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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 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…
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 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…
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 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,…
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…
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…
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…
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…
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.
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.
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.
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.
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…
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.
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.
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.
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
The Burch Brothers Go to War: Three Spokane Lads in the First World War
“I have no feeling or human sympathy for a Hun. They are treacherous and brutal and have no sense of fairness whatever. But they will get an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth." --Charles Burch
The Cursed City of Spokane
Long time Spokanites have a handy explanation for when things go wrong in city government- a curse
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…
The Ball and Chain Lane: The Homes for Married Students: Ball and Chain Lane: an affectionate name or a critical social commentary?
Hidden in the eastern corner of Whitworth campus, located behind the HUB where the parking lot currently is, stood a collection of residences once known as College Homes. These apartments came to be…
The Evolution of Sunset Field: How the United States Military Repurposed Spokane’s Airfield
When the United States was pulled into World War Two thousands of American businesses were repurposed to better support the war effort. It was this direct response to an overseas threat that…
Airway Heights, Washington’s Unknown Sundown Town: One of Eastern Washington's newer communities was founded with racial restrictions
“Airway Heights celebrated its 50-year history June 14, 2005 and has Carl M. and Flora K. Lundstrom to thank for early city-building. The Lundstrom’s were the first to plat the land, donate parcels…
The Wednesday Art Club: Black Spokane's Leading Cultural Organization
The Wednesday Art Club of Spokane was much more than an art club. The African-American women-lead organization gave back to a city that did not always recognize them.
The Moon Crater: A Spokanite Who Brought A Piece of the Moon to Expo 74’
Unnoticed by many as they pass by on the Centennial Trail, "Moon Crater" by famous sculptor Glen Michaels is part of the many art installations at the World’s Fair Expo in 1974.
The Civilian Conservation Corps in the Inland Northwest: "We can take it!"
From 1933 to 1942, Fort George Wright was the headquarters of the Inland Northwest Civilian Conservation Corps.
Camp Seven Mile: The Civilian Conservation Corps and the Creation of Riverside State Park
A lone chimney and and some wayside panels are all that remain of the camp of Civilian Conservation Corps 949th Company.
Historical African American Neighborhoods in Spokane: In Spokane's earliest decades, neighborhoods were segregated by wealth, not by race.
Before 1920, Spokane neighborhoods had no formal policies segregating housing by race. Successful Black Spokanites erected fine residents all over town, many of which still stand today.