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| Year | Stories |
|---|---|
| 1854 | 4 |
| 1858 | 1 |
| 1859 | 1 |
| 1861 | 4 |
| 1862 | 3 |
| 1863 | 2 |
| 1872 | 5 |
| 1876 | 20 |
| 1877 | 13 |
| 1878 | 5 |
| 1880 | 4 |
| 1882 | 3 |
| 1883 | 17 |
| 1884 | 5 |
| 1885 | 11 |
| 1886 | 8 |
| 1887 | 16 |
| 1888 | 11 |
| 1889 | 23 |
| 1890 | 6 |
| 1891 | 26 |
| 1892 | 37 |
| 1893 | 30 |
| 1894 | 51 |
| 1895 | 64 |
| 1896 | 1 |
| 1897 | 7 |
| 1898 | 7 |
| 1899 | 7 |
| 1900 | 1 |
| 1902 | 2 |
| 1903 | 17 |
| 1904 | 12 |
| 1905 | 1 |
| 1907 | 2 |
| 1908 | 10 |
| 1909 | 15 |
| 1910 | 3 |
| 1911 | 1 |
| 1912 | 1 |
| 1914 | 2 |
| 1915 | 1 |
| 1916 | 7 |
| 1917 | 7 |
| 1923 | 1 |
| 1924 | 1 |
| 1928 | 2 |
| 1929 | 2 |
480 stories matching understand
- A Chinese Student's 1929 Speech Named the Racism Washington Tried to Forget
At the University of Washington's Cosmopolitan Club, Wesley Kai Hwa Kwang catalogued a century of anti-Chinese violence — including the 1885 killings in Squak Valley and the burning of Tacoma's Chinatown — and asked a white audience to account for it.
- The Murder Foretold: Three Japanese Laborers Held Without Bail
A witness testifies that one suspect predicted the killing hours in advance, and a bloody butcher knife is found in a kitchen wall. Three Japanese men are ordered held without bail for the murder of a Japanese boss near Christopher.
- The Darkest Hour: Temperance Leader Declares Cause 'Dead' Amidst Political Corruption
At the State Temperance Alliance meeting in Seattle, Rev. Clark Davis delivers a scathing indictment of the liquor industry's grip on politics and religion, while Rep. De Steiguer rallies support for Watson Squire.
- Seattle's Canal Backers Turn Up the Pressure—and the Cash
Boosters behind the Lake Washington canal reported fresh subscriptions, promised a gravity water supply for the tide flats, and argued the city could not afford to miss its chance.
- Tacoma's Anti-Boodler Council Seizes Power, Demands Accounting of City Funds
A new coalition of Republicans and Populists takes control of Tacoma's city council, stripping power from the old guard and launching an investigation into the city's $720,000 bank deposit. Mayor Orr's appointments are blocked as the finance committee prepares to audit every bank.
- The 'Odd Fellow' and the Suspicious Wife
A Seattle man's secret late-night meetings with his fraternal order spark a domestic showdown over 'goat riding,' moral uprightness, and marital suspicion.
- A Creameryman Confesses: 'Our Business Conditions Are Rotten'
In an unusually candid letter to The Ranch, the manager of the Rockwood Creamery Co. says reckless price-cutting and smooth-talking rivals are cheating Washington dairy farmers and quietly ruining the state's butter.
- The Chinese Girl Barred From the Y.W.C.A. Pool
In a 1926 essay, a Chinese writer catalogues American prejudice—segregated Y.M.C.A.s, a church donor’s daughter turned away from a swimming pool, and lecturers who twist China to fit their biases.
- The Old Man’s Last Stand: A Father’s Flight from Greedy Heirs Ends in a Sheriff’s Chase
P.V. Thorpe, an elderly pioneer fleeing false rape accusations and property theft by his son and son-in-law, was arrested for carrying a revolver in Seattle—only to be vindicated when the truth about his family’s blackmail scheme came to light.
- The Labor Volcano That Cooled: Seattle’s Coal Strike Ends in Days
A walkout by the Knights of Labor at Newcastle and other local mines appeared to be a major escalation, but operators quickly filled the spots with non-union labor, ending the dispute before it could spark a general strike.
- The City That Couldn't Pay Its Bills: Seattle’s Fiscal Crisis and the Fight for Expansion
Mayor Moran and Councilman Dane plead with citizens to understand why street paving is stalled and sewer plans are shelved—not from laziness, but because state law caps the city's debt just as the population doubles.
