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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1861 | 1 |
| 1872 | 4 |
| 1876 | 7 |
| 1877 | 13 |
| 1878 | 3 |
| 1880 | 1 |
| 1882 | 2 |
| 1883 | 9 |
| 1884 | 3 |
| 1885 | 3 |
| 1886 | 2 |
| 1887 | 1 |
| 1888 | 12 |
| 1889 | 31 |
| 1890 | 1 |
| 1891 | 15 |
| 1892 | 27 |
| 1893 | 14 |
| 1894 | 39 |
| 1895 | 47 |
| 1897 | 2 |
| 1898 | 3 |
| 1899 | 3 |
| 1903 | 10 |
| 1904 | 11 |
| 1908 | 5 |
| 1909 | 11 |
| 1910 | 3 |
| 1914 | 1 |
| 1916 | 6 |
| 1917 | 2 |
| 1928 | 1 |
| 1929 | 1 |
294 stories matching transact
- The Wild West of Seattle Land Speculation
A single week in April 1889 shows the frantic, high-velocity churn of property ownership as Seattle’s real estate fever hit a boiling point just months before the Great Fire.
- The Seattle Land Rush of 1889
A weekly log of deeds and transactions reveals the frenzied pace of development, speculation, and shifting property lines in pre-statehood Seattle.
- Kennewick's Paper Trail for Second-Hand Goods
New city ordinance demands detailed records of every junk transaction to curb local theft.
- The Price of a Lien: Laborers Shortchanged in Log Sale
After months of legal delays, loggers find their hard-earned wages swallowed by legal fees and court costs.
- Eatonville Doctor Vanishes Amid Fraud Allegations
After swindling the community out of hundreds of dollars, a local physician vanishes into thin air, leaving a trail of bogus checks and empty promises.
- Who Controls the Schoolhouse Purse?
Walla Walla taxpayers demand fiscal transparency as the school board ignores mandatory financial reporting.
- The Boomtown Ledger: 43 Property Deals in One Day
A deep dive into Seattle's 1891 real estate frenzy reveals a city rapidly carving itself into existence, from the Lake Washington shoreline to new suburban additions.
- The Treasurer’s Shadow
A local businessman on trial for graft testifies that he wasn't exploiting the city treasury, but merely acting as a 'friend' by borrowing city money at interest.
- Streetcar Workers Demand Open County Meetings
Seattle’s Street Railway Employes’ Union petitions the legislature to force county commissioners to do the public’s business in public, after years of closed-door executive sessions.
- The Custom House Scandal: A Betrayed Deposit
A missing payment of gold coin in a shipping manifest sparks a corruption investigation in Port Townsend, shaking public faith in the local customs office.
- A Local Bank Closes Its Doors as Its Officers Head to Seattle
The State Bank of Olympia winds down after its president and cashier leave for Seattle, transferring accounts to the First National Bank.
- Henry Yesler's Secret Note Comes Due
A Seattle jury spends fifteen minutes awarding a pioneer's long-hidden IOU—about $125,000 with interest—after the Yesler estate offers no defense.
- The Legality of Corporate 'Banks'
Attorney General rules that companies can legally hold worker wages as interest-bearing deposits.
- The Drummer’s Deed: A Tale of Lost Blocks and Mutual Recrimination
A traveling salesman thought he’d scored a bargain on Seattle real estate, only to discover his deed was for the wrong lot—and his seller had no idea either.
- The Land Baron Who Never Was: The Bizarre Legal Saga of Burke's Second Addition
A territorial secretary’s attempt to claim land in Seattle collapsed when it was revealed that the man who actually bought the property had already died years ago.
- The Real Estate Handshake: A Forgotten Legal Precedent
An 1889 court ruling from Kansas reverberated in Seattle, forcing a change in how developers and land brokers accounted for profits.
- A Railroad Asks Newport to Vacate Streets—and Promises to Give Them Back
The Idaho & Washington Northern offered a written pledge to reopen any street or alley on 30 days’ notice as the council weighed a deal for new freight yards.
- The Merchant's Dilemma
A local merchant vents his frustration over wealthy patrons who expect him to function as their private banker.
- The Forgery Charge Against Minnie Yesler
Confined to her mansion under a physician's care, the widow of Seattle pioneer Henry Yesler waives a hearing on forgery charges.
- The Great Hop Correction: A Merchant’s Penny and the Price of Truth
In a rare moment of journalistic humility, local merchants publicly corrected a previous error regarding hop prices, revealing the volatile nature of Seattle’s agricultural trade in February 1903.
- The Middleman Trap: A Farm Journal Warns the Growers About Shady Commission Houses
A Northwest agricultural paper tells fruit shippers to beware 'snide concerns' that report produce as damaged and pocket the difference — and names a Tacoma firm closing its season 'under the cloud of shady transactions.'
- The Price of 'Protection': Seattle’s Managed Vice in 1892
A rare glimpse into the city's early, transactional relationship with sex work, where police collected 'license fees' under the guise of liquor violations.
- Telegraph Operator Arrested for Forgery
A Northern Pacific employee is behind bars after allegedly altering postal money orders to inflate their value at a downtown bank.
- The Tragedy of Owen Hughes
After losing his savings in a series of failed business ventures and railroad deals, an aging hospital steward chooses to end his life at a Seattle hotel.
- A Deadly Dispute Over the Price of a Calf
A multi-year feud in Walla Walla culminates in a brutal stabbing over a livestock transaction.