The Price of Heat: Challenging the Seattle Coal Monopoly
An editorial analysis exposes how a concentration of control in the coal industry is gouging Seattle residents while stifling competition.
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.
The current state of affairs regarding the Cedar River Coal Company is a fair illustration of the coal business in Seattle. One fifth of the coal brought to retail yards in Seattle is screen coal, which sells at $3.50 per ton. Four-fifths is nut coal, which sells at $1 per ton. This leaves a vast profit in the retail yards. Taking the stats at his word, the cost to the consumer is far too high. I believe the coal company in question owns the transportation. It has to pay whatever costs it charges itself, and the public has to pay the difference. If the company were forced to pay its miners more, it could still turn a profit. I have taken this task upon myself simply so the facts might come to light. The retail industry is clearly a monopoly, and it is time for the public to wake up to the true relationship between those who charge for heat and those who pay the bill.
“The retail industry is clearly a monopoly, and it is time for the public to wake up to the true relationship between those who charge for heat and those who pay the bill.”
In 1886, Seattle was in the grip of a coal cartel that controlled both supply and logistics, a direct ancestor to today's debates over how utility and housing monopolies create artificial scarcity. The writer's frustration with 'price gouging' for basic survival needs—in this case, home heating—mirrors modern Seattle's ongoing struggle with the cost of living and the consolidation of industry power.
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