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 |
|---|---|
| 1859 | 1 |
| 1871 | 1 |
| 1876 | 1 |
| 1877 | 1 |
| 1878 | 1 |
| 1887 | 2 |
| 1891 | 1 |
| 1892 | 2 |
| 1893 | 3 |
| 1894 | 5 |
| 1895 | 2 |
| 1903 | 1 |
| 1904 | 1 |
| 1909 | 2 |
24 stories matching transcript
- The Case of the Tampered Transcript
A legal battle over a contested election takes a dark turn when unauthorized documents appear in the official court record.
- The Fee Fight at the Courthouse
A legal battle over court costs reaches the superior court as the Clerk faces a mandate to lower his prices.
- The Great Legal Squabble of 1871
A simmering territorial dispute over the 'Big Wigs'—the lawyers and judges—debating exactly when a law becomes a law.
- Stalled Bribery Investigation Still Looms Over Council
A special committee delays its report on allegations of bribery regarding an independent telephone franchise.
- The Missing Certificates of Port Townsend
A federal judge probes a mysterious 1,000-certificate shortfall that allowed Chinese immigrants to bypass strict exclusionary laws.
- The Ex-Treasurer's Appeal Stalled Over Unpaid Court Fees
Adolph Krug, sentenced to seven years for embezzling while Seattle city treasurer, failed to perfect his Supreme Court appeal—because the clerk's fees went unpaid.
- The Steilacoom Gold Rush Fever
Reports from Colville suggest a new mining boom is drawing men away from the territory's established industries.
- The Oyster King’s Great Bay: How One Man Planted a Fortune in Puget Sound
While the rest of Seattle watches the markets, A.J. Burr is engineering a tidal empire at Marshville, turning mudflats into gold with dykes and 1,000 bushels of seed.
- The Expensive Cipher Mistake That Rocked Colfax
A bungled telegram message causes a small-town grain buyer to accidentally trigger a massive payout to local farmers.
- The Lost Currency of a Civil War Tragedy
A $10 Confederate note, exchanged for a canteen of water amidst the chaos of the Battle of Cedar Creek, surfaced in Seattle sixteen years later.
- The Battle for the Courthouse Budget
Justice court clerks push back against a county consolidation plan that would slash their wages and merge their responsibilities.
- Four Years, Then a Federal Appeal: Lybarger Ordered to Walla Walla
Convicted in Thurston County of a sexual offense against 13-year-old Elsie Patnude, John G. Lybarger loses his state appeal; his wife and father-in-law had posted $3,500 bail while the case dragged on.
- A Jury Walks the Ditches: Chewelah’s Drainage War Ends
After weeks of testimony and a field inspection, a jury ruled that draining the Colville Valley would harm no one—clearing the way for the Chewelah district and weakening objections elsewhere.
- A South Seattle Murder Case Becomes a Constitutional Test
Henry Craemer’s court-appointed lawyer argued that Washington could not try a capital case on a prosecutor’s information. Judge Humes said it could; Craemer pleaded not guilty and began hunting for an alibi witness lost in the Cascades.
- The Price of a Manslaughter Verdict
A convicted man sentenced to twenty years after a jury trial that Judge Humes believed was lenient.
- The Salmon Shortage: A Territorial Plea for Survival
In May 1877, a local nurseryman and fishery advocate wrote to the *Northern Star* urging the U.S. Fish Commission to intervene, arguing that Puget Sound’s inferior salmon could not compete with Columbia River catches without urgent government aid.
- A One-Man Supreme Court: Olympia Weighs 500 Cases and 16-Hour Reading Days
A legislative investigation hears that Washington’s high court has misstated facts and been crushed by its workload — with one justice sometimes reading an entire case alone.
- The Judge, the County, and the $2,000 Court Record
A Yakima County land case with 128 parties reaches Olympia's Supreme Court over who must pay for a transcript that could decide the value of every farm acre.
- The Mayor Fired Him; He Took City Hall to Court
Police Commissioner John O. Niggle challenged Mayor Phelps's removal power—and his fellow commissioner Cheasty refused even to shake the mayor's hand.
- 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.
- The Printer and the Preacher: A Life Between Worlds
Rev. Peter C. Stanup, a Puyallup tribal member, reflects on his journey from the reservation school to the pulpit and the printing press.
- The $2 Million School-Land Grab
A federal land inspector was accused of rushing a hearing to help speculators claim Tacoma's School Section 16—land the state said was worth $2 million.
- Washington Asked Congress for $34,500 to Finish Carving Up the Colville Reservation
An 1894 dispatch from the capital details the surveying and allotment machinery behind opening the northern Colville Reservation to settlement — right down to the promise that the cost would be repaid 'from the proceeds of the lands when sold.'
- 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.
Also about this, in other words
- The Governor’s Message and the Territorial Legislature
As the territorial assembly gathers in Olympia, lawmakers debate office furniture and hear the Governor's address—while a member from Yakima keeps his feet on the table.
- A Murder Near Auburn, a Suspect Who Almost Walked, and a Translator Called In
The killing of a Japanese man near Auburn left investigators with little cooperation and a suspect named Joe; a Japanese-born interpreter was brought in as officials waited for more evidence.
- The Senate Chamber Shatters: A Riot of Words and Glass in Washington Territory
As Senators Ingalls and Voorhees traded insults that turned personal, a crowd of thousands pressed against the doors until the glass gave way, turning a legislative debate into a spectacle of democracy's raw edge.
- The Martyrdom of the Needle
A fiery plea from the pulpit for women's right to work and fair wages.
- An Unsettled Climate in the Pacific Northwest
A witness reports on the volatile tensions between white labor and the Chinese community in the region.
- The State of the Territory: 1885
Governor Watson C. Squire delivers a wide-ranging address on Washington's rapid growth, the need for a penitentiary, and the rising 'anti-Chinese' labor tensions in Seattle.