The Price of Justice in 1876 Seattle
A meticulous audit of King County court records reveals the day-to-day costs of frontier law, from witness fees for 'Indian Lucy' to the building of the very first jail.
November 14th, 1876: The County Commissioners met at 9 a.m. to audit the costs of the recent court session. Payments were authorized for a wide range of services, including $2.00 to 'Indian Lucy' for her appearance as a witness, and $170.00 to A. Tyler for painting the new jail. The board formally accepted the plans for a new court house submitted by I. A. Palmer, ordering $300 in scrip to be issued for his work. The court also addressed the reality of the era's infrastructure, approving $100 for repairs to the Duwamish road and $50 for the Stuk River bridge. In a final order of business, the commissioners officially accepted the newly completed county jail from builders Carkeek & Doyle, closing the books on the project at a cost of over $1,000 in county scrip.
“Ordered that the county jail as erected by Carkeek & Doyle be and the same is hereby accepted and their bondsmen released.”
This 1876 audit captures the administrative skeleton of early Seattle. Just as the commissioners then debated the cost of jail maintenance and infrastructure repairs, the modern Seattle City Council continues to grapple with the same fundamental civic frictions: public works budgets, court costs, and the physical footprint of the justice system.
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