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Spokane in the Great War: Spokane was deeply involved in the First World War, but few visible reminders remain
The Marne bridge across Latah Creek is the only World War one monument in Spokane
Spokane Army Air Depot: The Birth of Fairchild
What is now Fairchild Airforce Base originated as an Army Air Supply and Repair Depot to service the other airfields around Spokane and in the Pacific Northwest.
Baxter Hospital: Mercy on a Grand Scale
Called the City of Mercy and containing more than 2000 beds this hospital was its own self-contained community.
Brown Industries: From Sheet Metal to Airplanes
Brown Metal Works started as a sheet metal production business but during World War 2 the Brown Brothers' passion for aviation led to shifting the companies focus.
USO Clubs in Spokane: A Soldiers Home Away From Home
As the Second World War raged on soldiers returning home on leave or based in the states needed recreational centers to destress. Black soldiers did not always feel welcome in USO clubs so separate…
Spokane’s Red Tail: Spit Fire, Jack D. Holsclaw
Born and raised in Spokane, Jack D. Holsclaw spent World War II flying as a Tuskegee airman.
World War II Airshow Catastrophe: Horror Rode the Skies Crashing Down to Earth
For a crowd of 100,000 in the Inland Northwest a war show became a little too real when two airplanes crashed and exploded.
They Called Him The Sphinx: Robert E. Strahorn, Builder of the North Coast Railroad
During construction of the North Coast Railroad, Robert E Strahorn adopted a persona of mystery in order to keep competitors from learning the secret of his funding.
Union Pacific Rail Depot: Lost Architectural Masterpiece
Unlike the Great Northern Station which has left its mark on downtown Spokane, nothing remains of the elegant Union Station instead the Red Rider Wagon play area occupies its former location.
Denny Yasuhara: Community Leader, Activist, and Mentor: "The greatest gift that one human being can give to another is not their wealth or position, but their honor and dignity for that is the essence of freedom." ~ Denny Yasuhara
Denny Yasuhara's involvement in the formation of the Hifumi En Apartments, his willingness to advocate for the civil rights of the Japanese American community, and his mentorship as a teacher were…
Glover Field
The city of Spokane purchased land in Peaceful Valley to build an athletic stadium in 1912. The Stadium boasted a six-lane running track and bleachers that could hold 10,000 spectators. The Stadium…
Recreation Center
On November 22, 1949 a barrack was purchased from Geiger Field for a new recreation center in Peaceful Valley. While in transit, the building slid onto the pavement at First and Monroe in downtown…
Gold Fever
In the midst of the Great Depression, the Spokane Chamber of Commerce declared that the gold rush was on in Spokane Washington. Captain J. Richard Brown, who was a mining engineer, gave 9 speeches at…
The Benny and Joon House
The Benny and Joon house is located at 301 N. Cedar Street in Peaceful Valley. The movie was released in 1993 by Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer. The cast of the film included Johnny Depp, Mary Stuart Masterson,…
Hixson Union Building: The HUB of the campus
The second phase of the Hixson Union Building, known as the HUB, was completed on October 23, 1998 where it was declared finished by Whitworth’s president, Bill Robinson. The HUB's predecessor existed…
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…
The Yellowstone Trail
"Plymouth Rock to Puget Sound" was the motto of the Yellowstone Trail, America's first transcontinental highway, established in 1912.
Interstate 90 was not the first road in the United States to…
The Sunshine Mine Disaster: Idaho's Worst Mining Disaster
Mining has always been hard, dirty, and above all dangerous work. This monument memorializes one of the worst tragedies ever to strike the Silver Valley, the Sunshine Mine Disaster of 1972.
Of…
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 Father of the Fair: Expo '74 and Riverfront Park Tour - Stop 3
In 1974, a World's Fair helped Spokane remove unsightly railroads from its downtown riverfront and left Riverfront Park in its wake. Spokane was the smallest city to ever host a World's Fair, so it…
When Nixon Came to the Fair: Expo '74 and Riverfront Park Tour
In May of 1974, an embattled President Richard Nixon visited Spokane to dedicate the 1974 World's Fair against a backdrop of lies, cover-ups, and political drama. By this time, the president was in…
Canada Island: Expo '74 and Riverfront Park Tour - Stop 8
Canada Island has had many different names and faces in the last 150 years. Today the island is a part of Riverfront Park and serves as a natural oasis in the middle of downtown. Forty years ago it…
Cold War Thaw: Expo '74 and Riverfront Park Tour - Stop 4
The 1974 World's Fair took place against a backdrop of improving relations between the United States and Soviet Russia. In May of 1972, USSR officials and President Nixon signed an environmental…
Spokane Falls SkyRide: Expo '74 and Riverfront Park Tour - Stop 7
The 1974 World's Fair provided Spokane with an opportunity to reclaim the beauty of Spokane Falls, which had been hidden for years by railroad tracks. In order to provide visitors with the most…
Merkel Field: The Home of Whitworth's Baseball Team
Field of Dreams
The Origins of Segregated Neighborhoods in Spokane: It Started in the Cemeteries
By the mid-20th century, racially segregated neighborhoods became common in Spokane. Some were segregated by the force of law.
The Pioneer Falls
Extending upstream from where you stand is Inspiration Point and the monuments to the so-called Christian Pioneers. Funded and dedicated by an ecumenical collection of local churches, the monument…
The Great Northern Clocktower: Expo '74 and Riverfront Park Tour
You are standing next to the clock tower of the former Great Northern station. It is one of the few surviving remnants of Havermale Island as it was from the first years of the 20th century until…
The Creation of the Falls: The Indian Falls
You are now looking at the Lower Falls of the Spokane River. This site was important in both the legends and daily lives of the Spokane, the Coeur d'Alene and others in this region.
In one…
Getting a Goat: Expo '74 and Riverfront Park Tour
Surrounded by a grotto of basalt columns is one of the most perennially popular remnants of Riverfront Park's past - the "Garbage Goat." Sculpted by Sister Paula Turnbull, a local nun and leading…