The North Yakima Night-Riders
Vigilante arsonists strike at property owners in the growing town of North Yakima.
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.
A report from North Yakima states that an incendiary fire was set on the railroad tracks to pull it out to the new town. There is no clue yet as to who the perpetrators of the act were. It was doubtless done to intimidate those who are getting ready to move their buildings, which had been saved from the fire. At the time the giant powder was fired, J. M. Adams, proprietor of the Yakima Journal, was in New York, but the press and type had been removed to North Yakima. It is understood that the bank will be opened on Saturday. Meanwhile, it will have to remain closed.
“It was doubtless done to intimidate those who are getting ready to move their buildings.”
This 1885 report of arson used to 'intimidate' residents into moving their buildings reflects the volatile, often violent growth of early Washington settlements. Today, Seattle’s development conflicts take the form of zoning and displacement battles, yet the underlying tension remains: how the aggressive expansion of real estate interests forces the hand of the established community.
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