Tacoma Man Sets the Record Straight on the Northern Pacific Land Grant
Paul Schulze writes to correct a special telegram claiming the Supreme Court annulled the railroad's land grant from Portland to Tacoma, arguing the decision was narrow and fears of a land rush are overblown.
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.
TACOMA, March 7, 1894.
To THE EDITOR: Your special telegram from Washington City, dated yesterday, in reference to the decision of the supreme court in the case of the United States vs. the Northern Pacific Railroad Company is incorrect. The supreme court did not annul the land grant to the Northern Pacific Railroad Company from Portland to Tacoma, but merely held that the grant was made by the joint resolution of May 31, 1870, and not by the act of congress of July 2, 1864, as was contended by the company. The amount of land involved by this decision is small, and was thrown open to settlement by Commissioner Sparks in 1888, his decision having been sustained by the secretary. Please give this publicity so as to allay fears and nip in the bud false hopes which your Washington City special may have aroused.
PAUL SCHULZE.
“The supreme court did not annul the land grant to the Northern Pacific Railroad Company from Portland to Tacoma... The amount of land involved by this decision is small.”
Railroad land grants shaped who could settle and own ground across Washington, and every court ruling set off scrambles among settlers, speculators and the company. The fight over which statute governed the grant — and how much land was actually freed — echoes today's battles over public lands and who gets first claim.
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