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From Brickyard to Park: Cannon Hill Park: This quiet park was once a busy brickyard.
Cannon Hill Park was originally home to a brickyard. Henry Brook discovered a clay deposit in the 1880s and it was used for making bricks. Cannon Hill bricks were widely used in downtown buildings as…
Fresh Air for All: MAC 100 Stories: A Centennial Exhibition
Spokane's basalt outcroppings and deep river gorge captivated Boston landscape designer John Charles Olmsted. His firm, Olmsted Brothers, was instrumental in spreading an urban planning movement…
Frederick/Longbotham Building: Ghost Signs of Spokane Tour - Story 16
Like many buildings in the East Downtown Historic District, the Frederick/Longbotham building speaks to Spokane's past through the many faded advertisements still visible on its exterior.
At the…
Fraternal Influence at Greenwood Cemetery
At the end of the 19th Century, membership in fraternal organizations and social clubs was at a peak - when it was common for ladies and gentlemen to be enrolled in several groups at a time. Women's…
Francis H. Cook
A forgotten founder of Spokane, Francis H. Cook was one of the most influential people in Spokane’s History.
Little is known about Cook’s childhood other than in 1851 he was born a twin to Silas…
Totem Pole: Fort George Wright Tour - Story 6
Col. George Wright would be shocked to find a symbol of the continued survival of the Native American cultural tradition at the military base that bore his name. Yet the Fort Wright Totem Pole stands…
Who Was George Wright?: Fort George Wright Tour
The Fort George Wright monument tells the story of the fort from its creation in 1895 to its acquisition by the Mukogawa Fort Wright Institute in 1990. The Mukogawa Fort Wright Institute has started…
Frontier Justice at Fort George Wright: Fort George Wright Tour
It was the night of August 14th 1916 and Edward F. Mayberry was on the run. Three witnesses had seen Mayberry murder 35 year old Native American woman Alice Vivian on the Colville Reservation near…
Welcome to Historic Fort George Wright: Fort George Wright Tour
By the end of the 19th century, after generations of hard frontier living and occasionally violent interactions with the native population, the United States had firmly established itself in the…
Theodore Roosevelt on the Parade Grounds: Fort George Wright Tour
You are standing where Teddy Roosevelt stood on April 8th 1911, reviewing the 500 heroic African-American troops of the 25th Infantry as they passed in review. The 25th Infantry had served with…
Fort George Wright Cemetery: Fort George Wright Tour
When Fort George Wright was constructed in the 1890s, effort was made to ensure a proper final resting place could be afforded the men who died there while serving in the military. A peaceful spot was…
Fort Colvile: A Hidden Gem in the Columbia Basin
Two global fur trade companies became one through a forced merger, a deal that would have a lasting effect on the fur trade in the Pacific Northwest.
Flumes, Chutes and Splash Dams: Logging in the early years
Logging for white pine in north Idaho required a new transportation method to get the logs from the mountain to the mill. Flumes, chutes and splash dams were the solution.
Flour Mill
The city of Spokane began as a small cluster of buildings on the south side of the falls, focused around saw mills and and later flour mills. This is why the city was originally named Spokane Falls.…
Float Homes of Bayview: Floating homes, Lake Pend Oreille
The "Floating Village" near Bayview, Idaho has been part of the community's history since 1910. These homes are fully equipped for full time residents or vacationing families.
Five Mile Prairie Schoolhouse
The original Five Mile Prairie Schoolhouse was built in 1901. It was a small one-room building that housed fourteen students and one teacher. In 1912 the school, which had become too small for the…
First Congregational Church (Westminster UCC)
First Congregational Church (now called Westminster Congregational Church), located next to Lewis and Clark High School, has a long history. In 1838 when Congregationalists first arrived in the…
First Church of Christ, Scientist
The year 1889 brought a new religious experience to Spokane. The Church of Christ, Scientist, was described by one adherent as “similar to Protestantism,” with having the added benefit of scientific…
Fire Lookouts – From Hermit's Castles to Weekend Get-A-Ways: Fire Lookouts
The fire lookout started as a means of early detection of forest fires. Today its new role is as a week-end get-a-way.
Fight for the Spokane County Seat: A Midnight Raid and a Grand Steal
Vigilante justice and mob law took Spokane County by storm on the fateful night of March 21st, 1881. A group of eight disgruntled men from Cheney under the leadership of John Still, the Cheney…
Felts Field
Felts Field is not only the oldest airport in the Spokane area but is also one of the oldest federally designated airstrips in the country.
Located near Rutter and Fancher and along the banks of…
Father Velis and the Holy Trinity Lawn, Riverside Cemetery
Greek Orthodox heritage in Spokane: Father Nicholas J. Velis was instrumental in fostering its growth and longevity. He was also the one who pushed for an eternal resting ground for the community of…
Fast Times at the Hotel Emery: Brawls, thefts, scams, and scandals filled the brief life of this downtown hotel.
One of the early hostelries for visitors to Spokane Falls was the Hotel Emery, a two-story brick building on Riverside between Washington and Bernard that opened in 1892. The building's first owner is…
Farmington,WA
Like most towns in Whitman County, Farmington was once a prosperous and rapidly expanding community during the early twentieth century. An abundance of nearby timber and a close water source was what…
Falls City Opera House: Spokane's First Live Theater
The rude frontier hamlet of Spokane experienced its first taste of the nightlife in 1887 when the Falls City Opera house opened at 706 West Main Street. Spokane's "first and only theater" was open to…
Fairmont Creamery and Cold Storage: Ghost Signs of Spokane Tour
On the outskirts of Spokane's Central Business District lies a scattering of brick warehouses littered with the fading signs of a different era, including one advertising the Fairmont Creamery and…
F.A. Williams Pioneer Ford: Ghost Signs of Spokane Tour - Story 7
Before the automobile, Spokane moved at a much slower pace. Across America, city streets were filled with pedestrians, horses, buggies, and streetcars-- all moving at speeds below 10 mph. Like many…
Eyes to the Skies!: Civil Defense Volunteers Ensured Safety and Posterity
Ground Observer Corps volunteers support Air Force command in protection from Soviet air attacks
Rediscovering the River: Expo '74 and Riverfront Park Tour
How did Spokane get a hundred-acre park right in the middle of downtown? Riverfront Park was once a tangled mess of railroad tresses and industrial overgrowth. During the 1960s it was hard to even…
The Hamatsa Spirit Totem Pole: Expo '74 and Riverfront Park Tour - Stop 9
The totem pole on snxw mene’ island in Riverfront Park is an original work by the internationally-renowned Canadian artist Joe David. David and his apprentice, artist Frank Charlie (both from the…