Olympia prepares for Governor McGraw's inauguration
As Washington transitions from its first state administration to the next, the capital is bustling with political maneuvering and preparations for the ceremony.
The story, cleaned up
A cleaned-up reading of the newspaper page: spelling and layout repaired, one story lifted off a crowded page. It follows the original closely but it is not a transcription. The original page is below; read it if a detail matters.
Interest centers in Olympia tonight on the approaching inauguration ceremonies where John H. McGraw is to be inducted into the chief magistracy of Washington. The Sehome arrived from Seattle bringing companies of militia and the Knights of Pythias to join the festivities. Gov. Ferry will deliver his message to the legislature before McGraw is sworn in on the capitol porch. Democratic members have been meeting in secret caucus to discuss committee appointments, while the official canvassing of state votes has been completed, confirming the Republican ticket of McGraw and other state officials.
“All Olympia will be out to see the pageant, and the farmers of Thurston will be here in throngs to witness the sights.”
The transition of power in the early 1890s was a messy, public affair involving back-room caucuses and tedious legislative pageantry. The 'clumsy method' of state canvassing described by the reporter highlights a period of growing pains for the new state as it established its own democratic procedures.
From readers
No comments yet. If you know something about this story — a correction, a family memory, a source — it belongs here.