- A Million-Dollar Land Grab and the Wife Left Behind
Abandoned for ten years in Pennsylvania, Mrs. J. E. Jordan comes to Seattle's superior court to stop her husband from deeding away the community's real estate to a medicine company — and names the men who helped him do it.
- The Customs Collector and the Straw Men of Puget Sound
A Tacoma official accuses Collector J. C. Saunders of padding the customs payroll with political workers—including a no-show inspector—for work never done at the Interstate Fair.
- The Confusion of the Ballot: Understanding the Initiative and Referendum
Voters struggle to decipher the complex state measures governing lawmaking, recall, and public utilities ahead of the November 7th election.
- The City Health Board Closed Two Schools. The School Board Asked Who Gave It the Power.
When scarlet fever fears shut Rainier and South schools, Seattle's school board dug in—not against quarantine, but against what its lawyers called an 'arbitrary' order that skipped the City Council.
- The Lawyer Who Spoke 'Jargon' to Save a Man from Prison
In a Tacoma courtroom in the early days of Washington state, Attorney Frank Clark stunned federal prosecutors by abandoning legalese for Chinook Jargon, winning the acquittal of a poor logger accused of stealing timber.
- A Daughter’s Power Play Over a Family Estate
A Swedish immigrant challenges the administration of her late husband’s property, claiming her own daughter and son-in-law conspired to cheat her out of her inheritance.
- Broken Promises at the Spokane Council
A failed federal attempt to force Spokane tribal members onto reservations leaves a legacy of distrust and looming conflict.
- Tacoma's Water Chief Accused—and the City Hall Feud Behind It
Mayor Orr's appointment of George H. Hollidge to run Tacoma's water and light plants blew up into a public corruption fight, with secret affidavits, anonymous postal cards and a grand jury waiting.
- A Railroad the Valley Needed—and Another Year of Waiting
Federal regulators ordered a fresh hearing on the Wenatchee Southern, infuriating Central Washington growers who said poor transport was costing them millions.
- Spokane Dressed for a Railroad King—and Waited Until Midnight
Spokane Falls spent a week building arches and hanging evergreens for Henry Villard's Northern Pacific excursion, but delayed trains turned the grand reception into a series of after-dark whistle-stops—and Ulysses S. Grant drew the crowd that the railroad had promised.
- The City's Sudden Morality Raid Targeted the Wrong Women
A Yakima letter-writer asks why licensed saloons kept their protection while women were fined $5 a month in police court.
- The High Cost of Borrowing in Territorial Olympia
An indignant citizen writes to the editor to protest the predatory lending practices bankrupting the territory's early settlers.
- The Parents Said Tacoma's Schools Were Failing. The Typesetter Who Set Their Letter Answered Back.
A frustrated parent writes in to say the city schools teach paper-folding instead of arithmetic; a linotype operator at the same paper — and a Tacoma graduate himself — replies that the trouble may lie closer to home.
- The Groom’s Armed Ultimatum
A wedding ceremony in Olympia was interrupted when the groom drew a six-shooter to prevent the minister from claiming the traditional first kiss.
Also about this, in other words
- The Misunderstood Drunk
A Seattle man is arrested as a 'desperate criminal,' only for the court to find he is suffering from delirium tremens.
- The Anatomy of a Murder (Misunderstood)
A courtroom blunder in 1876 highlights how a simple misunderstanding can derail the pursuit of justice.
- A Father’s Hardship and the Telegram That Changed Everything
An overworked, weary business man contemplates his supposed failures until a birthday message from his daughter provides a new perspective on success.
- The Human Machine: An 1876 Warning on Burnout
A century-and-a-half-old editorial from Snohomish reminds us that the pressure to keep working is not a modern invention.
- The 'A Co.' Misunderstanding
A linguistic confusion at a Seattle restaurant leads to a partnership change and a new sign.
- The Invisible Army Under the Microscope
A scientific lecture delivered in Snohomish contemplates the origins of life, the invisible world of bacteria, and the processes of decay.
- The Anatomy of a 'Quitter' in the Labor Movement
A fiery editorial from the era defines the unionist's ideal of solidarity—and the absolute contempt reserved for those who broke ranks.
- The Persistent Promise of Easy Money
A classic 19th-century 'work from home' pitch promises Snohomish laborers a fortune for minimal effort.