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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1858 | 4 |
| 1859 | 1 |
| 1861 | 2 |
| 1876 | 8 |
| 1877 | 23 |
| 1878 | 2 |
| 1880 | 1 |
| 1883 | 12 |
| 1884 | 6 |
| 1885 | 4 |
| 1886 | 2 |
| 1887 | 9 |
| 1888 | 10 |
| 1889 | 16 |
| 1890 | 3 |
| 1891 | 15 |
| 1892 | 18 |
| 1893 | 22 |
| 1894 | 28 |
| 1895 | 26 |
| 1897 | 3 |
| 1898 | 2 |
| 1899 | 11 |
| 1900 | 1 |
| 1903 | 15 |
| 1904 | 9 |
| 1908 | 2 |
| 1909 | 9 |
| 1910 | 2 |
| 1917 | 1 |
| 1923 | 1 |
| 1924 | 1 |
269 stories matching thompson
- The Practical Joke of the Frontier
A settler’s terrifying encounter with two armed Indigenous men concludes not with the massacre he feared, but with a surreal—and expensive—demanding of his household supplies.
- The Cost of a Sunday Saloon
A lawyer wins a suit against his own client over fees generated during the 1902 'Sunday Law' crackdown.
- $10 to Vote: Tacoma's City Hall Bribery Probe
Tacoma's council heard testimony that City Clerk Smyth paid Councilman Thompson $10 for his vote—and that Thompson tried to bribe the city attorney over a gambling house.
- Blood on the Tracks: The Renton Saloon Brawl of 1877
A card game, a wrestling match, and a concealed knife turned a quiet evening into a deadly tragedy in Renton.
- A Deadly Saloon Fight Ends in a Public Execution-Style Killing
An altercation over a game of cards in the mining settlement of Kent leads to a gruesome death and a cold-blooded confession on the tracks.
- Broken Leg on the Offner Ranch
A routine day of breaking horses turns painful when a bookkeeper is struck by an iron-shod hoof.
- The Kentucky Arson Fugitive Caught in Walla Walla
After three years on the run, a woman accused of burning a Kentucky barn for insurance money is apprehended in Walla Walla.
- A Stolen Rig, a Suspicious Liveryman, and a One-to-Ten-Year Sentence
James Thompson hired a rig in Colville, drove it to Addy, and tried to sell it—then found himself before two judges in a single day.
- A Tacoma School Inquiry Ends in a Hallway Brawl
A closed-door investigation at Tacoma High School spills into a physical confrontation between a professor and a Chamber of Commerce committeeman.
- Tragedy in the Woods: Storm Claims Lives at Crescent Bay
A young family seeking shelter from a gale-force windstorm in the woods meets a sudden, heartbreaking end when a falling tree strikes their home.
- The Burglars Who Rang the Doorbell
In a brazen early morning attempt to rob W. I. Thompson’s Broadway residence, thieves cut telephone wires and rang the front door bell—only to be foiled by Mrs. Thompson’s sharp eyes.
- The Road Supervisor Who Stole From the County — and the Wife Who Sued Him in Prison
Orva Thompson, convicted of embezzling county road funds, is served divorce papers behind penitentiary walls by the woman he married eleven months earlier.
- A Deadly Valentine's Day Shooting
A young woman shoots and kills her former suitor after he breaks his promise of marriage.
- Sixteen-Year-Old Karl Thompson Drowns in Chehalis River
A boat capsizes near an old brewery, leaving a sixteen-year-old boy dead.
- The Theater Manager's Midnight Exit
A local theater manager vanishes into the night after pocketing ticket receipts and leaving a trail of unpaid debts and angry performers.
- A Miner’s Life Crushed at Newcastle
A young worker is critically injured after being caught between an engine and a coal car at the Newcastle mine.
- Watch Thief Nabbed at Lake Washington
A young man loses his gold watch and chain at the Madison Street terminus; an arrest follows, though the watch remains missing.
- Road Supervisor Jailed for Embezzlement
A local official faces charges after allegedly pocketing road tax cash and failing to perform the required public works.
- The Kitchen War in Little Rock
A domestic squabble in a Seattle kitchen erupts into a violent, farcical showdown between a scorned husband, a smooth-talking preacher, and a woman who refuses to be anyone's possession.
- The Tragic End of a Kalispel Valley Love Triangle
A farmer takes his own life after murdering his neighbor in a crime born of betrayal and a hidden cache of letters.
- Tacoma's Bribery Probe Ends With a Censure, Not a Conviction
A Tacoma City Council 'Lexow' committee cleared Councilman Thompson and City Clerk Smyth of bribery, then censured Smyth anyway for boasting he'd paid for a vote.
- The 'Luck Powder' Swindle
A Seattle man is arrested for selling worthless 'luck powders' to women via mail order—and then suggesting they be used as laundry detergent.
- The Swift and Terrible Justice of the Gallows
A condemned man is rushed to the gallows in just five days, sparking outrage over the speed of the judicial process in Snohomish.
- The Confidence Men of Leschi Park
A visiting Wells, Fargo express agent is fleeced by a trio of notorious swindlers in a elaborate 'bunko' game near the sea lion pavilion.
- The Great Tacoma Hop Battle
When a New York firm tried to back out of a contract after a price crash, they found that Tacoma business owners weren't taking no for an answer.