Research the archive

• “twig” ×

1. The Skagit Valley's Endless Harvest

   While the rest of the country faced the winter chill of 1891, gardeners in Skagit County were picking fresh blackberries and watching peas bloom in the open air.

   Jan 6, 1891The Seattle Post-IntelligencerLyman, Skagit CountyStrange But True

2. An Entomologist's Dire Warning for Seattle Orchards

   A local resident documents a massive infestation of scale and aphid pests, calling for a city-wide inspection to save Seattle’s fruit trees.

   Jan 22, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyStrange But True

3. Brutal Freeze Decimates Kennewick Peach Crop

   Horticulturalists warn growers to exercise caution with pruning after a devastating winter chill kills up to 90 percent of fruit buds.

   Jan 27, 1916The Kennewick Courier-ReporterKennewick, Benton CountyDisasters

4. The Moss-Cloaked Giants of Bay Center

   A teacher’s letter from the Pacific Northwest frontier describes a landscape of colossal trees and lush undergrowth, challenging the myth of the harsh pioneer struggle.

   Apr 6, 1877The Daily IntelligencerBay Center, Pacific CountyBoom & Bust · Strange But True

5. A Wall of Smoke and Flame Across Puget Sound

   Forest fires from Hood Canal to the Nooksack Valley left dozens of families homeless in 1894, while smoke turned steamboat travel blind and daily life in Seattle into a gray haze.

   Sep 1, 1894The Seattle Post-IntelligencerPuget Sound, Seattle, King CountyDisasters

6. The Wooden Revolver That Sprung Tom Blanck

   A murderer awaiting appeal in the King County jail used a hand-carved fake gun to force his way past the night jailer, then vanished into the Black River woods as a sheriff's posse rushed south by special train.

   Mar 19, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerKing County Jail, SeattleCity Hall · True Crime

7. A War Party Among the Makah

   James G. Swan recounts the violent return of a Makah war party to Neah Bay after a retaliatory expedition against the Elwha people near Dungeness.

   Nov 2, 1861Washington StandardNeah Bay, Neah Bay, Clallam CountyStrange But True

8. A Yakima Boy's Death Struggle with a Cougar

   A teenage boy hunting on the reservation fought off a mountain lion with nothing but his bare hands and a stream for a weapon.

   Jun 20, 1889The Yakima HeraldTieton River, Naches, Yakima CountyStrange But True

9. The Apple Trees That Sailed From England in a Sea Captain's Cabin

   Seeds saved from a farewell dinner in 1833 were planted at Fort Nisqually and grew into the finest apple trees north of the Columbia. Now an editor wants Tacoma to move them to a park before the squirrels of Rosston are their only company.

   Apr 11, 1892The Olympia TribuneDuPont, Pierce CountyGone Forever · Strange But True

10. An Invasive Pest Stalking Seattle's Shade Trees

    Millions of eggs have been discovered on poplar and maple trees, threatening to decimate the city’s urban canopy.

    May 17, 1892The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyStrange But True

11. Seattle Buries Bailey Gatzert Under a Grave of Flowers

    The ex-mayor, banker and merchant drew hundreds to the Rainier Hotel, where Masons, city officials and civic societies honored a pioneer.

    Apr 21, 1893The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

12. Seattle's Irish Community Crowns Robert Emmet—and Calls for Home Rule

    In 1895, the Irish-American Club packed Ranke's Hall to honor the martyred patriot with speeches, songs, and a ringing demand for an Irish parliament.

    Mar 5, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

13. The 'Miraculous Devil' Seed

    A local curiosity exhibit features strange, jumping seeds from Mexico, rumored to be poisonous and charged with mysterious 'electric fluid.'

    Sep 19, 1863Washington StandardOlympia, Thurston CountyStrange But True

14. The Tumbleweed That Threatened Washington's Wheat

    In 1898, a state agricultural professor traced an invasive Russian thistle to railway yards and warned that Yakima County was already infested.

    Jul 30, 1898Ranche and RangeToppenish, Yakima County

15. A Rancher's Revenge: Peaches, Borers, and Everett's Blind Eye to Gambling

    When Everett's fruit inspector condemned 40 boxes of a Pateros orchardist's peaches for pests, J. H. Partley fired back with a blistering question: why enforce the fruit laws to the letter while the city's gambling dens run wide open?

    Oct 15, 1902The RanchEverett, Snohomish CountyCity Hall · Nightlife

16. The Library Was Not a Luxury

    An 1895 editorial made the case that a free public library was civic infrastructure, not charity—and that starving it of funds betrayed the city's future.

    May 6, 1895The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyCity Hall

17. The Mysterious Grapefruit’s Debut in Seattle

    Before the grapefruit was a breakfast staple, local merchants were mystified by the 'shaddock,' a strange, fickle fruit that could leave an unsuspecting eater with a sour face.

    May 24, 1889The Seattle Post-IntelligencerSeattle, King CountyStrange But True

Download all 17 as a spreadsheet (CSV)