 12 |
| 1877 | 10 |
| 1878 | 4 |
| 1880 | 2 |
| 1882 | 1 |
| 1883 | 5 |
| 1884 | 2 |
| 1885 | 10 |
| 1886 | 4 |
| 1887 | 2 |
| 1888 | 5 |
| 1889 | 12 |
| 1890 | 2 |
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| 1892 | 12 |
| 1893 | 14 |
| 1894 | 24 |
| 1895 | 28 |
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| 1899 | 6 |
| 1903 | 27 |
| 1904 | 6 |
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| 1910 | 4 |
| 1911 | 2 |
| 1914 | 6 |
| 1915 | 3 |
| 1916 | 7 |
| 1917 | 1 |
257 stories matching statut
- The License Law: Who Gets to Drink in Snohomish?
A new interpretation of the Territory's temperance laws gives local boards sweeping power to deny liquor licenses based on 'moral character,' effectively letting neighbors veto their neighbors' businesses.
- The Moral Gatekeeper: Snohomish’s New Battle Over Who Gets to Sell Liquor
A new state law requires liquor license applicants to prove 'good moral character,' turning county commissioners into judges of private virtue and sparking a fierce debate over who gets to define morality in the Territory.
- King County Commissioners Billed Taxpayers for 25,943 Miles—More Than the Earth's Circumference
A letter to the editor by F. F. Ames accuses the King County board of padding mileage, charging for trips to Olympia, and paying an unauthorized colleague from county funds—violating state law.
- The Midnight Death of Seattle’s Charter
When a judge declared the city’s incorporation invalid in 1877, the local newspaper editor went on the warpath to save the municipality from 'gratuitous anarchy.'
- Eight Dead, and the Steamboat Owners Owe Only $3,500
A federal judge in Seattle limits the Annie Faxon's liability after a Snake River boiler explosion, extending an old maritime rule to inland steamboats.
- Tacoma's $750,000 Railroad Bait—and the Utility Deal That Fell Apart
A hastily passed water-and-light purchase ordinance is dead on arrival, while C. B. Wright dangles another railroad in front of Tacoma taxpayers.
- A Missing Section 25: How a Clerk's Slip Could Cost the Collins Heirs $500,000
Grandchildren of John Collins's first wife want a one-sixth share of the Seattle hotel property. The whole case turns on whether a territorial statute took effect on December 2, 1869 — or 42 days too late.
- Who Gets to Vote in the Primaries?
Seattle's corporation counsel says registration is not optional—even for party primaries—and that election judges cannot waive it.
- The Ship That Smuggled Opium: How a Legal Loophole Freed a Vessel and $13,000 in Penalties
Judge Hanford rules that the steamer *Walla Walla* is not liable for contraband found in its cargo because the master lacked knowledge of the smuggling, setting a precedent for common carriers.
- A Wife's Testimony Was Enough: Supreme Court Reverses Divorce Denial
The Washington Supreme Court ruled that a wife's own account of cruelty and habitual drunkenness could justify a divorce, reversing a lower court that had dismissed Nellie Lee's case.
- State Supreme Court Upholds Lake Washington Canal Contract, Clearing the Way for Tide-Land Transformation
The Washington Supreme Court rules that the Lake Washington Waterway Company's contract to dig a canal and fill tide lands is constitutional, rejecting a landowner's challenge and affirming the state's power to remake the waterfront.
- A City on the Brink: Olympia’s 1891 Debt Crisis and the Fight Over Jobs
Facing a constitutional debt limit, Olympia’s city council considers firing the deputy clerk, assistant city attorney, and city engineer—while a motion to revoke the street railway franchise fails by a tie.
- Washington’s Insurance Commissioner Fights Impeachment With 60 Pages and a Statute of Limitations
J. H. Schively answers all 26 articles with denials, jurisdictional objections, and a request to bar 17 senators — then points the blame at his predecessor.
- The Forgotten Law That Listed Walla Walla's Drinkers
A judge in Walla Walla is shocking the state by enforcing an 1883 statute that forces saloon keepers to post lists of 'habitual drunkards' in their establishments.
- The Wealth Test for Justice
A new statute restricting jury duty to 'taxpayers' effectively excludes the working class from serving as peers in legal proceedings.
- The Letter That Asked: Is Olympia's Street-Tax Ordinance Even Legal?
A citizen signing himself 'Marius' argues that the city's method of charging property owners for street paving and grading violates due process — and warns that if the assessments collapse in court, every taxpayer in town will pay for it.
- The Supreme Court Stops a Judge From Sending Yakima County the Stenographer’s Bill
A superior court judge tried to force the county treasury to pay for trial transcripts. The state Supreme Court said no—and used a rare writ to stop the warrants before they became county debt.
- The Judge's Warning: Stop Selling Whiskey to Indians
A Port Townsend grand jury was told that federal law treated every Native person as under an Indian agent's charge—and that local liquor sellers were profiting from open violation.
- The Territory Outlaws Oyster Poaching
A new statute aims to prevent the total depletion of local oyster beds by banning harvesting during the summer breeding season.
- Washington Court Rules Fathers Have No Legal Duty to Support Illegitimate Children
A landmark decision from the state supreme court highlights a massive legal loophole regarding parental responsibility.
- The Mugwump’s Ledger: How Seattle’s Territorial Secretary Gamed the Law Printing Contract
A fierce editorial exposes Secretary Owings for delaying the publication of territorial laws to favor a cronies’ printing bid, while padding the bill with 40 pages of his own party platform.
- A Seattle Wife Sued Her Husband for Beating Her. The Court Said She Couldn't.
Judge Osborne ruled that a married woman could not maintain a damages action against her husband for assault—even after testimony of a fist to the eye and kicks with heavy boots—sending the case to the state Supreme Court.
- The Right to Testify
A Seattle magistrate clarifies that Indigenous people in Snoqualmie Precinct have the legal standing to sue in civil court and testify in trials.
- The High-Stakes Battle Over Fur Seals in the North Pacific
A political storm brews in Washington as the People’s Party challenges the Republican administration over territorial rights and the protection of fur-bearing animals in the Bering Sea.
- The Logger’s Right to be Paid
A landmark Supreme Court decision upholds the right of loggers to place liens on timber they harvested, shielding laborers from corporate efforts to dodge payroll.
Also about this, in other words
- Solidarity in the Face of Sickness
When a local shingle weaver fell ill with tuberculosis, his union brothers stepped in to ensure his care at a state sanatorium.