Kate’s Notes: Although this article appeared in a Minnesota paper the incident occurred in Washington State, and is therefore being filed under newspaper articles for Washington.

The Saint Paul Daily Globe
St. Paul, Minnesota
10 December, 1892

FOUGHT THREE HOURS
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Terrible Riot Between Graders
and Italians at a Town on
the Great Northern.
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Trouble Started by the Luck of a 
Drunken Gambler and a
Scarlet Woman.
_________________

    SPOKANE, Wash., Dec 9. -- A terrible riot occurred at Wenatchee last night, and for three hours the town was in control of a mob of frenzied graders. Wenatchee is a town about 10 miles west of here on the Great Northern railroad. The trouble was started by the luck of a drunken gambler named Tom Gilleland. He worked on the Great Northern grade at intervals through the summer. About once in six weeks he would quit work and come to Wenatchee to spend all his money on a wild carousal. So long as he had money he would frequent French Annie’s place, one of the toughest dives of the town, and spend nearly all of his time with one of its inmates, known as Susette. For the last month she has been living with Guisippo Vacco, a faro dealer, who is a sort of king among the Italians here, and is said to have been driven from New Orleans for his participation in the Mafia murders.
    Gilleland quit work a week ago and came to Wenatchee, getting drunk the first night. In two days his money was gone, and he has been loafing since. Last night he was paid an old debt of $12, and about 8 o’clock went to play cards and drink whisky. He played in luck, and quit the game with $240. He next played poker and about 11 o’clock started for Vacco’s faro bank with about $2,000 in his pockets. Here he continued to play recklessly. Finally Gilleland threw his money on the table in a heap and bet on the queen and ace. When his pile was counted it was found to contain $5,050. Gilleland won. Vacco paid, but it broke the bank. Susette heard the news and started to the gambling room, saying she was going to the man who had the luck. Vacco met her and would not let her pass. Gilleland pushed him aside, walking off with the woman.
    Before they had gone a block a dozen Italians, led by Vacco, surrounded them, and, while some attacked Gilleland, the rest tried to carry away the woman. Gilleland fought like a tiger, knocking down two or three with his fist before he could draw his gun. The screams of the woman brought a crowd of men from all sides, and the bands of graders rushed to their comrades rescue. Vacco gave a peculiar whistle and in a moment the street was filled with Italians, some of them but half dressed, and armed with knives, clubs and stones.
    The railroad men gathered in a group with Gilleland and the woman in the center, and began to retreat slowly, firing as they went and calling for help as they fell back. Others joined them, and finally they made a stand in front of a saloon. The Italians pressed them closely at first, and many fights occured, but when the graders opened fire they gave way until there was a space of twenty feet between the two parties. Across this space stones, clubs and brickbats flew in a regular cloud, those who were knocked down being carried to the rear of the mob. Three graders, who had been stabbed with long knives, were carried into the saloon, and the woman was spirited away in the darkness.
    About ten minutes after the graders had made their stand a band of twenty Italians charged on them from the rear and those on the other side closed in at the same time. For a moment it seemed as if the railroaders would be wiped out, but the hot fire forced the Italians to fall back in confusion. Before they could rally, the railroad men were reinforced by nearly fifty men who came down a side street on the run. The Italians fell back  several blocks, carrying their wounded. Both parties gradually broke up into small bands and scattered through the town. Whenever opposite factions met there was a skirmish generally ending in the defeat of the Italians, but there were no general engagements. The fight continued until dawn, when both parties scattered and got out of sight.

-- transcription by Kate Maynard, 2011