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Auburn beginnings: Slaughter Post Office opens on January 21, 1867.

The opening of a post office is an important marker of the beginning of a community. On January 21, 1867, the Slaughter (later renamed Auburn) Post Office opens. Joseph Gibson is appointed postmaster....

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Washington Territorial Legislature approves King County's present-day boundaries on January 31, 1867.

On January 31, 1867, the Washington Territorial Legislature approves the present-day (2006) boundaries of King County (with subsequent minor adjustments). One of the Territory's first eight counties, ...

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U.S. Senate ratifies purchase of Alaska from Russia on April 9, 1867.

On April 9, 1867, the U.S. Senate ratifies the purchase of Alaska from Russia for $7,200,000. Russia is a reluctant seller and the United States is a reluctant buyer. Many Americans think little of th...

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Weekly Intelligencer, a precursor of the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, publishes its first edition on August 5, 1867.

On August 5, 1867, the Weekly Intelligencer, a precursor of the Post-Intelligencer, makes its debut in Seattle. The paper is the latest incarnation of what was originally called The Seattle Gazette, t...

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Seattle Weekly Intelligencer announces on October 7, 1867, that the first wagon road has been completed over Snoqualmie Pass.

On October 7, 1867, the Seattle Weekly Intelligencer announces that the first wagon road has been completed over Snoqualmie Pass through the Cascade Mountains. The importance of this route was realize...

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Samuel and Martha Benn trade their homestead for Reuben Redman's land at the mouth of the Wishkah River, future site of Aberdeen, on March 13, 1868.

On March 13, 1868, Samuel and Martha Benn trade their homestead at Melbourne, a community on the Chehalis River near Montesano, for land owned by Reuben Redman (Martha's father) at the mouth of the Wi...

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Promoter Morton Matthew McCarver arrives at Eureka, later Tacoma, on April 1, 1868.

On April 1, 1868, promoter Morton Matthew McCarver (1807-1875) arrives at Eureka, on Commencement Bay. Recognizing the location's potential as a terminus for the Northern Pacific Railroad, he will pur...

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Dexter Horton Bank, Seattle's first non-wood structure, is built during 1868-1869.

From 1868 to 1869, the Dexter Horton Bank builds the first stone structure in Seattle and King County.

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Seattleites organize Seattle Library Association on August 7, 1868.

On August 7, 1868, Seattle's first library association, the future Seattle Public Library, is organized. Sarah Yesler (1822-1887) is appointed first librarian.

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Coleman party reaches the summit of Mount Baker on August 17, 1868.

On August 17, 1868, the Coleman party reaches the summit of Mount Baker, the first climbers in recorded history to do so. Mount Baker is one of the most striking and powerful features of the northwest...

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Sand Point's first settler is William Goldmyer on September 5, 1868.

On September 5, 1868, William Goldmyer (1843-1924) is the first homesteader to settle on a point jutting into Lake Washington, later called Sand Point. (Sand Point in on the western, Seattle side of t...

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Dungeness Massacre occurs on September 21, 1868.

Just before dawn on September 21, 1868, 26 S'Klallam Indians, led by a man known locally as Lame Jack (or Nu-mah the Bad by his tribesmen), conduct a raid on a party of 18 Tsimshian Indians camped on ...

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Drought desiccates and forest fires burn Pacific Northwest from June to October 29, 1868.

From June 1 to October 29, 1868, a drought desiccates the Pacific Northwest. Forest fires rage from British Columbia through Washington, Oregon, and California. Sailing ships report smoke more than 1,...

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Chun Ching Hock opens the Wa Chong Company in Seattle on December 15, 1868.

On December 15, 1868, Chinese settler Chun Ching Hock (1844-1927) opens the Wa Chong Company, a general-merchandise store, at the foot of Mill Street (later renamed Yesler Way) in Seattle. Chun (whose...

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Seattle receives epithet Queen City in 1869.

In 1869, Russell and Ferry, a Portland real estate firm, gives Seattle the epithet the Queen City.

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Seattle's first Roman Catholic Church is built in 1869.

In 1869, Seattle's first Roman Catholic Church is built. It is called Our Lady of Good Help and guided by Fr. Francis Xavier Prefontaine (1838-1908) until its demolition in 1904.

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Waitsburg's first plat is recorded on February 23, 1869.

On February 23, 1869, William Perry Bruce files a plat for the town of Waitsburg. The town, which was officially named the previous year, has grown up around a flour mill established by Sylvester M. W...

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The Seattle Public Library opens in April 1869.

In April 1869, Seattle's Library Association opens a loan library, the future Seattle Public Library. Sarah Yesler (1822-1887) serves as the first librarian.

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Schanno family plants the first wine grapes in the Yakima Valley near Union Gap in 1869.

In 1869, the Charles Schanno family plants the first known grapevines in the Yakima Valley on their farm near Union Gap. Finding the climate ideal for wine grape production, other settlers follow suit...

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Phillip Ritz purchases site of Wallingford business district (Seattle) for settlement on June 3, 1869.

On June 3, 1869, Phillip Ritz purchases 80 acres from the federal government in what would become the Wallingford neighborhood of Seattle. (Ritz's land extends from the future Woodlawn to Meridian Ave...

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Charles Watts murders Augustin Hibbard at the San Juan Lime Company on June 17, 1869.

On June 17, 1869, Charles Watts murders his San Juan Lime Company partner Augustin Hibbard at the company office. The partners are arguing about the amount and quality of Watts's contribution to the l...

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Earthquake strikes Puget Sound region on June 29, 1869.

On June 29, 1869, just before 8 p.m., the Puget Sound region had an earthquake that was felt from Astoria, Oregon, to San Juan Island and perhaps all the way to Victoria, British Columbia. At Seattle ...

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William Seward starts two-day visit to Puget Sound on July 21, 1869.

On July 21, 1869, former Secretary of State William H. Seward (1801-1872) starts a two-day visit to Puget Sound, during which he will tour more than half a dozen settlements, traveling on the steamer ...

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Seattle's first circus arrives on August 24, 1869.

On August 24, 1869, the Great Eastern and Royal European Circus, the first circus to visit Seattle, performs in Pioneer Square in front of approximately 400 people. One reporter deemed it "the most ta...

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