After logger’s murder, bordello madam vanished

Reading between the lines of the story, it’s clear that the governor’s well-intentioned intervention was probably the worst thing that could have happened to Marshal Stroud of Harney City, and precipitated the closest thing Oregon history has to Arizona’s famous O.K. Corral gunfight. Which, as I’m …

Calm seas, a hard-working crew and a cool-headed skipper helped the steamship Congress and everyone on board survive a terrifying night after a fire broke out in the cargo hold and spread throughout the ship. (Coos Bay, Coos County; 1910s) (For text and pictures, see https://offbeatoregon.com/1303c…

Going to prison for a year or two might have saved the city marshal's life — it would have given the rivals some time to cool off, and also a sense of justice served (or retribution satisfied, depending on how you look at it). Moreover, he probably would have had to sell his saloon, so that there w…

The Reverend preached the funeral service to an empty church, while the deceased's friends and colleagues fought in the parking lot over who got to ride in the taxicabs. But the hostilities were forgotten when they arrived at a roadhouse. (Tacoma, Washington Territory; 1880s) (For text and pictures…